Going back 140 years (through 2010), and using the NCAA as the source, here are the top 10 schools and the percentage of winning games:

1. Michigan  73.453%

2. Notre Dame  73.266%

3. Texas  71.730%

4. Oklahoma  71.704%

5. Ohio State  71.562%

6. Alabama  70.747%

7. Southern Cal  70.496%

8. Nebraska  70.131%

9. Tennessee  68.993%

10. Penn State  68.940%

Four of the top 10 are B1G schools now including Nebraska.  I like that.

The University of Michigan is number one.  I hate that.

I’m a Michigan State University grad, and always hated Michigan football growing up.  For the record, my MSU Spartans came in #29 at 59.145%.

If you want to see the big list, click here.

I was looking for some direction, instructions, tips, inspiration, etc. on how to paint a cycle helmet, and really couldn’t find anything worthwhile. Why is that?  Who knows.

I recently purchased a 1973 Honda CL175. It’s a pretty fun little bike, but my old Polaris ATV helmet felt pretty out-of-place. I wanted an old school open-face helmet like the old Bell helmets of my youth. I found a great Fulmer helmet, gold sparkle, at Ray Price H-D on sale and I snapped it up.

But it just didn’t seem exactly right yet. Not quite “me” yet. So I decided to put some racing stripes on it. Again, no luck finding any help online, but I’ve been a spray-painter going back to my elementary school model building days, so I decided to just do it myself. And pray that I don’t ruin my brand new, pristine helmet.

I got some 3M thin line tape to use to mask off the racing stripes. I originally planned for some thinner ’60s style stripes, but got on a roll and ended up with something that would have been right at home on the hood of a 1970 Chevelle Super Sport.

Step #1a. The trick is to start with long strips of tape and work on getting a nice, straight center line going from snap to snap.  You can peel and adjust as needed, but keep a long strip instead of focusing on a small area. Once you get it right, press down the tape firmly and make sure that there are no wrinkles, breaks or bubbles.

Step #1b. I used some of the blue tape as a guide for stripe thickness. I laid down a strip on either side of my center strip, but that was a bit too narrow, so I added a second strip to each side that 50% overlapped the first piece. That looked about right. I used the thin line tape again to mask off the outside edge of the fat stripe (also the inside edge of the outer (thinner) stripe). This was pretty easy using the blue tape as a guide and again I worked in long strips and focused on getting an even, smooth line.  Once I had both sides down, I removed the blue guide tape.

Step #1c. The space between the fat stripes and the thin stripes should match the center space, so I used a piece of thin line as a space guide. Then I added the thin line tape to mask off the outside edge of the thinner stripe in the same manner as mentioned in Step 1b. Once I had the outside edges masked to my liking, I peeled the guide tape. Viola, stripes!

Step #1d. Using regular painters (blue) tape, I masked off everything that I didn’t want painted.

Here is how it looked masked off:

Next, you head over the paint shop, on in my case, five feet away from my work bench on my garage floor. I used the Fulmer box as a stand and put a plastic shopping bag on it so that it didn’t get covered in paint. I also threw down a plastic tarp to protect my basement floor.

Step #2. Pull the trigger!  Yep, it’s time to paint. I went to Ace Hardware and browsed their selection of flat black spray paint and decided to go with their house-brand premium lacquer because it promised to dry quickly, leave a hard yet smooth finish, and you didn’t have to re-coat in less than two hours or more than five days. Following the directions, I put down three light, even coats taking care not to put it down too thick and cause runs or ripples.

It looked a little funky after the first coat. Not flat and not black. I figured I may have ruined my helmet, but oh well. Too late for regrets now.Here is how it looked right after applying the first coat:

I applied the coats about 30 minutes apart, and after the third coat, I let it dry for about two hours. Then curiosity got the best of me. I HAD to see how it looked, and how well the masking tape worked.

Step #3. Peel the tape. I peeled the blue stuff first. Success, no errant spray paint. Next I peeled the thin line tape one by one and it came off nice and clean. No bleeding, no issues. It didn’t even leave any residue. That was it. Done and done. Here is the final product:

What do you think? I’m digging it! And the best part, nobody but me has one just like it.

And just like that, the season is over. What a season it was!

• 11 wins, the most ever for MSU
• A Big Ten Championship, the first since 1990
• #8 BCS / #7 AP and USA Today ranking after the regular season
• Beat Michigan for the third year running which MSU hasn’t done since ’65-’66-’67
• Beat Penn State in Happy Valley for the first time since ’65
• Beat Notre Dame on an amazing OT fake field goal
• Beat Wisconsin handily, their only loss on the year
• Became a team that finishes strong with big come-from-behind wins against Northwestern and Purdue

Just look at the record:

A great year for a great Spartan team.

Regarding last week’s game against the Penn State Nittany Lions, nobody seemed to know what to think about this one. MSU had the better record, and on paper, the better team. But Penn State dominated the series as of late, and simply do not lose at home. The last time the Spartans won at Penn State, JoePa was an assistant coach!

For the first three quarters, the Spartans ran the show. It wasn’t a runaway game or anything, but MSU methodically moved the ball on offense, minimized it’s mistakes and played solid defense. At the end of the third quarter, it was 21-3 MSU. The Lions made it interesting in the fourth quarter putting up 19 points, but MSU didn’t fade and finished 28-22 for the win.

Kirk Cousins played injured with an ankle and shoulder sprain, and apparently in a lot of pain. He played through it and had a good day to boot. Cousins was 17-22 in the air for 152 yards and two TDs. Keith Nichol stepped in for a 3-yard pass for the third passing TD. MSU receivers where hot with Lithicum and Gantt pulling in four catches, Cunningham had three and Caper, Fowler and Bell had two each.

Edwin Baker has proved to be THE running back for 2010. Against Penn State he had 128 yards on the ground and a TD. Keshawn Martin only ran the ball twice, but what an exciting runner he is picking up over 40 yards on his two carries.

The Spartan defense was in full effect Saturday holding the Lions to a field goal for 3/4 of the game. Greg Jones, Eric Gordon, Johnny Adams, Jerel Worthy, etc. all played great and got the job done. Penn State gained momentum late in the game, but the Spartans made the crucial stops when it counted. And what a huge improvement over 2009!

The catastrophe known as the Land Grant Trophy will live in East Lansing for a while, and it’s been a while. And the good news is we’ll see Joe Paterno at Big Ten games for another season. Way to go Joe with 400+ victories. Amazing.

After the regular season, the Spartans are a top-ten team:

What’s next? Let’s go bowling. MSU is lobbying consideration for a BCS bowl, but I don’t think that will happen. Not that I don’t want it, but Wisconsin will go to the Rose Bowl and Ohio State will get the BCS bowl. I was longing for the Rose Bowl, and after that, I’m not quite so concerned. We’ll know the score come this weekend.

As for Michigan, they lost. Ohio State schooled Michigan 37-7. For once in my entire life, I would have liked to see the Wolverines win. But no. Michigan ends up 7-5 and is bowl elegible for the first time under RichRod. The man should go simply because he can’t seem to win against any real teams. And, don’t forget, he has yet to beat Ohio State or Michigan State. The M Go Blue fanatics are likely getting very tired of having to be humble. Fire him now when it makes sense instead of waiting until after the bowl games. Whatever, I’m fine with Michigan being bad. RichRod Forever!

Notre Dame also finished 7-5, but they had to win against USC to do it. Coach Kelly’s fighting Irish will go bowling this year, which is good news after a shaking first season. I’ve got confidence that the Irish will be much improved in 2011, but it’s a long road back to greatness.

I’ll check back in this weekend with a bowl update and season end stats. Rest up Spartans, we’ve got a game New Years day to get ready for.

GO GREEN!

It was Senior Day at Spartan Stadium, and the last home game of the season. A season where MSU has not lost at home, and has only lost one game  to their nine wins. The Spartans were the clear favorite against the 4-6 Boilermakers.

The Spartans drew first blood with a 24-yard Kirk Cousins to Mark Dell TD about six minutes in.

Then the wheels seemed to come off. A minute later, Purdue breaks lose an 80-yard run up the middle for a quick response. A minutes and a half later, Purdue picks off a Cousins pass for a 35-yard pick-six. With the score Purdue 14, Michigan State 7, maybe this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park after all. The Boilermakers had all the momentum and Spartan Stadium was in a state of shock.

Thank God for Edwin Baker. Early in the second quarter, Baker powered through for a 19-yard TD. The score should have been tied, but Dan Conroy hit the upright and the ball deflected away making it 14-13 Purdue. Before the half, Purdue scored again making it 21-13 at the half. Cousins was 12-13 passing at the halfway point, but that one miss was a very costly one.

Purdue scored in the third quarter opening up their lead to 28-13. It was at this point that ESPN started running UPSET ALERT across the bottom of the screen and the commentators were talking about how a MSU loss would leave Ohio and Wisconsin at the top of the Big Ten battle for the Rose Bowl. I was getting pretty pissy right about now, truth be told.

And then the fourth quarter started. It was like someone turned the electricity back on.

Chris L. Rucker intercepts a Rob Henry pass and returns it 20-yards to the Purdue 20 yard line.  B.J. Cunningham caps off a six play drive to score on a 5-yard pass play. 28-20 Purdue.

Purdue responded with a 54 yard kickoff return. MSU’s defense holds but the Boilermakers do manage a 52-yard FG. 31-20 Purdue.

Now the Spartans were fired up and everything was clicking. 15-yard pass to Gantt. 7-yard run from Baker. 10-yard pass to Linthicum. 28-yard pass to Cunningham. And finally, a 9-yard pass to Dell for the TD. Holy statastic, the two-point conversion is good too. 31-28 Purdue.

With 6:54 left, Purdue begins at the 20 and the MSU defense stopped them cold. On fourth down, Denicos Allen flies through the air and blocks Purdue’s punt. Johnny Adams recovers on the Purdue three yard line. We are freakin’ out at this point.

Second down, it’s a keeper as QB Kirk Cousins runs it in for the TD. For the first time since early in the first quater, the Spartans take the lead 35-31.

4:24 remains on the clock as Purdue starts their drive on their 34 yard line. It looks like another four-and-out when Rob Henry completes a 14-yard pass on a fourth and six. The Boilermakers march all the way to the MSU 20 yard line when their drive stalls at a crucial fourth and eight. Rob Henry is flushed from the pocket and takes a huge Greg Jones hit just as he releases the ball. Chris Norman intercepts the pass for MSU and it’s all over in East Lansing.

It was quite a game. The Spartans never gave up, and they fought back to win.

MSU was 30-40 passing for 286 yards in the air with three TDs and one INT. Mark Dell was The Man with eight receptions for 108 yards and two TDs. B.J. Cunningham also had a great day with six catches for 51 yards and a TD. Eight other Spartans caught passes including four for Keshawn Martin who was back after missing a few games to an injury.

Wisconsin and Ohio State both won Saturday leaving the three-way tie for the Big Ten unchanged.

Looking ahead to the final week of the season, MSU goes on the road to face the 7-4 Penn State Nittany Lions. The last time the Spartans won in Happy Valley was 1965. Ugh. Well, it’s been a year of breaking records and streaks, so let’s believe in MSU. MSU is 11-14 versus Penn State, and the last win was in 2007 in East Lansing.

Wisconsin hosts the 7-4 Northwestern Wildcats at Camp Randall. The Badgers look mighty tough, especially at home. And with Dan Persa out, I’d say that Wisconsin is a lock.

Ohio State hosts Michigan for The Game. OSU is 43-57-6 against the UofM squad, but those 57 losses are mostly ancient history. The Buckeyes have won eight of the last 1o games with their last loss being back in 2003. I do think that anything can happen in The Game, but Michigan simply has a very lame defense which OSU will dismantle easily.

Speaking of Michigan, they beat Purdue last week (I predicted a loss, I was wrong) but lost 48-28 to Wisconsin this week. The Badgers simply ran all over the Wolverine’s (lack of) defense. I would have loved a Michigan win, which is not something you’ll hear me say very often. Michigan 7-4 and will likely finish 8-4.

Notre Dame on the other hand has cleaned up their act. They beat-up on Utah last week (again, I predicted a loss and was wrong) at home, which was just the right win at the right moment for Coach Kelly and The Fighting Irish. This week they took on Army at Yankee Stadium and won 27-3 in the green jerseys. The Irish are 6-5 and bowl eligible. ND finishes their season next week at USC. I think Southern Cal will beat the Irish at home, but it will be close.

Great job this week Spartans. I know Kirk Cousins is suffering from a shoulder and an ankle sprain, and he is playing in a lot of pain. I hope that he can make it one more game before he can lay off and heal. Penn State is going to be tough, but they are beatable. It can be done.

As always, GO GREEN!

State was not up to par on the ground with only 95 yards rushing.  Edwin Baker accounted for 90 of those yards and he passed the 1,000 yard mark on the season.

The AP and USA Today put MSU at #10, but the sages at the BCS take them down a notch to #11. I guess beating a 1-9 Minnesota doesn’t impress the computers all that much.

Elsewhere in the Big Ten…

• Wisconsin moves up from #9 to #7, and is currently the highest ranked Big Ten team.
• Almost-Big Ten Nebraska slips from #7 to #8.
• Ohio State moves up from #11 to #9.
• Iowa moves up from #16 to #13.

Not too bad for the Big Ten with two teams in the Top Ten and four teams in the Top 25.

Edwin Baker celebrates MSU’s win over Minnesota, and deservedly so.

I watched the game on some covert, streaming peer-to-peer pirate website which was great and awful at the same time. It was great that I could watch the game, and I was very glad for that. It was awful because it was very lo-res, choppy and somebody somewhere kept changing the channel to check in on other games. I guess beggars can’t be choosers.

So, let’s hear it for Edwin Baker. Baker scored all four MSU TDs.

He had 179 of the Spartans 189 rushing yards all by himself.

He was scrappy, explosive and you could tell he just wanted it more than anyone else on the field. I’m a big Edwin Baker fan.

Le’Veon Bell couldn’t seem to make anything happen against the Gophers, which was a disappointment. I think Bell is going to be great, but he is a bit hit-or-miss against tougher Big Ten schools. Bennie Fowler looked good, and Larry Caper was barely visible as a runner and seems more effective as a receiver. The three-headed running back monster seems to morphing in to just Edwin Baker.

Kirk Cousins looked good but not great. He was 9 for 20 for 131 yards passing. It didn’t seem like Kirk has the poise of past games, and his confidence might be a bit shaken after three picks last week. He did throw one pick, but I’ll excuse it since it was tipped. B.J. Cunningham and Mark Dell both had some nice catches.

The Spartan Defense looked tough and solid. Greg Jones and Co. held the Gophers to only 76 yards rushing and one TD in the fourth quarter. Jerel Worthy is a tough hombre. I would have nightmares if I was a QB facing #99 next week.

Granted, the Golden Gophers are not having a great year. Their coach was fired and they 1-9 overall, 0-6 in conference. At the same time, they are not all together awful either. They’ve got some quality players and can be dangerous on any given play. I’m glad the Spartans dispatched them without too much trouble, but I’m not gushing by any means.

Aaron Bates continues to impress with his punting averaging 41.7 yards per. And I bet every team pauses for a moment to ponder if he’s just going to haul off and throw a first down. You know the seed is planted.

If the MSU game was a little boring, the Michigan game was completely bananas. It was beautiful in it’s calamity. Both offenses were on fire. Both defenses were ice cold. I was most surprised by Illinois. I didn’t think their offense was THAT good, or that their defense was THAT bad. They rose/sunk to the level of their competition. The Wolverines offense has been pretty spectacular most of the season. And that is where it all ends. A 1-D team in a 3-D world. In the triple overtime finish, the Fighting Illini failed on the two-point conversion, and the Wolverines win 67-65 and finally end their three-game in-conference losing streak. Maybe RichRod’s seat cooled slightly after the win, but who knows. Michigan is 6-3 and bowl eligible for the first time since 2007. They still have to face Purdue on the road, Wisconsin at home, and then The Game at the Shoe. I predict UofM loses all three, but Purdue is the big question.

Notre Dame had a bye, so no new news. They’re 4-5 and they face a Utah team that got smacked in the mouth against TCU. I bet Utah comes back madder than hell and the Irish lose another one at home. Like UofM, I’ve got ND going 6-6.

The Spartans are off next week with a well-deserved break. I’m hoping to see a fired-up, healed-up, fueled-up Spartan team take on the Boilermakers Nov. 20th in East Lansing. I think the time off will do them some good. You’re 9-1 boys, and that’s pretty dang awesome.

I don’t know what the BCS will do (who does), but the AP and USA Today both put MSU at #10.

#10 is better then I expected after beating Minnesota, but if feels good to be there after #14/#16 last week.

Other AP rankings in the Big Ten:

• Wisconsin moves up to #7 from #9.
• Ohio State hangs at #8.
• Iowa moves up from #15 to #13.
• Almost-Big Ten school Nebraska hangs at #9.

Happy to be back in the top ten! Now, what will the BCS do?

Nice work this week Spartans. Take a breather, you’ve earned it. We’ll see you in two weeks.  GO GREEN!

In some ways, I expected worse.  Iowa is a good team so losing to them isn’t as bad as losing to Tulsa or Appalachian State. The BCS computers don’t factor in the score, so they do not distinguish a close game from the trainwreck that was MSU-Iowa. In the Big Ten…

• Michigan State drops from #5 to #14 after losing to Iowa
• Wisconsin moves up from #10 to #9
• Ohio State stays put at #11
• Iowa moves up from #18 to #16
• And finally, almost-Big Ten school Nebraska moves up from #14 to #7

Big Ten rankings got a little more interesting with State’s loss to Iowa.  There are now four one-loss teams duking it out for the conference.  MSU and OSU both have four wins, so they are up top.  Wisconsin and Iowa have three wins each, so they are right behind the leads.  There is a gaggle of two-loss clubs waiting for the whole thing to bust lose .  Michigan, Indiana and Minnesota are holding down the bottom of the list.

Oregon and Auburn flip-flop at the #1 and #2 two spots with the Ducks as the top team in the country.  They handled USC pretty well and looked good doing it. I agree with Oregon at #1. TCU and Boise State flip-flop at #3 and #4. These are obviously good teams, but I can’t tell how good becuase most weeks they are playing teams I have never heard of.

Lastly, give it up for NC State!  The Pack slip in at #25 this week.

Sometimes nothing works for nobody none of the times. That’s a triple-negative, and that’s still not enough negatives to describe how MSU played against Iowa. It was awful. It sucked. I am very glad it is over and done. Let the healing begin.

A few facts to consider:

• MSU rushed for 31 yards.
• MSU had three picks, one a pick-six, for 122 yards.
• MSU had seven penalties for 63 yards.
• MSU converted four of 14 third downs, and zero of two fourth downs.

Any one of these fun facts could be the nail in a game-losing coffin, but all of these… it’s a recipe for a serious old-school ass kickin’. And that is what happened. Iowa really played well and the home crowd kept the decible level up there. The Hawkeyes weren’t prefect, but they were dang good. They ran for 162 yards and threw for 190. Very balanced, kind of like MSU has the ability to be. They never turned the ball over and they kept the penalties in-check.

I’ve got to say, they almost looked confused by how easy it was to beat the Spartans. I know I was.

MSU did a few things well. Cousins had 227 yards in the air, including one for a TD. But three turnovers from a guy who has only had four on the season really takes the shine off that number. And Bates averaged 48.5 per punt. The sad note on that one is we punted six times. The only kicker that got more of a workout was Iowa’s place kicker who had to kick-off seven times. Conroy never got to kick. The only PAT for MSU was a failed two-point conversion.

Bottom line: We sucked last weekend. This can happen, even to great teams. It’s a stumble. It doesn’t mean that the Spartans aren’t a great team or can’t win the big game. It means that they lost the game on the bus ride to Iowa. They didn’t have their heads screwed on straight and it cost them. But’s it’s done. The pressure of being undefeated is done. So now can we just get back to playing some great Spartan football. Thank God.

One thing is for sure, I’d rather be Michigan State than Notre Dame or Michigan. Those guys are hurtin’.

Notre Dame is now 4-5 after losing to Tulsa. Dan Crist is out of the season and they host #8 Utah at home next weekend. And I’m not even getting in to the tragedy that occurred last week. Coach Kelly has his hands full.

Michigan seems to be doing there very best to imitate the 2009 season where they were undefeated, lost to State and then lost all but one game for the rest of the season. This year, they are 5-3 with back-to-back-to-back losses to MSU, Iowa and Penn State. Now the AD is not answering questions which makes me think RichRod is on eggshells. The winningest program in NCAA football is struggling again. They need one more win to be bowl eligible, and my money is on Purdue. They host a very good Illinois team next week which even at home is going to be a tough win. Then Purdue on the road, but Purdue is struggling after two big defeats in their last two games. Then they end with #10 Wisconisn and #11 Ohio State at The Shoe for  The Game – No way Jose at winning either of these. In fact, Michigan’s psyche may be so screwed at this point, they may just lose out and miss bowling for a third year in a row.

Being 8-1 sounds pretty darn good compared to these sob stories.

So, next week the Spartans play the Golden Gophers in East Lansing. Minnesota is 1-8 this year, and hasn’t won a conference game. I hope to see the my Michigan State Spartans come out with fire in their eyes and steam coming out of their ears. We need a cleansing win. We need to get our confidence back. We need a win. So come on boys: Eyes forward, total focus, fire up.  GO GREEN!

For three glorious years, we have enjoyed having old Paul Bunyan as a East Lansing resident.  GO GREEN!

We’ll find out tonight was the BCS thinks, but Michigan State at #5 is awesome.

Elsewhere in the AP Top 25, the Big Ten:

• Wisconsin moves up from #10 to #9
• Ohio State moves from #11 to #10
• Iowa drops from #13 to #18
• Almost-Big Ten school Nebraska hangs at #14

One other note, Michigan re-appears in the USA Today Poll at #25 after a bye week

That is three Big Ten schools in the Top Ten!

Got to give it up for Mark Dell and B.J. Cunningham. It was tough sledding, but these guys, and all of the Spartans, hung in there for the comeback victory against Northwestern.

Once again, the Spartans started slow with an uninspiring first half. Q1 was particularly not-great on offense. The defense struggled too, and made some big plays as NU jumped to a 7-0 lead. In Q2 they kicked an FG and scored a TD taking a 17-0 lead; the biggest lead versus the MSU this season. I wouldn’t say I was freaking out at this point, but I did feel that if the Wildcats scored again, we were going to be in some deep shazbot.

Oh, and Dan Conroy broke his perfect streak missing number 15, a 38-yard attempt (which he can do all day long) in wet and very windy conditions. Wide right. He’s having a great season so I was bummed that his streak ended before he could beat the MSU record of 15.  I also would have liked those three points.

And then momentum shifted. Le’Veon Bell had a nice 20-yard punt return, and that seemed to start it. Kirk Cousins led the Spartans 68 yards in eight plays ending with a TD pass to Mark Dell. 7-17. Thank God for some points.

In Q3, after forcing the NU punt, the Spartans go 38 yards in three plays to score on a Bennie Fowler 22 yard run. 14-17. Hey, this is getting close.

After some back-and-forth, the Wildcats take it in the endzone again. 14-24. Urgh.

As Q3 ends and Q4 begins, the Spartans put together a 11-play, 75-yard driver that ends with a pass to Mark Dell. 21-24. An amazing fourth down fake punt play called “Mousetrap” has the punter Aaron Bates completing a 21 yard pass to Bennie Fowler was awesome, and really stoked the MSU fire.

NU kicked another FG. 21-27. Six points, very do-able.

MSU marched again going 88 yards in 11 plays to score on a pass to B.J. Cunningham which was deflected by a defenseman, tipped multiple times by Cunningham, and finally hauled-in for the TD.  The play was reviewed, but it was clear that although it was incredibly acrobatic, it was a indisputable reception. 28-27. The Spartans take the lead for the first time with 2:00 left in the game.

And that was it for the Dan Persa and the Wildcats. After turning it over on downs, Edwin Baker powered 25 hard fought yards for the final TD of the ballgame. 35-27. MSU remains undefeated in 2010.

Northwestern was TOUGH. These guys fight hard. Both teams had penalties, but six for 66 yards really hurt NU. The Wildcats defense were excellent against the Spartan running attack most of the day, but couldn’t stop the passing game. Dan Persa is a truly exceptional QB, but the Spartan defense got in his face with eight sacks.

Great road win Spartans. There was a lot of pre-game buzz that Sparty was on the road outside of the state of Michigan, and could they win on the road? Northwestern had a bye week giving them two weeks to prepare for the game. All of that is valid I guess, but MSU did exactly what had to be done. They focused and they never faltered. I believe that the Spartans believe that they are a championship caliber team. Big Ten or BCS, who knows? But they are driven and with eight wins, no losses, they’re making it happen.

Keshawn Martin is injured and only played a bit of the first quarter. That’s a big loss as he is a playmaker.

Next week looms though. Maybe the toughest game on the schedule is coming up next week as MSU travels to Iowa. Iowa dropped their second game of the season against Wisconsin bringing them to 5-2 (2-1 Big Ten). We’ll see if the Hawkeyes are broke down or fighting mad coming off the loss at home. Last year, a last second Stanzi to McNutt TD won the game for Iowa, so the Spartans should be coming in looking for some payback. Plenty of plot points, let alone the fact that these are two great teams.

Ohio State and Wisconsin are squarely on Sparty’s six both 7-1 / 3-1. Luckily, we don’t play the buckeyes this year. And we’ve already played and beat the Badgers. The Big Ten is still tight with four one-loss in-conference teams following the Spartans.

No news is good news for the Wolverines who had a bye this week. The extra week should help them get healthy both physically and mentally after losing two in a row at home (MSU and Iowa).Michigan is on the road at Penn State next week.

The headline “IRISH CREAM SEAMAN” would have been priceless. But nope. The Midshipmen beat up on Notre Dame in Southbend 35-17. After a 43 year ND winning streak versus Navy, they are now 1-3 in the last four years. That is demoralizing for the players and completely unacceptable to the Faithful. Coach Kelly is struggling to get the Irish back on track. They are 4-4, and they still have USC and Utah. I predict a 6-6 year for ND, but I’m hoping for better.

Okay Spartans, enjoy the win. And tomorrow, get back it. Iowa will not go down without a major fight, so you need to bring it to them. Eyes forward. Total focus. GO GREEN!

In 13 years of the BCS, this is the highest ranking that the Spartans have ever earned.

MSU is playing smart, balanced, inspired football this year. Congrats to the players, the coaches, and the fans.

Next week, on the road against a tough Northwestern club. GO GREEN!

They have every right to sing. They are 7-0 for the first time since 1966 (0ne year before I was born), they lead the Big Ten and they are ranked in the Top 10 schools in the country. Way to go Spartans!

I watched the game via streaming video on my computer as it wasn’t televised. I’m really glad I watched it because it was amazing. Amazingly different than the traditional Spartan game that is.

In the first half, MSU couldn’t seem to put anything together on offense. The run was shut down and the pass game wasn’t doing a whole lot better. Thank God the defense was playing well or we could have been in real trouble. Nearing the end of the first half, it was 3-3 before Illinois put up a late FG taking the 6-3 lead. That score paints the picture of a pretty boring game, but it was not. It was hard-hitting and touch-fought by both teams. And Illinois had the momentum.  And then they went in the locker room for halftime.

When they came back out for the second half, MSU was fired-up. Illinois was still tough, but the Spartans got a notch tougher.

The MSU defense deserves some serious respect as they cranked up the heat. Three interceptions AND a fumble recovery is impressive, but how about holding The Fighting Illini to ZERO second half points? Nuthin’! Awesome!

The MSU offense lit a fire scoring 23 unanswered points. Not the best stats of the year (93 yards on the ground and 201 in the air), but respectable. Most importantly, effective. When Illinois showed a crack on defense, Sparty took advantage of it. B.J. Cunningham and Mark Dell were both awesome. And how about Conroy being perfect after seven games! Amazing.

Take a look at the score summary and you can just tell it was a fun second half to watch:

We should note that MSU had WAY too many penalties. Not to mention that Martin dropped a punt for a turn-over. Need to improve on that stuff, it is avoidable.

So, Sparty is 7-0, and 3-0 in the Big Ten. Ohio State lost to Wisconsin, so MSU now sits alone atop the conference. We need to keep our heads straight and our eyes forward, but in the back of my head is a spark of an idea about a certain bowl game that I haven’t been too since New Years Day 1988. I know, don’t even think about that stuff. One game at a time. Focus on Northwestern coming up because they are damn good.

NW is 5-1 and 1-1 in-conference. They pretty much sucked every year when I was at State, but now they are a solid program. The tough part of their schedule starts next week, but they have Indiana, Penn State, Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin, they have some serious work to do from here on out. The game is at Noon at Spartan Stadium, and it will be televised on ESPN. It should be a good one.

You know I like to check in on Michigan and Notre Dame…

Michigan rallied (21 point Q4) but couldn’t pull it off against Iowa. Iowa is tough, no question. Michigan lost 38-28 and drop to 5-2. Once upon a time Heisman contender Denard Robinson went out with an injury and former starter Tate Forcier came in for the second time this year and played very well with the exception of two picks. Word is Denard is okay and will be back against Penn State after a bye week next week. Perfect timing. I hope RichRod gets his squad squared-away and avoids a repeat of 2009 when they opened 4-1 and ended 5-7. Seems like that old seat might be getting a bit warmer then it was two weeks ago. Yikes.

Notre Dame took on Western Michigan (called Wastern if you grew up in the state of Michigan, pretty much a party school in my day), and won 44-20. Western looked pretty good, but not that good. Notre Dame looked good, but not really great. I predict ND will beat Navy (finally), beat Tulsa, lose to Utah, beat Army and lose to USC to wrap the season 7-5. Not awesome, but good enough for a bowl game. Couch Kelly will get it figured out and get the Irish moving in the right direction.

The rankings are out. MSU is #8! That is pretty freakin’ great. Congrats to the Spartans. Wisconsin moves up from #18 to #10 after beating Ohio State. The Buckeyes drop from #1 to #11. Iowa moves up from #15 to #13. Both Northwestern and Michigan received votes, but didn’t crack the Top 25.

As always, a great game Spartans. Let’s enjoy it today, and then let’s get focused on Northwestern. Eyes forward and focused. Stay hungry.  GO GREEN!

Congrats to Ohio State for grabbing the #1 spot.

In the Big Ten, Iowa is #15, Wisconsin is #18 and Michigan drops out of the Top 25.  Soon-to-be-Big Ten team Nebraska is #5.

MSU played like champions. Michigan didn’t. And the Paul Bunyan Trophy continues to be an East Lansing resident for the third year running.

The curse of Mike Hart. November 3, 2007 after Michigan came back to win 28-24 at Spartan Stadium, Mike Hart made his imfamous “little brother” statement:

I’m not saying Hart is a bad guy or a big jerk or anything like that. I am saying that Michigan always blows hard to the point of arrogance. This is a pretty good example. And maybe they have the right to feel superior. They are the winningest team in NCAA football history. They have dominated the series with MSU 52-28-4 going back to 1918 (although they first matched up in 1869). They seem to have the popular vote within the state of Michigan and on a national level. Mike Hart made his comment because he believed it.

First year Coach Mark Dantonio’s response was pretty great, I thought:

Well Mr. Hart, I bet you wish you had said something else. Maybe just congratulated MSU on a great game and thanked the Lord for a comeback victory. Since that November Day, Michigan hasn’t beat Michigan State in Football (or Basketball for that matter). SImply put, Michigan can’t seem to win anymore. I think you cursed the Wolverines.

Enough about all that, I’m just having some fun. Enjoying the moment, if you will.

How about the Spartans!!! They rolled in to Ann Arbor to play in front of a hostile 113,000+ packed Big House, and delivered.

It was total control. It was total balance. It was a really great Spartan performance.

• 249 yards rushing including three rushing TDs by three different running backs: Baker, Bell and Caper
• 19-26 completions for 287 yards by Kirk Cousins
• Zero turn-overs: no interceptions, one fumble which MSU recovered
• Three Denard Robinson interceptions
• Held Robinson from breaking big plays

It would be an overstatement to say MSU shut down Denard Robinson, but they did severely limit him. Robinson turned in what I would call regular-good QB stats for a Big Ten quarterback. Not amazing as he had done all season, just a good game for a regular Big Ten QB. And against the TD Machine that he is, that is a huge MSU success. And now the world knows that Michigan can be stopped. You slow down Robinson and you can win.

It was great to see Coach D back in the action, albeit from the coach’s box. He looked good and feisty as ever. What a testament to his leadership and staff that the Spartans have continued to improve and win under these circumstances.

MSU faces the Fighting Illini next week in East Lansing.  3-2 Illinois is no slouch and the Spartans will need to move past the Michigan win and quickly change focus to the next challenger. Illinois may not have the most productive offense, but they have a tough defense that work to keep the score low – kind of the opposite of Michigan really.

In the Big Ten, it’s Ohio State and MSU leading the conference with identical 6-0 (2-0) records. Iowa (4-1) and Purdue (3-2) are both 1-0 in conference play. OSU should be the number 1 team in the nation when the rankings come out later today, which is awesome for the Buckeyes and for the Big Ten. It will be interesting to see where #17 MSU ranks for the coming week, and where #18 Michigan ranks. I don’t think we will see any movement for Iowa (bye week) or Wisconsin (beat 1-5 Minnesota).

Finally, let’s hear it for Notre Dame who beat Pitt to get back to even (3-3). Coach Kelly is struggling a bit in his first season leading the Irish, but I wish him well and expect that we’ll see continual progress as this fabled programs works towards regaining it’s elite status.

Okay Spartans, great work this week but eyes on Illinois. GO GREEN!!!

More to come tomorrow, but how about those Spartans. Any time MSU beats Michigan, I’m happy. Add to it that it’s the third year in a row and now the Spartans are 6-0 and I’m super-duper happy. GO GREEN!

Also in the Big 10:

• Ohio State remains #2 as they have been since the pre-season
• Iowa moves up from #17 to #15
• Michigan moves up from #19 to #18 (just behind the Spartans!)
• Wisconsin drops from #11 to #20
• Penn State drops out of the top 25 after a #22 ranking last week
• Soon-to-be-Big 1o Nebraska moves down from #6 to #7

Honestly, a really, really good game for MSU.

There were a few things that the Spartans had to do:

#1 Shut down Wisconsin’s running game, particularly the very talented John Clay.

Check.

#2 Be effective against the potent Wisconsin’s passing game.

Check.

#3 Execute on offense and special teams.

Check.

Just a great performance. And Wisconsin played tough, but on this day, the Spartans just played a notch tougher. Sure, there were three turnovers in the first half that helped the Badgers put 10 points up. But the Spartans stayed focused and never got deflated as we’ve seen with some Spartans teams in the past. Martin’s punt return for a TD was a major high point, but it was the time-gobbling Q4 drive resulting in a TD that was really a thing of beauty.

Coach Dantonio was back in the hospital where he watched the game and remained in contact with his team throughout. I believe the Spartans wanted to make sure their coach could relax Saturday evening knowing the boys took care of business.  Mission accomplished.

MSU moves to 5-0 overall, and 1-0 in the Big 10 along with Ohio State, Northwestern and Michigan. I’ll be interested to see what happens in the rankings this week.

Next week, the Spartans travel to Ann Arbor.  MSU has beaten Michigan two years running, and a win next weekend would match the three game streak in ’65-’66-’67. Michigan is a much improved team this year, but their defense continues to struggle. I believe that the Spartans will be able to put points on the board. The real question is the Spartan defense versus Denard Robinson. That guys is a one-man touchdown machine, which is good and bad. It’s good in that he’s got a tweaked knee and one good hit could put him on the sideline. It’s bad because thus far, he’s been fairly durable and immensely effective. If MSU shuts Robinson down, they shut Michigan down – that’s the deal.

I wish it was another home game, but not so lucky this time. It should be one hell of a game.

So you know Michigan won as I already said they are 5-0. To be honest, they looked vulnerable. Indiana had more first downs (35 vs. 15), more time of possession (42:00 vs. 18:00) and more plays (98 vs. 45). But UofM has Shoelace. And with 18

Notre Dame finally racked up win number two.  The 2-3 Fighting Irish took the fight to Boston College this week winning 31-13. Good for you Coach Kelly. Next week is the 2-2 Pitt at home, and I think Notre Dame will win that one, but by a slim margin.

Get well soon Coach Dantonio. Eyes on Michigan Spartans. GO GREEN!

#24 in AP Top 25

#21 in USA Today Poll

Next weeks game against #11 Wisconsin will determine whether MSU keeps moving on up.  Go Green!

What is this “D”?  Is it for “Domination”? “Demolition”? “Destruction”? The “D” is for Coach Dantonio. A nice touch. But the Spartans honored their coach with something even nicer than a helmet sticker, they gave him a resounding victory at Spartan Stadium!  Way to go Spartans!

I didn’t see the game this week, but I was tracking the score on my iPhone and It was nice to never get nervous or tense. Michigan State handled Northern Colorado with relative ease, which is good to see before we enter Big 10 play next week against Wisconsin. The “real” season starts next Saturday.

Kirk Cousins had a great day going 16-20 with two TDs and no picks.  Kirk had 290 yards passing.  That’s what I’m talking about.

The Spartan running game had 201 yards giving MSU over 200 yards rushing in every game thus far this season. Le’Veon Bell had three TDs. Bell runs tough and hard, especially for a true freshman. Edwin Baker had 59 yards and one TD. Larry Caper had 38 yards rushing, but his real feat was pulling down an end-zone reception for a TD – and holding on to the ball after getting hammered by UNC.

Finally, let’s give it up to the defense for holding Northern Colorado to one TD in the Q4. And the great Greg Jones finally pulled down not one, but two interceptions. The Spartans had four interceptions on Saturday which is great.

Tico Ducket was an Honorary Captain this week.  Man, that guy was awesome when he played for MSU.

Next up is the #11 ranked Badgers at home. Wisconsin is always tough, and it’s a good game whenever these two teams meet. This is the first real test for both programs this year. They are both 4-0, but that is going to change this time next week. I’m glad it’s a home game!

In other news, Notre Dame fell to Stanford at home; it’s been a good while since that has happened. The Cardinal simply overpowered the Irish.  The first half was more evenly matched, but the second half was all Stanford winning 37-14. Next week the Irish go on the road against 2-1 Boston College. BC isn’t looking too tough, so this might just be the opportunity ND needs to get a credible win and start re-building some confidence. Coach Kelly has a lot of work to do, and I hope he can sort it all out before The Faithful start talking about firing another coach.

Michigan rolled over Bowling Green 65-21 and played all three of their quarterbacks. It appeared that Denard Robinson got hurt on Michigan’s third drive, but we learned later that it was minor and he could have returned if Michigan needed him. But they didn’t. Tate Forcier was 12-12, which is awesome for the struggling former starter. But then he also was injured and left the game, but is apparently okay also.  I think Michigan is looking tough – much more like Michigan. I also think they are fragile. The Wolverines play Indiana next week, let’s see how durable Robinson and Forcier are versus a harder-hitting Big 10 team.

Good work this week Spartans. Eyes forward to Wisconsin. Best wishes to Coach Dantonio.  GO GREEN!

Now the bad news, Mark Dantonio suffered a heart attack following the Notre Dame game. He had surgery and is stable. He is out for an indefinite amount of time and Offensive Coordinator Don Treadwell will be filling in as Head Coach.

I hope Coach Dantonio makes a full and speedy recovery.

Sitting on my porch with my dog Dash, all I could do was shout “Are you kidding me” when the Michigan State Spartans pulled off a flawless fake field goal in overtime to beat the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.  It was near midnight and I’m standing up, shouting at my TV and Dash doesn’t even wake up. It was classic!  I loved it.

People are already saying it was the gutsiest call of the year.  The play: “Little Giants”.

Aaron Bates, MSU’s Punter, is the holder for field goals, but he is also a former high school quarterback. The Spartans set up for the OT field goal to tie ND and take it in to a OT2, and I’m a little nervous. Dan Conroy is a perfect 12-12 in his first season, and he kicked three long ones (41, 46, 50) last week, but still, this is an overtime-game-winning-against-Notre-Dame kick. Can he handle this pressure? Apparently, we will need to find out another time because after the snap, Bates stands up and cocks his throwing arm while Charlie Gantt breaks through the line and heads for the end zone. Gantt is W  I  D  E   O  P  E  N and Bates executes a clean, easy throw right in to his awaiting hands. Textbook. Awesome. Beautiful. 29 yards later, it was all over. The look on Brian Kelly’s face was pure “what the… what just happened… oh… yep… we just lost.”

Turns out the pass was supposed to go to Le’Veon Bell, who was covered.  During practice, Gantt was never even thrown the ball. Gantt was wide open, Bell was covered, so Bates locked on and Gantt took it home.

It was a good game even without the Hollywood ending. The Irish dominated the Q1 and MSU responded in Q2. After the half, both offenses came out firing and at the end of regulation, it was tied at 28-28. MSU won the OT toss and elected to start on defense. ND kicked a field goal to go up 28-31. And you know what happened next.

Overall, the Spartans looked good.

The running game was not quite as potent, but still Edwin Baker had 90 yards and a TD and Le’Veon Bell rushed for 114 yards and a TD. I really think Le’Veon has huge potential. Larry Caper was back this week, but wasn’t very effective against the Irish. Overall, running up the gut was not effective against the Irish, but when Bell or Baker got past the line, good things happened.

Kirk Cousins went 23-33 for 245 yards with one pick and two TDs. That’s a nearly 70% completion percentage! Take away the totally unnecessary end zone pass that was picked off (reminds me of 2009, but it was in Q1 instead of Q4 for the game) and Kirk was pretty much amazing.  He was sacked four times, but most of the game, the o-line provided adequate protection.

Notre Dame looked good but not great. The offense is coming together nicely and the pass attack is formidable. Running, not so much.  And, like the Spartans, the Defense needs to continue to improve.  I like the direction they are going in, and I like Coach Kelly.  Good luck to the Irish for the rest of the season.  I still wish they could have beaten Michigan.  The Irish have a bit of work to do to get out of the 1-2 hole they find themselves in, but they can do it.  Go Irish!

Speaking of Michigan, the Wolverines won against U-Mass 42-37, but they didn’t look quite as unstoppable. In fact, they looked quite stoppable, and U-Mass put some fear in them.  Michigan’s offense continues to look terrific with one-man-show Denard Robinson racking up 345 yards, but the defense wasn’t quite iron-clad. Looking forward to the MSU-Michigan game October 9th in East Lansing, I know two things:

1. If Denard Robinson stays healthy, Michigan will score. I wonder if RichRod has nightmares about Denard getting injured? If he doesn’t, he should.
2. MSU will score against Michigan’s defense, no question.  I’m not saying it will be easy, but it will happen.

It should be one heck of a game.

Take a day off Spartans, and enjoy. You are 3-0 for the first time since 2007. You have beaten the Irish three times in the last four years. You have Northern Colorado at home next week for your last non-con game. One week at a time. Play smart. Play tough. But maybe not too many of these heart-attack finishes.

Go Green!

On offense, no Larry Caper again this week, but that didn’t slow down the MSU run.  Edwin Baker, playing in front of a hometown crowd in Detroit had 15 carries for 183 yards, including an 80-yard run for a TD.  Le’Veon Bell had a good day as well with 10 carries for 49 yards and a TD.  Kirk Cousins was 9-17 with one TD and one pick – basically a 50% day for Kirk.  Lastly, let’s give it up for Dan Conroy  who had three field-goals including one from 50-yards out.  I was worried about the Spartan kicking game this year, but things are looking pretty solid in that department.

On defense, MSU still looks weak against the pass.  FAU completed 2/3 of it’s passes for 215 yards.  The Spartans shut down the run, but pass defense continues to struggle.  I’m a little nervous about defending a more powerful offensive attack such as Michigan, or even Notre Dame next week.

What was up with FAU kicking a field-goal instead of going for it late in the game?  A real head-scratcher there.  I don’t get it.

Next week, it’s the Spartans versus the Irish in a night game at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.  Notre Dame will be MSU’s first real test this season.  ND lost to Michigan in a close one, and I think they’ll be coming at MSU with a vengeance.  ND and it’s new coach, Brian Kelly, have everything to prove, and they need wins this season to get out from under the microscope.  MSU lost to the Irish last year after a ridiculous Cousin’s interception that halted a steamrolling drive to take the lead.  I think MSU is looking to erase that loss from their memories.

In a nutshell, two very motivated teams.  I’m glad MSU has the home field advantage.

GO GREEN!  GO WHITE!  GO GREEN!  GO WHITE!

1. Michigan  73.663%

2. Notre Dame  73.396%

3. Texas  72.032%

4. Ohio State  71.653%

5. Oklahoma  71.534%

6. Alabama  70.678%

7. Southern Cal  70.599%

8. Nebraska  70.116%

9. Tennessee  69.247%

10. Penn State  69.103%

Three of the top 10 are Big Ten schools. I like that. Add Nebraska in 2011 and we’ve got four of the top 10.

Ohio State moved form #5 to #4, overtaking Oklahoma.

If you want to see the big list, click here.

Overall, the Spartans looked good, but the running game looked great. Running backs accounted for four of the five MSU touchdowns: two for Edwin Baker and two for Le’Veon Bell. Baker looked better than in 2009, showing off his explosive speed and uncanny balance. But Le’Veon bell, the true freshman, was the big surprise. He ripped off yards every time he carried the ball averaging 14 per carry. He worries me a bit because runs very tall, but hopefully his speed and his size will keep him safe and sound over the next four years. Keshawn Martin only had two carries, but he always runs well and Saturday was no exception. I’m pretty excited about a strong Spartan rushing attack because to me, a strong running games really opens up the passing game.

Speaking of the passing game, I think Cousins looked really good. Cousins was 13 for 21, but in reality, he threw the ball very well. B.J. Cunningham and Charlie Gantt struggled dropping very catchable passes. I know these guys are better than that; I’m hoping it’s just some Week 1 jitters. Thankfully, Mark Dell was hot, and then there was Keith Nichols amazing double-coverage reception in the end zone for a TD – an amazing catch and the spark the Spartans needed to get the offense rolling. I’d be remiss if I didn’t add that the O-line looked tough too. Kirk seemed to have more time in the pocket than in 2009.

The defense was solid all day, and Greg Jones continues to be where ever the action is. And Greg almost got his first career interception – so close. We’ll have to wait and see how the secondary holds against a stronger passing attack (Notre Dame).

Elsewhere in college football, or at least the teams I keep track of…

Notre Dame wons its opener against Purdue. I thought the Irish looked good and I like Coach Kelly. (Thank God Charlie Weis is gone and I can get back to liking Notre Dame.) Next week they take on Michigan which should be a really good game. I’m pulling for Notre Dame, in case you didn’t know.

Michigan was surprisingly good against Connecticut. Denard Robinson has a goofy nickname (Shoelace), but who cares when you see him run AND throw. He was amazing, and without question he carried the Wolverines to victory. The only issue I see is durability. He took some pretty major hits, and those hits are only going to get harder when they get in to Big Ten play. I just don’t know if they can play Robinson the way they did each and every game. And what happens to Michigan if Denard gets injured? That’s a lot of eggs in RichRod’s basket.

Next week, MSU takes on Florida Atlantic at Ford Field in Detroit.  Go Green!

College football is back and I’m really fired up.

Go Spartans! Go BigTen!

I might even try the BigTen Network on-demand this year for MSU games not televised.

I wonder how Michigan will do this year, and will it be good enough to save RichRod? Or Notre Dame, will they show indications of a return to glory? Or Ohio State / Iowa / Wisconsin / Penn State; will they all live up to expectations? Do you think Nebraska will win the Big12 in their last year in the conference before joining the BigTen?

It’s going to be fun watching it all unfold.

I’m not very successful at predictions, but I do think MSU will be much improved over last year, and I think they will be more in the hunt for the BigTen then people think. I’m feeling cautiously optimistic.

I think it is a first in my lifetime.

Looking only at Football and Basketball (the sports I really care about), the Spartans last loss to the Wolverines November 3, 2007.  That is back-to-back Football wins AND back-to-back-to-back-to-back Basketball wins.

Now that I pause and think about it, that is awesome.

Way to go Spartans!  Keep up the good work.  Sparty on!

Our man Tom Izzo said that Friday night after the Spartans of Michigan State defeated Northern Iowa to secure a place in the Elite Eight.  Congrats Tom, and congrats to the Spartans.

Check out some of Tom’s stats here:

When Sparty was asked to comment on MSU’s coach, he simply said “I love Izzo.”

Sparty on.