Week 2 - Let's forget about last week...

Thoughts on last week:

The much anticipated debut of college football 2009 was the sportsgasm everyone hoped for. BYU beat a Bradford-less Oklahoma, Greg Paulus actually stayed on his feet when someone got close to him, and Mark Dantonio smiled.
The national scene stayed pretty steady, so not much to discuss there. Several answers were given for the questions about Michigan State however...

QB: Okay, so no real answer except for both candidates being solid choices. Cousins was 10-17, 3 TDs, Nichol was 9-18, 2 TDs. Although it looks like Cousins has the edge, Nichol was the victim of 4 drops by his WR's. Personally, I think it's to the point where you just play them both until one of them screws up more than once.

Offense: Think 2007 MSU instead of 2008 MSU. A much more balanced attack, as all of the starting WR's are back, and the running back trio of Ray, Caper, and Baker proved they could run at the college level (>150 yds between the three). Ray was very impressive, as he had something like 5 ypc against Montana State. Drops are still a problem for the WR's

Defense: Holding any team to 3 points is impressive. The Defensive Backfield showed its stuff against the other MSU, with the one black eye being two Pass interference calls against Chris Rucker. The Linebacker crew was studly, with Greg Jones leading the way.

Overall: The team looks polished, but it will take improvement on both the OL and DL from game one to contend for the Big Ten title. Against Montana State, there should have been more holes for the running backs and more pressure on the opposing QB. Compared to Big Ten lines, Montana State does not compare, so line play would be my only worry for this team.

Michigan State vs. Central Michigan - Sept 12
Central Michigan is pegged to win the MAC (again) with senior QB Dan LeFevour at the helm. The dual-threat QB made some noise, putting up Tim Tebow-like numbers for the past two years. However, CMU's play against Arizona last week suggests that he may not get a chance to work his magic. CMU managed to only score one touchdown against the Wildcats, and LeFevour was pressured all day. The Chippewa pass defense was horrendous last year, ranking 118th in FBS. There's nothing to suggest this game will be any different, as CMU now will face bigger lines, a better QB, taller receivers and a more focused Defense than last week.

MSU - 34
CMU - 17