Dr. Green and White Sports Authority

One could point to a multitude of problems with the Michigan State football team over the past two games. One could point to the defense and the 72 points that they have given during the current two-game skid. But that can partially be excused by the fact that the Spartan defense faced two very potent passing attacks in Washington and in Maryland. I am more concerned with the other side of the ball. On the past two Saturdays, the Spartan offense has generated just 16 points while giving up a total of six turnovers. While the Huskies and the Terrapins do have strong offenses, neither is known for a particularly stout defense. The Michigan State offense that appeared so green and lush in the first two games has dried up, withered, and died. Some regression is expected. The level of competition did increase, and East Lansing was hit by a major storm a few weeks back. The program remains under a dark cloud. But unless the offense can break out of the current drought-like conditions, any ho...

I find it difficult to process and put into words went transpired in Spartan Stadium this past weekend. A glance at the box score shows that the Michigan State Spartans accumulated more first downs (25 to 18), more total yards (376 to 362) and won the time of possession by three minutes. The Spartans didn't punt until the end of the third quarter. But a glance at the scoreboard showed that the Spartan received a thorough beating at the hands of visiting Maryland Terrapins by a score of 31-to-9. So how did this happen? The answer is quite simple: errors. Four the second straight week the Spartans committed far, far too many errors. The sheer number and variety of those errors was almost funny. On Saturday we saw bad interceptions, fumbles, poor fourth-down play selection, a converted fake punt, missed tackles, a blocked field goal, and several dropped and/or air-mailed passes. Basically, what could go wrong, did go wrong, over and over again. If it wasn't such a tragedy, it woul...

This feels like a blockbuster of a week for the Michigan State Spartans. The first two weeks of the season provided some promising signs, but then revelations about Mel Tucker's conduct fell like a nuclear bomb on Spartan Nation.  Then, the Washington Huskies paid a visit to East Lansing. In the first half of last week's game, the Huskies acted without pity, remorse, or fear and they absolutely did not stop until they put up 35 points on the Spartan defense. To add to the chaos, the leadership at Michigan State has informed Mel Tucker of their intent to terminate his contract. There is essentially no doubt now. Tucker will not be back. But the Spartans still have nine games left on the schedule. Even before the season started, the home game at Maryland looked significant. Most experts expected the Spartans to be 2-1 at this juncture. A win in the first home game of the Big Ten season could provide some positive momentum that would bolster the hopes of a bowl game. However, a lo...

Every college football season is like an adventure at sea. Some years (like 2021) the water is calm, the sun is warm, and the sailing is smooth. Other years (such as 2022), the sea is rough, the wind is fierce, and the sailors barely make it back to shore alive. Then, there are years like this year. The weather report for the year identified some big storms on the horizon, but the first leg of the journey was calmer than expected. This led some to believe that the journey might not be as harrowing as expected. But last week a storm blew up out of nowhere and lightning struck the HMS Spartan. The captain was knocked overboard and into the abyss. Then, the wind kicked up with the force of an angry pack of dogs, ravaging the boat. Now, the boat is taking on water and listing badly to one side. It feels like the Michigan State football program is at an unexpected crossroad. The Mel Tucker saga, coupled with this weekend's beat down at the paws of the Washington Huskies, has players and...

We all fill different roles here at Spartans Illustrated. We also have different titles, some of which are self-appointed. Take me, for example. While I am technically a staff writer, I am also the self-appointed Chief Optimism Officer as well as the Chief Data Scientist. But I also hold a different title and role within the organization. I am also the self-appointed bar-night social coordinator and resident beer snob. It's a tough set of jobs, but somebody has to do it. When it was announced that for the first time in history Spartan Stadium would be offering beer and other alcohol for sale, I knew that I needed to spring into action. This is what I have been training for. The mission is simple: to provide you, dear Spartans Illustrated reader, with the most definitive, scientifically driven ranking of the alcohol options at Spartan Stadium starting this Saturday. This rigorous analysis is based on hours of pain-staking and possibly liver-threatening research, math (or at least nu...