Some more info for consideration..GL First meeting between the tms which was made when the Alamo Bowl chose a short-handed MSU squad (12 susp plyrs) over a Minny squad they lost to because the committee desired a higher scoring gm in the LY of their contract with the Big Ten. This is MSU’s 2nd trip to the Alamo where they lost 17-3 (+3) to Neb in ‘03 under John L Smith. Under Dantonio MSU is 0-2 SU/1-1 ATS in bowls with their last post ssn win coming in ‘01. TT is 10-21-1 in bowls but Leach (5-4 SU/3-6 ATS) has half of the wins. TT is 0-2 SU/ATS in Alamo Bowls as their last visit was in ‘01 under Leach (lost 19-16, -1 to Iowa). MSU is 0-5 ATS S/’94 vs current B12 tms and most Spartans have never played inside (1-4 SU/ATS in a dome, last time ‘05) while TT just ended their ssn at Cowboy Stadium (roof closed). Including LY’s bowl MSU has gone 1-6 ATS as a dog the L/2Y but under Leach TT is 2-6 as a bowl fav (4 str ATS losses). Both played 7 bowl elig tms TY but MSU went 1-6 SU/ATS being outgained by 45 ypg while TT was 4-2-1 ATS outgaining foes by 91 ypg. MSU has 10 Sr starters among 17 upperclassmen while TT has 8 and 18.
After having a QB derby all offseason Dantonio finally settled on starting unheralded team leader Cousins over VHT Oklahoma transfer Nichol. Nichol did play a few series in each gm early on, but after suffering an elbow inj vs Illinois, Cousins took over. Cousins finished #2 in the B10 in pass eff despite a run gm which saw 5 diff players start at TB and ended up being led by VHT true frosh Caper and Baker (only 2 of 5 elig for the bowl). Former walk-on All-B10 WR White led the rec corps, but the unit’s depth took a serious hit with just 2 scholarship WR’s avail for the bowl as #2 and #3 rec Cunningham and Dell (74 combined rec) will be susp. Speedster Keshawn Martin is now the #2 WR and he’s the only player in the NCAA this year with 4 TD’s of 70+ yds. The OL struggled early due to inj’s as they started 5 diff lineups in the 1st 5 gms. They settled down to become 1 of the league’s better units actually improving the ypc rushing from 3.3 in ‘08 (with RB Ringer) to 4.2, while allowing fewer sks (24-13). MSU has the #41 off and #50 D. After a strong start the Spartans’ D sputtered allowing over 1500 yds in their final 3 conf games. This is despite the presence of the B10’s Def POY LB Jones who led the conf in tkls. DE Anderson battled inj’s and his sks slipped from 8 in ‘08 to just 4. Prior to the yr DB cch Barnett boasted about having a unit 8-10 deep for the 1st time. Instead of being the D’s strength however it was MSU’s Achilles’ heel as the Spartans finished #100 in pass eff D finishing the year tied for the fewest int (5) in the NCAA while allowing a league worst 29 TD’s. MSU has our #17 ST led by All-B10 K Swenson who is the school’s all time leading scorer.
Coming off their best ssn in school history TT took a step back. TT is still the only B12 school to be bowl elig every yr since the conf was formed in ‘96. TT is known for its potent off (#15), but TT did “only” avg 462 ypg (2nd lowest mark in L8Y) and their 38 ppg is down over a TD from ‘08. The def has allowed 349 ypg (down 34 ypg from LY) and the 22 ppg all’d is the 2nd best mark S/’01. It was a QB carousel midssn as Leach started 3 different players. Potts started the 1st 5 gms but was pulled due to a lack of confidence. He regained his role after coming off the bench and leading a comeback win vs KU. He threw at least 1 int in 8 out of the 10 that he played but showed he can play vs a solid def in the OU gm. TT’s run gm is often overlooked but RB Batch has 3 100+ yd gms incl 2 in the L/4 gms. TT’s top WR is AF transfer Torres who was a walk-on. Overall TT had 8 100+ yd gms by its WR’s. The OL is unique at Tech using very wide splits so the DL has a longer way to get to the QB. They avg 6’5” 308 (3 Sr starters) paving the way for 81 rush ypg (3.4) all’g a surprising 30 sks (4.9%). They are led by 1st Tm B12 OG Carter. Ever since DC McNeill took over the def (#30) has improved. The DL avg 6’2” 266 (3 Sr) all’g a Leach-era best 125 rush ypg (3.3) while accounting for 35.5 (89%) of the tm’s 40 sks (#1 in the B12). They are led by 1st Tm B12 DE Sharpe and 2nd Tm DE Howard who between them have 23 sks! TT is #25 in our pass D rankings allowing 224 ypg (61%) with a 10-8 ratio. TT is ranked #37 on ST’s but Leach would prefer not to punt on most 4th downs (20-29 69%, 2nd in NCAA in atts) and with just 11 FG tries keeps the ball in the offense’s hands.
Two seasons ago MSU was without several susp plyrs in the Champs Sports Bowl and covered with a chance to win. This season, the attitude will be different with horrible personal decisions letting down their teammates, fans and coaching staff. Tech has impressed TY and while they’re known for their off, their def has held 4 Big 12 tms to 14 pts or fewer and has had only one poor outing all year. There may be no bigger edge this bowl season with the TT’s pass offense against Michigan St’s pass D.
FORECAST: TEXAS TECH by 14 RATING: 1H TEXAS TECH
From a reliable source: "Besides the obvious advantages with Techs hi flying pass game vs weak D, he said the players absolutely love Ruffin Mcneil (int coach/d-coor) and will play ass off for him."
