Sep 26, 2015; East Lansing, MI, USA; Central Michigan Chippewas wide receiver Anthony Rice (80) runs for yards after a catch against Michigan State Spartans safety Montae Nicholson (9) during the 2nd half of a game at Spartan Stadium. MSU won 30-10. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Second-guessing the rankings.
It’s a standard practice in college football, especially just four weeks into the season. But in today’s era of the College Football Playoff, nearly every poll leading up to the one released by the selection committee is meaningless.
That doesn’t stop the debates, however, and after four weeks, some are wondering if Michigan State is worthy of the No. 2 spot in the nation. The Spartans haven’t exactly rolled up the style points the past two weeks with victories over Air Force and Central Michigan, but they have held their spot in the Associated Press poll while moving from No. 3 to No. 2 in the coaches’ poll.
Any argument about where Michigan State belongs, though, ends at the locker room door.
“I feel like we should be No. 1,” sophomore defensive tackle Malik McDowell said. “I feel like we’re the best team in the country. I’m never going to hold my mouth closed about that, but we got to prove it to everybody else.
“We gotta go out there and play like it. Right now we’re not playing like it, exactly, but it’s just little stuff, so we can get that fixed quickly, and that’s all there is to it.”
McDowell and the defensive line have been the strength of the Michigan State defense, along with the play of the linebackers. And heading into Big Ten play this week against Purdue, it’s the secondary that needs to pick things up.
To remain ranked among the nation’s elite, improvement is necessary, particularly in the defensive backfield. Until then, the criticism will come from every corner of the nation.
After Utah cruised Oregon last weekend, some were wondering why Michigan State still remains ranked higher than the Utes. The argument is Michigan State won a three-point game at home against Oregon while Utah won big on the road.
Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio saw part of that game but wasn’t about to concede his team should drop.
“I just know that when we played Oregon, there were very high expectations for them,” Dantonio said. “(They) had a good football team. Utah obviously has a very good football team as well. I keep saying it every week: There is a lot of parity in college football. It’s about matchups. It’s about how you come to play on every given Saturday, about how you handle adversity and be able to play through things. I thought we did that (against CMU) and we finished. We won going away, which is probably as important as anything.”
And if the Spartans continue to do that heading into Big Ten play, which begins Saturday at home against Purdue, then the rankings will work out by the end of the season.
“We’re No. 2 right now, and we want to be No. 1 by the end of the season, not the middle of the season,” fifth-year senior linebacker Darien Harris said. “We’ve still got some things to work on, we have some ladders to climb, mountains to climb. At the end of the day I don’t think there’s pressure on us at all. As long as we go out there and do what we do, take every game one game at a time like coach says, we’ll be fine.”
NOTES, QUOTES
PLAYERS TO WATCH
–S Montae Nicholson entered his sophomore season with high expectations. He started three times as a true freshman in 2014 and appeared in all 13 games. And with Kurtis Drummond off to the NFL, the plan was for Nicholson to form an intimidating duo with fifth-year senior safety RJ Williamson. But Nicholson has struggled through first three games and found himself on the sidelines often against Central Michigan. Dantonio made it clear Nicholson needs to play better, particularly for a secondary that has not played well heading into Big Ten play.
–RB Gerald Holmes scored his first career touchdown in the season-opener at Western Michigan, but he had virtually no role in the running game the next two weeks. In the victory over Central Michigan, the sophomore didn’t appear until the fourth quarter but made the most of his chance by scoring a pair of touchdowns to help clinch the victory. Redshirt freshman Madre London and freshman LJ Scott continue to share the starting duties, but Holmes has stated his case for remaining in the rotation.
–CB Darian Hicks played as a true freshman in 2013 and was the starter for most of the 2014 season, but he struggled late in the year and a case of mononucleosis at the start of preseason camp put him behind in the battle at cornerback. However, Hicks is getting close to 100 percent and saw his most extensive action against Central Michigan. With the secondary still see players shuffle in and out of the lineup, Hicks might be the one player who is starting to establish himself.
SERIES HISTORY: Michigan State leads Purdue 34-28-3; MSU won the last meeting, 45-31, last season in West Lafayette, Ind.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “We just passed on it right now because I want our players to concentrate on what we have to do here and not on a camera. I want us to be us and I just didn’t feel like at this point in time that that was something that we should do.” — Mark Dantonio on turning down the chance to appear in a “Hard Knocks” type show for HBO
