Tag: Maryland

MSU Football vs. Maryland: Three Things To Watch

Michigan State Football has its final regular season game against Maryland this Saturday, Nov. 30. Here are three things to watch.

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The Michigan State Football regular season finale is upon us. The Spartans are set to take on the Maryland Terpins this Saturday, Nov. 30. For many fans, this game comes as a sign of relief.

Here are three things to watch:

Bowl Eligibility

MSU must win this game against Maryland to become bowl eligible. This would be the twelfth time in Mark Dantonio’s tenure as head coach. Note, he has been the Spartans head coach for 13 years. This year was not as enjoyable as the others. A win against Maryland puts MSU at 6-6 on the year. On the other hand, a loss puts them back at rather pitiful 5-7 on the year.

Fan Reaction

Fan reaction to a Maryland loss is rather easy to predict. On the other hand, fan reaction to a Maryland win is certainly unpredictable. Will fans be happy? Does bowl eligibility matter given their deflating performances all year long?

If I had to guess, I’d say bowl eligibility is met with strong apathy. Unfortunately, many fans will not care. Furthermore, I think fans react with vitriol to a bowl game loss. I hope, for Dantonio’s sake, MSU finishes strong against Maryland and the potential bowl game opponent who comes after. This will at least guarantee some favor in the eyes of fans until next year.

Signs Of The Future

Despite the negativity surrounding this season, there are positive signs for the future all around. In particular, there are positive signs on the Football field. All three freshman RB’s will likely improve heading into next year. Most notable is Elijah Collins, a proven stud. Collins racked up numbers this year even though the offensive line suffered numerous injuries.

C.J Hayes returns next year as does Cody White. Behind them, the receiving core features Jalen Nailor and Tre Mosley. That is a solid group of young receivers to pair with a new QB. If MSU blows out Maryland, we might even see someone besides Brian Lewerke at QB.

Firing a head coach is easier said than done. Especially when there is no viable replacement. Let’s pump the brakes on the Dantonio talk until the start of next season.

Tune in Saturday at 3:30 P.M. on FS1 to cheer on the Spartans. Stay locked on SpartansWire for more coverage to come.

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Which team won turkey? Results from Thanksgiving Day high school football

As rivalry games unfolded on Thanksgiving Day across the country, we rounded up the results and highlights. See what happened in the State Line game, Maryland’s Holy War, New London-NFA, Winchester-Woburn and Xavier Prep-Fordham Prep.

As Thanksgiving Day football unfolds across the country, we’ll round up the results from the biggest games right here, starting with the one that determines pride across two Northeastern states.

STATE LINE GAME: Easton (Penn.) 16, Phillipsburg (N.J.) 13

Make it three straight for Easton, which scraped out another narrow victory in the annual Turkey Day grudge match to end all Turkey Day grudge matches. This one may end up being best known for the brawl that erupted in the final minute, with the game decided after a final Easton defensive stand. With Easton taking kneel downs Phillipsburg defensive players rushed the line and a melee ensued, with the referees running off the final minute once order was restored.

After taking a 9-6 lead into halftime, Easton scored on a one-yard touchdown run from running back Nahjee Adams with 10 minutes remaining to stretch the lead to 16-6. Phillipsburg answered, cutting the lead back to a field goal on a touchdown pass from Ben Ries to Robert Martin, but that was as close as the Stateliners could get.

The win pushes Easton’s final 2019 mark to 8-5 while Phillipsburg’s loss leaves the Stateliners at 8-3.

MARYLAND’S HOLY WAR: Calvert Hall 33, Loyola Blakefield 10

The 100th edition of Maryland’s Holy War ended just as the previous five did … with Calvert Hall celebrating a decisive victory in the game played at Towson University.

Cole Herbert led Calvert Hall with three rushing touchdowns and a fumble recovery on defense as the Cardinals built up a 27-3 lead and never looked back. The victory marked the sixth straight for Calvert Hall in the historic series and narrowed Loyola’s overall advantage to 49-43-8.

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YE OLDE BALL GAME (CONN.): Norwich Free Academy 49, New London 12

NFA dominated the 158th meeting between the two schools from neighboring Connecticut seaport towns, cruising to a 37-point victory against the Whalers that clinched a Connecticut Class LL state playoff berth in the process.

Wide receiver Damien Bleau led NFA with three touchdown catches in a game that was moved to NFA’s turf field on Wednesday. NFA’s victory pushes the Wildcats to 7-3 entering the playoffs while New London dropped to 5-7.

OLD FIRM FRIENDS (MASS.): Winchester 14, Woburn 7

Winchester proved too tough for their archrivals in a game that was tight and then devolved into a mess as the rain picked up in the fourth quarter.

Perhaps driven by the weather, much of the game was contested on the ground, with players from stars from both teams breaking through landmark moments during the contest: Winchester quarterback Tommy Degnan crossed the 1,000-yard rushing threshold on a 58-yard carry, pushing him above 1,000 yards passing and rushing on the season; Sachems running back Symon Sathler countered by crossing the 1,000-yard rushing mark himself in the third quarter.

The win improved Winchester to 9-2 on the season, the program’s first nine-win season since 2009 per the Daily Times Chronicle. Woburn wrapped up the campaign at 5-6.

TURKEY WHERE DREAMS ARE MADE (N.Y.): Xavier Prep 40, Fordham Prep 14

After a tight first half, the 97th Turkey Bowl in New York City was one-way traffic in the third quarter, with the Knights racing out to a 34-7 lead and then playing out the string.

Running back Andrew Scariano led Xavier with three touchdown runs, including two shortly after the Knights recovered Rams fumbles as Xavier made the most of Fordham’s mistakes.

The game played at Aviator Field in Brooklyn wrapped up a 4-5 campaign for Xavier and 3-7 season for Fordham.

MSU Football vs Maryland: Scouting Report

Michigan State Football takes on Maryland this weekend on Saturday, Nov. 30. Here is a scouting report of the Maryland Football team.

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Michigan State Football squares off against Maryland this weekend on Saturday, Nov. 30. The Spartans come into this game after a 27-0 victory against Rutgers. Maryland, on the other hand, is fresh off a 54-7 loss to Nebraska.

Here is a scouting report for the Maryland Terpins Football team:

Offensive Side Of The Ball

Maryland is…not a good football team, however, their offense isn’t absolutely terrible. Maryland has a solid QB by the name of Josh Jackson. Jackson has racked up 1,133 yards and 11 touchdowns on 180 throwing attempts.

While Jackson has a strong arm, it is certainly not accurate. He has thrown five interceptions on the year. Furthermore, Maryland has scored one touchdown or less in four different games. Michigan State’s defense can exploit his inaccuracies for their own gain. Much like they did with Johnny Langan last week against Rutgers.

Junior RB Javon Leake and sophomore RB Anthony McFarland shoulder the load for the run game. Leake has 92 carries for 716 yards on the year with eight touchdowns to boot. McFarland, on the other hand, has tallied 480 yards and seven touchdowns on 106 attempts. The Spartans must dominate the trenches to shut down Maryland’s run game.

Defensive Side Of The Ball

Maryland, much like Rutgers, is really weak on defense. Opponents average 36 points per game against the Terpins. Furthermore, Maryland suffers horrendous losses at the hands of high-end collegiate programs.

Penn State dropped 59 total points on Maryland. Michigan put up 38 points. Ohio State devastated the Terpins in a 73-14 loss and as I mentioned earlier, Nebraska blew them away 54-7.

Yes, Michigan State has struggled in the past offensively. This should not persist against Maryland though. Instead, the Spartans should have a field day on offense Especially given how hot the Brian Lewerke and Cody White connection is as of late. At the very least, MSU Football ends the year on a high note with a blowout victory.

The game kicks off on Saturday at 3:30 P.M. and you can catch all of the action on FS1. Stay locked on SpartansWire for more coverage to come.

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Big Ten Quick Thoughts, Takes On Every Game: Week 13. Ohio State Wins Big Ten East

Quick thoughts and takes on every Week 13 Big Ten game. @PeteFiutak Michigan State 27, Rutgers 0 It was only a win over Rutgers, but Michigan State really, really, really, really needed that. It wasn’t perfect, the running game was stuffed a bit too …

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Quick thoughts and takes on every Week 13 Big Ten game.

@PeteFiutak

Michigan State 27, Rutgers 0

It was only a win over Rutgers, but Michigan State really, really, really, really needed that. It wasn’t perfect, the running game was stuffed a bit too much and the offense stalled a bit, but Cody White went off for 11 catches for 136 yards and three scores, and it was a shutout over a team that was supposed to be shutout. The program can exhale for a moment – it hit the putt.

 

Rutgers just doesn’t have the offensive talent. Johnny Langan completed 8-of-20 passes for 57 yards with a pick, led the team with 49 rushing yards, and Isaiah Pacheco was held to 36 yards. It didn’t help that the Scarlet Knights were playing a team that cared.

The Spartans owned this game by more than the final score. They didn’t allow a third down conversion and held the ball for almost 38 minutes. There wasn’t any drama whatsoever.

Michigan State did what it needed to do, and now it closes out with Maryland for a shot at a sixth win and bowl eligibility. Rutgers’ season will come to a brutal but merciful end at Penn State.

Iowa 19, Illinois 10

Iowa played a typical Iowa game. It battled hard, played good run defense, and did enough to keep things moving through the air. It wasn’t easy, and it was a grind to do anything on the ground, but it was the eighth win of the season with just Nebraska to go. A shot at a ten-win campaign is still there.

The Hawkeyes couldn’t get any push up front – the Illinois D line did a nice job. Iowa ended up with just 79 rushing yards, and Nate Stanley wasn’t all that sharp, but he connected on a few bit pass plays with Ihmir Smith-Marsette catching four passes for 121 yards.

Illinois played relatively well despite only scoring ten points. The running backs didn’t get the ball enough – QB Brandon Peters led the team with 76 rushing yards – but the O averaged close to five yards per carry. The passing game didn’t cluck – Peters threw two picks – but it was an okay performance despite the final score.

It was a good fight, and now Illinois gets to go for a seventh win when it finishes up against Northwestern. If a 19-10 loss on the road to Iowa was okay, a loss of any sort to this Wildcat team would be totally unacceptable.

NEXT: Ohio State 28, Penn State 17

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Big Ten Quick Thoughts, Takes On Every Game: Week 12

Quick thoughts and takes on every Week 12 Big Ten game.

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Quick thoughts and takes on every Week 12 Big Ten game.

@PeteFiutak

Wisconsin 37, Nebraska 21

Adrian Martinez was fantastic. He was fast, decisive, and he looked like the star for the Husker offense everyone is hoping he’ll be. He threw for 220 yards and a score, ran for 89 yards and a touchdown, Dedrick Mills ran for 188 yards and a score, and Nebraska gained almost 500 yards …

And Nebraska lost by 16. 

Wisconsin got shoved around too much, struggled against the Nebraska running game, and gave up too many big plays, but Jonathan Taylor ran for 204 yards and two scores, QB Jack Coan was fine, Aron Cruickshank retuned a kick for a score, and the D came through when absolutely needed.

The Badgers need to win out and get a loss from Minnesota before they play on November 30th. Nebraska has to beat both Maryland on the road and against Iowa to go bowling.

Northwestern 45, UMass 6

Leave it to Northwestern to be the only team that couldn’t hang a gajillion points on the worst defense in college football. One of the scores came on a blocked field goal.

This was the game to have a whole lot of fun with the passing game. Aidan Smith completed 7-of-13 passes for 76 yards with two interceptions. Wheeeeee!

Evan Hull?! The freshman had four carries all year for 15 yards, and he ripped through the Minutemen for 220 yards and four scores on 24 carries. The Wildcats ran for 335 yards and five scores.

It’s going to take something amazing for the Wildcats to win another game with Minnesota and at Illinois to close. 2-10 would be the worst season since going 2-9 in 1993.

NEXT: Michigan 44, Michigan State 10; Penn State 34, Indiana 27

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