The Spartans beat Western Michigan 35-13 in the opening game (exceeding the 21.5-point spread) but in spite of the 22 point victory, the overall performance was uneven and it proved there is still a lot of work to do.
Of course, the leading questions going into the game were: could the Offensive Line control the Line of Scrimmage, and could the Pass Defense demonstrate improvement from a disastrous 2021 season whereby it finished “dead last” when measured against 130 D-1/FBS Schools?
And while the Passing Offense wasn’t a burning question prior to the season, nevertheless it proved to be head scratching at times vs WMU.
What did we learn?
Let’s take a look.
Spartans Rushing Offense (filling a void and running by committee):
Of course, last season Kenneth Walker III carried the torch for the Spartans and compiled more than 1600 Yards Rushing at 6.2 Yards per attempt, including 18 TD’s.
Yet, after one remarkable season, KWIII opted for the NFL and left a vacuum in the Rushing Offense and that meant there was a lot of production to replace.
So, this season the Spartans Rushing Offense was forced to find other options, and in the absence of KWIII the Spartans opted for “Run by Committee” and the opening results were solid: the Rush Offense posted 197 net Yards Rushing at 6.2 Yards per attempt including 1 Rushing TD.
Jalen Berger posted 120 Yards at 7.5 Yards per attempt including 1 TD, while Jarek Broussard gained 54 Yards at 5.4 Yards per attempt. In addition, QB, Payton Thorne gained 29 Yards at 5.5 Yards per attempt.
Given the Spartans Rushing Offense ranked #53 in the land last season with an average of 176 Yards per game at 4.77 Yards per attempt, and given the Spartans posted 197 net Yards Rushing vs Western Michigan at 6.16 Yards per attempt, it would be fair to say the 2022 edition of the Spartans Rushing Offense had a solid opening game by creatively filling the void of KWIII, but let’s be clear, there are still questions along the Offensive Line and the Running Offense is still a work in progress.
But how about the Pass Defense?
Spartans Pass Defense (when you are “dead ass last”, each step is scrutinized):
Let’s recall, the Spartan Pass Defense was atrocious last season.
To be specific, and to repeat the inimitable words of Head Coach Mel Tucker, the Pass Defense was “dead ass last” last season, and that means “dead ass last” in the Big Ten, and “dead ass last” in the country when measured against 130 D-1/FBS schools by way of yielding an astounding 325 YPG and 27 TD’s.
And let’s underscore that point one more time, those are not rankings that any Spartan fan can be proud of…certainly Mel Tucker was not proud of the Pass Defense last season, but he vowed to fix the problem.
Of course, on the other side of the Line of Scrimmage, Western Michigan’s, Pass Offense compiled a highly respectable 254 Yards per game last season, completing 64% of its Pass Attempts at more than 14 Yards per completion.
In addition, last season, WMU was ranked a highly respectable #16 in Pass Efficiency so they presented a formidable challenge for the Spartans revamped Pass Defense.
Consequently, the biggest question preceding kickoff was: “could the Spartans Pass Defense” with Mel Tucker installed as the Spartans new Cornerback Coach, take WMU out of rhythm and prevent it from matching its passing averages from last season?
The Spartans didn’t exactly pull back the curtain and reveal a “lock down” Pass Defense, but the grades after just one game were solid.
WMU completed just 58% of its passes, at just 9 yards per completion for 193 Yards and zero TD’s all of which was substantially below their averages from last season.
Of course, the season is young, yet Coach Tucker deserves credit for taking WMU out of rhythm and demonstrating improvement in terms of pass coverage and defensive discipline, and it would be fair to say, the first game results bode well for future success.
Spartans Pass Offense (there is lots of room for improvement):
Of course, the Spartan Pass Offense was a “bell ringer” last season.
It wasn’t best in the country, but it was solid and stable. Last season the Spartans Pass Offense averaged 254 Yards per game, completing 61% of its passes at nearly 14 Yards per completion, scoring 27 TD’s offset by just 10 Interceptions.
In fact, its noteworthy, given the Spartans inability to run the football with efficiency against Pitt in the Peach Bowl (a meager 100 yards at 1.5 yards per attempt and zero TD’s), the Pass Offense single handedly pulled out the victory with nearly 355 Yards, at 12 Yards per completion and 3 TD’s.
But every season stands alone, and in retrospect the opening game vs WMU could not be construed as a model of Passing efficiency given the Pass Offense attempted just 24 passes, completing 12 (a dismal 50%), for 233 Yards, which is pedestrian by all measures, and yet they averaged 19 Yards per completion and scored 4 TD’s which is exceptional.
So, will the real Spartan Pass Offense please stand up?
Of course, we are mindful that it was the opening game and the Spartans hung a “W”, but they will need more balanced passing production when they play against the best Passing Defenses in the Big Ten.
At the bottom line (Mel Tucker won his first chess match of the season):
The Spartans didn’t exactly earn “style points” in their victory vs WMU, but a win is a win.
And if we are looking for notable bright spots, then the Spartans demonstrated meaningful improvement as it relates to fixing their “dead ass last” Pass Defense which was a monumental question mark coming into the season.
In fact, I characterized the opening game as a chess match between Jeff Thorne’s Pass Offense and Mel Tucker’s Pass Defense, yet in the end, Mel Tucker arguably won the chess match, taking WMU out of rhythm and keeping them well below their passing averages from last season.
There is more work to do, but a win is a win, and it’s a good start.
But as we look forward, the Spartans next game will be against Akron on Sep 10, yet it’s highly unlikely we will learn much from that game given the fact Akron held on to beat tiny St. Francis (PA)…a D-1/FCS school…30-23 in OT in front of just 8700 fans.
With that being said, arguably the first real test will come Sep 17 when the Spartans travel to Seattle to play the Washington Husky’s, a bona fide Power 5 school, which handily beat Kent State 45-20 and displayed a high octane pass offense in the process.
Washington completed 29 of 44 pass attempts (nearly 66%) for a whopping 393 yards and 4 TD’s under new Head Coach, Kalen DeBoer who has won 90% of his games during an 8 year career.
So, by every measure, the Washington game is queueing up as the next meaningful chess match between Kalen DeBoer’s Pass Offense and Mel Tucker’s Pass Defense and we will get a lot of answers to an abundance of questions prior to the Big Ten season opener vs Minnesota.
Until then, there will continue to be a lot of hyperbolic speculation from pundits and beat writers, but let’s hope the Spartans continue to improve and post a 3-0 record prior to commencing the Big Ten season.
Thank you for reading and I always welcome your comments and opinions.
