Michigan
If Michigan State is going to win the Big Ten, Mel Tucker must solve the Ohio State problem
Mel Tucker and Michigan State’s soccer gamers have talked about competing for championships in 2022 since spring observe started on the finish of March.
No matter nationwide assumption or fan expectation, the best way the Spartans have talked this offseason, it is clear that of their minds the 2022 season is a “championship or bust” marketing campaign.
If that is the aim for Michigan State, Tucker should remedy the identical drawback that each Massive Ten East head coach — save one — faces every season: How do I beat Ohio State?
Tucker’s turnaround from 2-5 in 12 months 1 to 11-2 in 12 months 2 was a exceptional feat, however the Spartans haven’t been aggressive in two matchups with the Buckeyes in the course of the head coach’s tenure in East Lansing.
Michigan State misplaced by 40 factors, 52-12, on it is personal area in 2020, and was then run out of Columbus final season, dropping by a ghastly 49 factors, 56-7.
Following each losses to the Buckeyes, Tucker stated there was no secret to what the Spartans wanted with the intention to compete with Ohio State. Michigan State wanted to recruit at a better degree and shut the expertise and depth gaps between themselves because the Buckeyes.
Talking at Massive Ten Media Days late final month, Tucker pointed proper to that when requested once more about Ohio State.
“That was this system that we felt there was essentially the most distance between us, by way of depth within the roster,” Tucker stated. “Clearly, when you’ve a workforce that’s in your division, it’s worthwhile to construct your workforce to beat that workforce.
“That was in all probability the largest margin, by way of gamers and depth, of the groups that we performed. We all know what we’re up towards.”
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Whereas Tucker is thus far winless towards the Buckeyes, Michigan State has gone 2-0 towards Michigan, 1-0 towards Maryland and 1-1 towards Penn State, Indiana and Rutgers inside it is division.
Michigan State’s head coach, who’s hung out as an assistant coach for numerous NFL franchises, likened going through Ohio State every season to the hardest division opponent groups face within the skilled ranks.
“In the event you’re within the NFL and also you’re with the Browns, you’ve acquired Pittsburgh and Baltimore,” Tucker stated. “You’ve acquired to construct your workforce, you’ve acquired to get out of your division if you wish to management your personal future. So, clearly, we all know that that’s a workforce, if we’re going to manage our personal future with reference of profitable a championship, we’ve acquired to discover a strategy to beat these guys.”
It is a problem that just about each Massive Ten workforce has needed to cope with. For the reason that convention realigned its divisions into an East-West format in 2014, the Buckeyes have received 5 of the eight league championships. The opposite three champions — Michigan State (2015), Penn State (2016) and Michigan (2021) — every beat the Buckeyes in the course of the common season the yr they received the Massive Ten.
The West division, in the meantime, has not received a single Massive Ten championship because the realignment and has gone 0-5 towards Ohio State in title video games (Wisconsin, 0-3; Northwestern, 0-2).
Closing the hole with the Buckeyes is simpler stated then executed, however Michigan State took a step in the proper route with a 2022 recruiting class that ranked No. 23 within the nation. The Spartans additionally at present have 10 four-star gamers dedicated to their 2023 class.
However after two losses by over 40 factors in every of the final two conferences, has Michigan State closed the hole sufficient take down the Buckeyes in 2022 in pursuit of a Massive Ten title?
“We’ll see,” Tucker stated with a little bit chuckle. “There’s a date for the sport, so we’ll discover out right here fairly quickly.”
Michigan State hosts Ohio State on Oct. 8 at Spartan Stadium.
Michigan
Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast: Recapping Spartans’ Win Over Washington
No. 16 Michigan State just keeps winning, and it’s doing so against quality Big Ten teams.
The Spartans steamrolled Washington at the Breslin Center on Thursday, besting the visitors, 88-54. They did so in front of a vibrant home crowd on what was the annual Alumni Night.
With the victory, Michigan State improves to 13-2 on the year, 4-0 in Big Ten play and 8-0 on its home court. It is also extended its win streak to eight games.
Our Aidan Champion recaps the win on this postgame edition of the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast.
You can watch the episode below:
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo addressed the media after Thursday’s contest.
Below is a partial transcript from Izzo’s opening statement:
Izzo: “Well, when you have a game like that, it’s hard to even know what to say except — that was Matt Larson that said it walking up the steps — I hope every media person, every alum, every student and every fan, appreciates the specialness we have here. The alumni reunions that we have every year are incredible, but for that many former Izzone members to come back over 20 and 30 years was special. Special for me, I think special for my team. And I almost felt sorry for Washington; I mean, they probably thought they were coming in here and there’d be no students. And that group was so good and so fired up; there was no entitlement, none of them left, none of them transferred. They were unbelievable. And I could have stayed there for a half hour after and thanked each and every one of them. But in all the things that happen, please appreciate that this place is different. It’s different. You can say it about places all over — this place is damn different. And I’m just thankful for them, I’m thankful for our marketing people, I’m thankful for our Izzone coach and I’m thankful for all the people that put in the work to get this thing done. I don’t want to make it bigger than the game, but for Tom Izzo, it’s bigger than the game. And when Matt said it to me walking up the steps, I thought it was special.”
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Michigan
Michigan State football lands Division II transfer WR Rodney Bullard from Valdosta State
Jonathan Smith continues to replenish his roster and Michigan State football’s receiver room.
The Spartans picked up a pledge Thursday from wideout Rod Bullard, a transfer from Division II Valdosta State in Georgia. The 6-foot, 170-pound native of Albany, Georgia, has two years of eligibility remaining after redshirting in 2022 and playing 28 games the past two seasons.
As a sophomore in the fall, Bullard caught 42 passes for 1,001 yards with 12 touchdowns and an average of 23.8 yards per catch. The Blazers lost to Ferris State in the Division II national title game, and Bullard had three catches for 15 yards in the 49-14 loss.
In 2023, he had 43 catches for 566 yards and seven scores and returned 16 kicks for a 24.8-yard average with a 99-yard touchdown return.
Bullard is the 14th transfer and third incoming receiver, joining Chrishon McCray (Kent State) and Omari Kelly (Middle Tennessee State). The Spartans lost wideouts Jaron Glover (Mississippi State), Jaelen Smith (Texas-San Antonio), Aziah Johnson (North Carolina) and Antonio Gates Jr. (undecided) among 13 outbound transfers from their 2024 team that finished 5-7 and missed a bowl game for the third straight season.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.
Michigan
Michigan basketball signee enrolls early, will practice with team
A member of the Michigan men’s basketball 2025 recruiting class is already on campus.
Oscar Goodman, a 6-foot-7 forward from New Zealand, is enrolled for the winter semester, which started on Wednesday, a team spokesperson said. Goodman will not appear in games this season but will be allowed to practice and participate in other team activities.
The spokesperson said this was not a typical “reclassification” — when an athlete graduates early and competes in college a season ahead of a typical schedule — but a byproduct of New Zealand’s school calendar.
Goodman will be listed as a freshman on the roster (he wasn’t listed on the online version as of Thursday morning) and a redshirt freshman next season. The rest of the Wolverines returned to campus on Wednesday after a week-long stay in Los Angeles, where they beat USC and UCLA.
“Oscar arrives in Ann Arbor as an accomplished international player and prospect, who was just named to the New Zealand senior national team,” Michigan coach Dusty May said in a statement upon Goodman’s signing in November.
“He comes from a tight-knit family that values everything that we want our program to be about. His training at the NBA (Global) Academy, as well as his eagerness and ability to compete, will allow him to affect our program positively from day one.”
Goodman, from Opunake, is ranked as the No. 75 player in the 2025 class according to the 247Sports composite. He was an all-star at the 2024 FIBA under-17 World Cup after averaging 17 points, 6.3 rebounds, and three assists per game.
Michigan’s 2025 class also includes Orchard Lake St. Mary’s guard Trey McKenney, the No. 1 player in Michigan and No. 19 prospect nationally, and wing Winters Grady (No. 82), an Oregon native currently playing for Prolific Prep in Napa, California. They figure to arrive in Ann Arbor in the summer.
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