Michigan State University Athletics
Spartans Open Spring Football Drills Saturday
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Football
March 26, 1999
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State fifth-year head coach Nick Saban will welcome back 41 lettermen, including 17 starters, when the Spartans open spring football drills Saturday.
The Spartans had their string of three-straight postseason bowl appearances snapped last year, finishing 6-6 overall and 4-4 in the Big Ten. Michigan State produced two major upsets in 1998, with wins over top-ranked Ohio State (28-24) and No. 10 Notre Dame (45-23).
Coach Saban's top priority this spring is to improve the team's toughness on both sides of the football.
"A goal this spring is to improve our play in the offensive line," Saban said. "The group improved over the course of last season but it didn't play with a lot of toughness. We must become more physical up front and play with more power. We didn't get consistent production out of our running game and that made our offense one-dimensional at times.
"The same goes for the defensive side of the ball. We must improve the play of our front seven. We slipped dramatically last year by allowing more than 170 rushing yards per game. You can't play winning football while giving up those numbers."
Eight starters return on offense including quarterback Bill Burke (completed 195-of-358 passes for a single-season record 2,595 yards and 19 TDs) and his two favorite targets Plaxico Burress (single-season record 65 catches for 1,013 yards and 8 TDs) and Gari Scott (58 for 843 and 4 TDs).
Gone is Sedrick Irvin, Michigan State's fourth all-time leading rusher with 3,504 yards, who declared himself eligible for the NFL Draft after his junior season. Last year, Irvin accounted for 75 percent of the Spartans' ground attack.
"We must find a go-to guy at the running back position, as both a runner and receiver," Saban said. "Both Little John Flowers and Shawn Foster showed some promise and ability last year but neither played as much as we had hoped. They both have potential but potential won't do us any good unless it can be turned into production. This spring, those guys will get the opportunity to take the bull by the horn. How quickly a consistent, dependable running back develops will be a key factor for us on offense."
The only starter missing from the offensive line is All-Big Ten center Jason Strayhorn.
"We want to put our five best offensive linemen on the field," Saban said. "I've always felt center might be the best position for Casey Jensen (started at right guard in 1998).
"This will be an important spring for Tupe Peko, the highly-touted junior college transfer. We see Tupe as a top tackle prospect and if he fits in there that would allow us to move Dave Sucura inside. Paul Harker made a lot of freshman mistakes last year but he gained a lot of valuable experience.
"I really like the power and strength we have on the right side of the offensive line. Greg Robinson-Randall made tremendous improvement. Greg lost 50 pounds and played well when he was healthy. I look for him to take the next step as a player next fall. Shaun Mason was our best offensive lineman until he got hurt early last season.
"We'll take a look at different combinations up front this spring and see how things shake out," he said. "I still don't know if we have enough quality depth along the offensive line but we'll see how some of the young guys progress.
"We're blessed with several good tight ends. Chris Baker came a long way last year as both a receiver and a blocker. Ivory McCoy has great speed at that position and Brad Rainko and Kyle Rance have played a lot of football.
"There's a question mark at fullback with the loss of Garett Gould, a three-year starter, but we can do a lot of things with our tight ends to help us with the switch at fullback."
The biggest challenge on defense is retooling the front seven.
"I was really disappointed in the way the defense played last year," Saban said. "We lacked character up front and didn't play with great effort and toughness. We can't play winning football if we don't win the battle up front. We'll analyze our scheme and the execution of our players this spring."
Back in the fold are defensive ends Julian Peterson, who led the team in tackles for losses (18 for 75 yards) and sacks (10 for 57), and Robaire Smith, who recorded eight tackles for losses (22 yards) before breaking his right leg against Ohio State. Saban hopes to move Jace Sayler from defensive end to tackle this spring.
"I thought the defense played better during the second half of last season when T.J. Turner and Josh Thornhill played the inside linebacker positions. We'll work to find our three best linebackers to put on the field. We plan to take a look at both Julian Peterson and Mike Austin at outside linebacker."
Last year, Michigan State ranked among the NCAA leaders in pass defense (No. 10 with 101.6 rating). Tops on the list of returnees in the secondary are strong safety Aric Morris, who led the team in tackles with 127, and cornerback Renaldo Hill, who had five interceptions to go along with 12 pass break-ups.
"There are a couple of big holes to fill in the secondary but we're pretty solid in that area," Saban said. "Our two young corners, Renaldo Hill and Cedric Henry, showed a lot of promise last year and made some big plays. We need to find a safety to go along with Aric Morris and we need to decide where Richard Newsome can help us best, at either safety or cornerback."
Saban also intends to try Broderick Nelson, who saw limited action at wide receiver a year ago, at cornerback.
The Spartans have perhaps the Big Ten's best specialists, in placekicker Paul Edinger and punter Craig Jarrett. Edinger led the league with 28 field goals made, including 13 straight during a late-season stretch. Jarrett finished second in the Big Ten with his 43.8-yard punting average.
"Paul Edinger was one of the most consistent placekickers in the country last year and he also did a very good job on kickoffs," Saban said. "Craig Jarrett put up some impressive numbers but he really needs to improve his consistency.
"Overall, there's plenty of room for improvement for our special teams. We ranked among the national leaders in punt returns (No. 9 with 14.0 avg.), did a good job on kickoff coverage but didn't get much production out of our kickoff return team (18.6 avg.). If we improve the consistency of our special teams, they could become a real weapon in terms of controlling field position."
Michigan State concludes spring drills with its annual Green-White intrasquad game Saturday, April 24 at 1 p.m. in Spartan Stadium. Admission is free.
