Spartans Hope To Turn Season Around Against Illinois
10/27/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 27, 2000
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DATE: Oct. 28, 2000
SITE: Spartan Stadium (72,027), East Lansing, Mich.
KICKOFF: 12:10 p.m. EDT
ESTIMATED ATTENDANCE: 72,027 (sellout)
LAST WEEK: Michigan State lost at No. 16 Michigan, 14-0, Illinois lost at Penn State, 39-25.
BROADCAST COVERAGE:
Radio - The Spartan Radio Network, featuring veteran play-by-play announcer George Blaha, color analyst Larry Bielat, sideline reporter Will Tieman and broadcast host Matt Dery, will broadcast the game to 39 affiliates throughout the state. Michigan State football broadcasts can be heard locally on flagship station WJIM (AM 1240, FM 97.5).
Television - ESPN will televise the Michigan State-Illinois game live with Steve Levy, Todd Christensen and Dave Ryan calling the action.
THE COACHES
Michigan State's Bobby Williams (Purdue 1982) is 4-4 (.500) in his first full season as a college head coach. Williams, who served as the Spartans' running backs coach for 10 years (1990-99), made his head coaching debut on Jan. 1, 2000, as he led Michigan State to a 37-34 victory over No. 10 Florida in the Florida Citrus Bowl. The Spartans finished the 1999 season with a 10-2 overall record and ranked No. 7 in the final polls. During his tenure at Michigan State, Williams coached seven 1,000-yard rushers including Sedrick Irvin, who in 1998 became the first Spartan in school history to reach the rushing milestone in each of his first three seasons.
Illinois' Ron Turner (Pacific 1977) is 15-26 (.366) in his fourth year with the Fighting Illini and 22-30 (.423) in five seasons as a college head coach. Turner previously spent four seasons as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the NFL's Chicago Bears (1993-96). He produced a 7-4 mark (.636) in one season as head coach at San Jose State (1992). His college coaching credits also include stops as an assistant at Stanford (1989-91), Texas A&M (1988), Southern Cal (1985-87), Pittsburgh (1983-84), Northwestern (1981- 82), Arizona (1978-80) and Pacific (1977).
MICHIGAN STATE-ILLINOIS SERIES BREAKDOWN
SERIES RECORD: MSU leads 19-16-2
IN EAST LANSING: MSU leads 10-7-1
FIRST MEETING: MSU 21, Illinois 7 (Oct. 22, 1955)
LAST MEETING: MSU 27, Illinois 10 (Sept. 25, 1999)
LAST ILLINOIS WIN: Illinois 14, MSU 10 (Nov. 21, 1992)
BOBBY WILLIAMS vs. ILLINOIS: First Meeting
RON TURNER vs. MSU: 0-3
CURRENT SERIES STREAK: 5 by MSU (1995-99)
LONGEST MSU STREAK: 5 by MSU (1995-99)
LONGEST ILLINOIS STREAK: 6 (1980-85)
MSU/ILLINOIS SERIES NOTES - Michigan State leads it 19-16-2, including a 10-7-1 record in games played in East Lansing. The Spartans have won five in a row and six of the last seven meetings. Last year, Michigan State opened Big Ten play with a 27-10 victory over Illinois in Champaign. Illinois' last win in the series came on Nov. 21, 1992, 14-10, in Champaign. The Illini's last win in Spartan Stadium came on Oct. 21, 1989, 14-10. (Note: For a complete list of all-time series scores please refer to page 178 in the 2000 MSU Football Media Guide.)
THE LAST MEETING - Michigan State's defense held Illinois to 42 yards rushing and tailback Lloyd Clemons rushed for a career-best 141 yards as the 19th-ranked Spartans won their 1999 Big Ten opener, 27-10, Michigan State in Champaign. The Spartans overcame four turnovers in the victory, which included a pair of touchdown runs by T.J. Duckett. Duckett's first score, a 2-yard run early in the second quarter, gave MSU a 7-0 lead over the previously undefeated Illini. After the home team responded with a field goal, Bill Burke and Ivory McCoy connected on a 22-yard TD pass to give MSU a 14-3 halftime lead. Paul Edinger kicked two field goals, including a 54-yarder, and Duckett added a 6- yard TD run in the second half. Michigan State sacked Illini quarterback Kurt Kittner six times in the win.
THE LAST TIME OUT - Anthony Thomas rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns to lead No. 16 Michigan to a 14-0 victory over Michigan State in Ann Arbor. It marked the first time since 1985 that Michigan posted a shutout in the series. The Wolverines took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards in 12 plays to take a 7-0 lead as Thomas scored on a 1-yard run around left end. Michigan put together a 13- play, 37-yard drive late in the first quarter but it failed to result in points as Hayden Epstein's 54- yard field-goal attempt hit the right upright. Early in the second quarter, MSU's David Schaefer came up a few yards short on a 50-yard field-goal try. Michigan missed another scoring opportunity on the final play of the first half as Jeff Del Verne's 45-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide left. The Spartans opened the second half with an impressive 14-play, 66-yard drive but T.J. Duckett fumbled a pitch on third-and-goal and Eric Wilson recovered at the Michigan 8. Five plays later, Thomas capped a 92-yard scoring drive with a 30-yard TD run around left end. The Spartans had three other scoring chances but failed to put any points on the scoreboard as Michigan came up with two fourth-down stops. Michigan State outgained Michigan in total yards, 355-326. MSU's Ryan Van Dyke set career-high marks for pass attempts (37), completions (26) and passing yards (292).
QUOTING BOBBY WILLIAMS
Michigan Recap: "Our players were emotionally excited about the game. Michigan got off to a quick start, scoring a touchdown on the game's opening drive but after the first series, our defense really settled in and played a solid game. Our defense did the things it had to do to get off the field until the first drive of the third quarter.
"Offensively, we had good field position most of the day. We made a lot of big plays in the passing game but had no point production. We opened the third quarter with an impressive drive but the team really got deflated after the fumble on third-and-goal.
"Ryan Van Dyke really made some good throws and he helped generate some big plays. Ryan was hurried into a few bad throws but there's no question that he played the best game of his career. He converted a few huge third-down plays and he made some things happen when he scrambled out of the pocket and away from the pressure."
Illinois Scouting Report: "This has been an up and down season for Illinois. It opened the season with three-straight wins but has lost three of its last four. Its 1-3 Big Ten record is very misleading because this is a good football team.
"Illinois has some good skill position players on offense. Kurt Kittner has great familiarity with this pro-style offense. Kittner knows where to go with the football and he does an outstanding job of spreading the ball around. Rocky Harvey is a tough running back who adds some versatility to the offense. Harvey is a solid runner and a good receiver coming out of the backfield.
"Illinois has a lot of veterans on the defensive side of the football and this unit is playing with a lot of confidence right now. The front four, led by defensive end Fred Wakefield, can be dominating at times. The linebackers are extremely active, with Robert Franklin and Jerry Schumacher tied for the team lead in tackles. Illinois also has solid personnel in the secondary."
INJURY REPORT
OUT: DE Dimitry Bernard (sprained left ankle vs. Notre Dame, DNP vs. Northwestern, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan), OG Paul Harker (broken left foot vs. Wisconsin, out for the season), OL Sean Poole (ACL right knee in Aug. 12 practice, out for the season), LB T.J. Turner (dislocated left shoulder vs. Iowa, DNP vs. Wisconsin and Michigan).QUESTIONABLE: TB T.J. Duckett (sprained right shoulder vs. Michigan), SS Jason Harmon (broken right hand in Oct. 3 practice, DNP vs. Wisconsin and Michigan), FL Herb Haygood (sprained right shoulder vs. Michigan).
PROBABLE: TE Chris Baker (sprained right ankle vs. Michigan), SS Duron Bryan (right hamstring, DNP vs. Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan), TE Ivory McCoy (dislocated left thumb vs. Michigan).
SPARTANS OF THE WEEK - The Michigan State coaching staff selected the following players as Spartans of the Week for their performances Oct. 21 vs. Michigan:
Offense - OT Siitupe Peko (graded out 95 percent overall).
Defense - CB Renaldo Hill (career-high 12 tackles, 19 production points).
Special Teams - Broderick Nelson (three tackles, 10 production points).
