Valero Alamo Bowl Practice Update: Day 3
12/30/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 29, 2009
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS - Third-year Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio sent his team through a two-hour workout in full pads Tuesday, Dec. 29 at the Alamodome, as the Spartans (6-6) continue preparation for the Jan. 2, 2010, Valero Alamo Bowl game against Texas Tech (8-4). The 2010 Valero Alamo Bowl will be televised nationally by ESPN, with kickoff set for 9 p.m. EST.
"Based on the weather today, it was a great advantage to go into the dome and get a good practice in," Dantonio said. "Plus, I thought our guys needed to catch deep balls, punts and kickoffs inside. It's an advantage to do that for a couple of hours throughout practice as opposed to doing it during a walk-through the day before the game. So hopefully it will be to our advantage, but Texas Tech also had the same opportunity and they throw it around pretty well."
Valero Alamo Bowl officials anticipate a crowd in excess of 60,000, and following Tuesday's practice, Dantonio reminded his players to approach Saturday's game like it is a road contest.
"It's definitely a road game because we know the majority of fans there Saturday night will be there supporting Texas Tech," Dantonio said. "More importantly, it's more like an opening game because we've had such a long time to prepare. We've kind of gone through the dog days of summer somewhat with those additional December practice dates prior to Christmas break, and we worked the players pretty hard. We have tackled some over the last five weeks but not at game speed and in space against a quality opponent. So from my perspective, it closely resembles a season-opening road game."
As with a season-opening game, Dantonio expects the special teams to play an important role in the outcome.
"We feel good about (placekicker) Brett Swenson and (punter) Aaron Bates, but there's so much more to special teams play than just those two guys," Dantonio said. "We have to attack and tackle in space. Texas Tech has excellent special teams. We've been very impressed with Tech's kickoff returners Eric Stephens and Edward Britton. This is an opponent that plays with great energy and effort on special teams, and we have to be able to match that."
Under Dantonio, Michigan State is 15-3 (.833) when leading in time of possession, including a perfect 5-0 in 2009. So time of possession will be an important key in Saturday's game.
"We have to be able to control the football, but more importantly, we have to be able to score," Dantonio said. "We have to be able to control the tempo of the game somewhat and limit their opportunities. Texas Tech has a very explosive offense, averaging 380 yards passing per game. It's a team that will take some chances, including going for it on fourth down at times. So it's going to be important for us to keep the time of possession in our favor, but that's easier said than done."
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To win the time of possession battle, the Spartans need to display a well-balanced offensive attack. True freshmen Larry Caper and Edwin Baker pace the Michigan State ground game, as the duo has combined to rush for 773 yards in 2009.
"The two freshmen running backs have done an unbelievable job, especially when you look at their grades in pass protection," Dantonio said. "A running back at this level must be able to pass protect and give the quarterback an opportunity to throw the ball down field. At this level, they see a variety of different pressures and blitzes coming at them. In addition, they've learned a variety of pass protections as well. So they've done an outstanding job of putting all of those things together. In addition, they've been productive when given opportunities to run with the football.
"We have to have some explosive running plays in this game, and they're both capable of producing big plays. So when there's a crease, they've got to break loose. They're both excited about playing in this bowl game.
"With the additional bowl practices, we've been able to reaffirm some things with them, and at this point in the year, they're a little bit more like sophomores than they are freshmen," Dantonio continued. "There's a big difference in what they can provide now than what they could provide do three and four games into this season."
Dantonio indicated that the team will likely hold unit and position meetings for 2 1/2 hours on Wednesday and cancel the scheduled practice to allow his players to get some additional rest.
Special Guest Attends Bowl Practice
Houston Texan rookie defensive end Connor Barwin, who played for Mark Dantonio during his collegiate career at Cincinnati, attended Tuesday's practice in the Alamodome.
