Grinz on Green Blog: Cook Becomes MSU's Winningest Quarterback
10/3/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Steve Grinczel, MSUSpartans.com Online Columnist | @GrinzOnGreen
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- There was an air of inevitability to Connor Cook becoming Michigan State's all-time winningest quarterback.
After all, he entered the Spartans' 100th Homecoming game tied with Kirk Cousins for the lead with 27 career victories.
However, no one could have envisioned Cook getting to the top spot by running there.
Yes, Cook helped pass Michigan State to a 24-21 victory by completing 13-of-19 passes for 139 yards and one touchdown. But, he also made big plays with his legs by running for a career-high 48 yards. His 22-yard scamper in the third quarter was his longest run as a Spartan.
More importantly, Cook took advantage of a skill-set that has been under-utilized, according to head coach Mark Dantonio and his assistants, for years.
"The coaches have been on me ever since 2013," Cook said. "I'd drop back and we'd play Nebraska, they'd be in a two-man (zone) and no one would account for the quarterback. (Quarterbacks coach Brad) Salem would always say, `Hey, you've got to run. When are you going to run?' That's been going on for the past two seasons and finally, I kind of got out of my shell today and rushed a little bit."
The cold, windy, rainy conditions forced Cook's hand, so to speak.
"The weather and stuff made me not trust in my arm as much, and trusting my feet knowing (the Boilermakers) are in man coverage," Cook said.
Dantonio was pleased to see Cook unleash a new dimension.
"When your quarterback becomes a threat to run the football, your offense takes on a whole other dynamic, whether it's scrambling and running or called runs, which we did as well," Dantonio said. "Now you have to defend that, or now you have to have people in position if he scrambles.
"I just think it shows his versatility. I've been saying he can do this all the time. He has the wheels to do it. I thought he created with his legs today, and that's something that we've been talking about a lot and he has the ability to do."
Cook will be going for his 29th win next Saturday at Rutgers and could put the record out of reach for some time with the help of his teammates.
"It's a great accomplishment and it means a lot, but a lot of the credit goes to being on the team with a great defense (in 2013)," Cook said. "Being on great teams like last year, when we had the explosive offense and we had and the great defense. Football is a team sport. One word that comes to my mind when you think of football is just `together' -- the togetherness you have in the locker room and on the field. It's a 100-percent team sport."
All-America center Jack Allen, who moved to left tackle late in the first half after Dennis Finley left with a season-ending leg injury, said Cook deserves more credit that he claims.
"He's the guy that we turn to in the huddle and he's the guy that's out there making plays," Allen said. "I guess the offensive line does have a part in it, but that said, when Coach (Dantonio) talks about having a short memory and coming out the next series and doing what you're supposed to do, that's Connor Cook.
"He comes out, he doesn't care what happened the previous series, he's going to try and score and he's going to do whatever he can to get us in the right position to win."
The record is especially meaningful to Dantonio because it was held by the player who did so much to help build the Spartans into a nationally relevant program.
"First of all, he passes Kirk Cousins," Dantonio said. "In my mind, it's great vindication for a quarterback, but it's also (an accomplishment) for our entire program. What it means is that this program has won at an unparalleled level for a number of years.
"Both of those guys have been our starting quarterback for three years. For them both to do that says a lot about the other people that were playing with them. That's sort of an individual accomplishment, but it's also a group accomplishment. It's the defense, it's the offense, it's the people surrounding them, it's the special teams. It's a lot of wins."
