SPARTAN HOLIDAY BOWL BLOG
12/23/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
@MSU_Football 
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| Holiday Bowl Central | MSU Holiday Bowl Game Notes
 | Day 2: Saturday, Dec. 23 |
Under sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s, the Michigan State football team held its first practice in San Diego on Saturday at Mesa College as the No. 16 Spartans resumed their preparations for the 40th annual San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl against Washington State.
MSU head coach Mark Dantonio was pleased with his team's effort, as the Spartans worked out in full pads for two-and-a-half hours, followed by a team lift.
"I think the biggest thing coming off a couple days break is you've got to get back to game condition as much as you can. We haven't played a game in almost a month, so you try to put as many live perspectives in to practice as you can without getting people hurt. That means you've got to bring your feet with you and run, you've got to run and react, so that's what we tried to get done today. We went for about two and a half hours, so it's a good day today," said Dantonio, as the Spartans practiced for the first time since last Monday in East Lansing. "We're excited to be in San Diego, we're going to get a little lift in after practice and then go to the beach for a little bit to see the Pacific Ocean. It's a beautiful day out here, the sun is shining and our guys are excited to be here."
The Spartans (9-3) held a total of six on-campus bowl practices before arriving in San Diego on Friday night.
Check out some sights & sounds from the Spartans' first @HolidayBowlGame practice in San Diego! #FootballAndFlipFlops #GoGreen pic.twitter.com/e37tcNLyla
— Spartan Football (@MSU_Football) December 24, 2017
Following practice, the team visited Mission Beach in San Diego.
The Spartans return to practice Sunday afternoon.
The 40th annual San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl is set for Thursday, Dec. 28 at 9 p.m. EST at SDCCU Stadium. The game will be televised on FS1.
Note of the day...
The Spartans are 5-1 in bowl games in the state of California. MSU owns the highest winning percentage of any team with at least five appearances in the Rose Bowl (.800 at 4-1) and also won the 2001 Silicon Valley Bowl over Fresno State in San Jose, California. The Holiday Bowl marks MSU's first-ever game in San Diego.
Spartan Jacks from Cali! #GoGreen #TheBestStartHere pic.twitter.com/hUtW3z3bwf
-- Spartan Football (@MSU_Football) December 23, 2017
| Day 1: Friday, Dec. 22 |
The Michigan State football team arrived in San Diego Friday evening and checked into its team headquarters, the Manchester Grand Hyatt, to prepare its bowl week in San Diego for the 40th Annual San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl.
The Spartans' travel party flew from Detroit to San Diego, and had the "honor" of being the last passengers on Delta's Boeing Ship 6309, before the aircraft is moved into retirement on Saturday. Upon landing in San Diego, several of the team and other members of the travel party signed their names on the aircraft.
Michigan State was greeted at the team hotel by the Holiday Bowl committee, as well as a mariachi band, and many cheering Spartan fans clad in green and white.
The No. 16 Spartans will resume preparations for the Holiday Bowl match-up with No. 18 Washington State with MSU's first practice in San Diego on Saturday.
No. 16 Michigan State is making its first appearance in the San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl as the Spartans will take on No. 18 Washington State at SDCCU Stadium on Thursday, Dec. 28 at 9 p.m. EST. The game will be televised nationally on FS1, with Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft on the call.
MSU closed the regular season on a two-game winning streak with victories over Maryland and Rutgers to enter the Holiday Bowl with a 9-3 overall record, including a 7-2 mark in conference play to tie for second place in the Big Ten East Division. The Cougars are also 9-3 overall and went 6-3 in league action, finishing third in the Pac-12 North Division.
Daily updates on MSU's week in San Diego for the Holiday Bowl will be available on msuspartans.com. Fans can also follow on Facebook (MSUAthletics), Twitter (@msu_football), Instagram (msu_spartans) and YouTube (MSUSpartanAthletics).
Note of the day...
Michigan State is making its first-ever appearance in the Holiday Bowl, but is making its 27th all-time appearance in a bowl game and its 10th under head coach Mark Dantonio, the most bowl games of any coach in program history.