Michigan State football opens fall camp next week and there will be a lot of question marks surrounding the Spartans in 2017.
Looking back at Michigan State’s 2016 season, there’s only one word that can truly describe it: disaster. Not only did the Spartans fall from grace harder and faster than any team in recent memory, but they also followed it up with one of the worst offseasons in school history as well.
In fact, the team experience blow after blow, losing guys via transfer — Jon Reschke, Vayante Copeland — and some were booted from the program for their roles in sexual assault cases — Donnie Corley, Auston Robertson, Josh King and Demetric Vance. Heck, one player, Thiyo Lukusa, even quit football altogether because he lost his passion for it.
Going 3-9 and then experiencing that kind of offseason can take a toll on a program, but at Big Ten media days this past week, Mark Dantonio seemed optimistic about the future of Michigan State football. While some Spartans had been making headlines for all the wrong reasons, he has been at the center, making a positive impact on those remaining players.
The rest of the Big Ten is aware of the head coach’s track record and you better believe they aren’t ready to count Michigan State out even after the year it had. The Spartans have been one of the Big Ten’s best over the past 5-6 years and teams know that.
Let’s take a look at what the 2017 season could bring for the green and white.