Michigan State Receives Respectable Ranking Despite Losing Streak
Michigan State was rolling after the first three games of the season.
Two of the Spartans’ three wins were against clearly inferior teams, Florida Atlantic and Prairie View A&M. However, the Spartans’ upset win over Maryland on the road was a game that started to catch the attention of many around college football. So much so that some coaches even voted for the Spartans to be ranked in the Top 25.
However, shortly after the Spartans’ third win of the season, things went downhill as Michigan State began to play stiffer competition. After their win over Prairie View at home, Michigan State traveled to Boston College and did not play some of their best players against the Eagles because of injuries.
Then Michigan State faced off with Ohio State and Oregon in consecutive weeks, struggling mightily in both games. Luckily for the Spartans, they were not expected to compete with the best schools in the conference, let alone the country, like Ohio State and Oregon. Therefore, many around college football have not overly penalized the Spartans for their three-game losing streak.
Michael Cohen of FOX Sports recently released his Big Ten rankings on social media platform X, formerly Twitter. Cohen ranked the Spartans as the 14th-best team in the conference, one spot behind the 3-3 Minnesota Gophers and one spot in front of 3-2 Maryland. Considering Michigan State’s current streak, being listed at 14th is a respectable rating. This is especially true for a team regularly ranked lower than that in the conference heading into the season.
The Spartans head into their bye week searching for answers and hoping to improve before retaking the field against a formidable Iowa team. Cohen has Iowa ranked a few spots ahead of the Spartans, but Iowa travels to East Lansing, which may be enough to tip the odds in Michigan State’s favor after kickoff.
Coach Jonathan Smith undoubtedly has Michigan State on the right path. His positive impact on the team can already be seen just a few games in. While Michigan State still has plenty of room to grow and develop, it is clear they have found the right coach to help them reach their goals as the program heads into the future.
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Ezekiel is a former Sports Editor from the Western Herald and former Atlanta Falcons beat writer.