Michigan State Football: Report card for 2015 season

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Nov 28, 2015; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans cornerback Arjen Colquhoun (36) and cornerback Jermaine Edmondson (39) carry the Big Ten east championship trophy after a game at Spartan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports /

Let’s take a look at the report card for Michigan State football after the 2015 season.

The 2015 Michigan State football season is officially in the books and the Spartans finished on a sour note, getting blown out at the hands of Alabama in the College Football Playoff’s Cotton Bowl. It wasn’t pretty, but Michigan State took a lot away from the loss and it’s definitely something to build on moving forward into 2016.

Michigan State is going to be one of a couple of favorites to win the Big Ten next season and that goes without saying since Mark Dantonio has made sure this team is a perennial contender. He’s even become the first coach in Big Ten history to win 11-plus games in five out of six seasons.

Without Connor Cook next year, it will be interesting to see how the offense operates, but it seems as if Michigan State is in good hands with a mixture of veterans and young talent at the QB position.

As for the 2015 campaign, we tried to sit down and hand out grades, in report card fashion, to each of the Michigan State football position groups.

Which group graded out the highest for 2015 and which the lowest? Let us know if you agree or disagree in the comment section below.

Quarterbacks: A

Dec 31, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Michigan State Spartans quarterback Connor Cook (18) throws a pass against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the first half in the 2015 CFP semifinal at the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /

Connor Cook’s departure is going to hurt like the peeling off of a band-aid nice and slow. Michigan State’s all-time leading passer finished his senior campaign with his fifth career loss in three seasons, going 34-5 during his time under center. He passed for 3,131 yards, 24 touchdowns and just seven interceptions — two against Alabama — while ending his career on a sour note.

The only thing that would have made the quarterbacks grade an ‘A+’ would have likely been a win in the Cotton Bowl and/or an increase in completion rate from his current 56.1 percent. Cook was the leader every program desires and he will be sorely missed.

As for his backups, Damion Terry and Tyler O’Connor got the chance to play prominently in one game, against Ohio State, and they helped the Spartans get their biggest victory of the season on the road.

O’Connor got the start and played well. He finished the season with 133 yards, two touchdowns and an interceptions with that Ohio State win, but his sample size just wasn’t large enough to say he is the sure starter in 2016.

Terry was used primarily for run plays and he had just 15 passing yards on 2-of-7 completions while rushing for 68 yards. The race for starter next season is wide open, but the options are pretty solid.

Next: Running Backs

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