Michigan State football has chance to bring excitement back this weekend

Throughout the entire 2021 season, there was a different buzz around the Michigan State football program. The Spartans were playing as well as anyone in the Big Ten, they had a Heisman candidate at running back, and the offense was better than it had been since the Connor Cook era.

Michigan State finished 11-2 with a Peach Bowl win over Pitt and the program seemed to be trending in the right direction.

And then something changed.

Kenneth Walker III moved on, Payton Thorne took a step back, and the defense didn’t improve much. The team missed a bowl game in 2022, going 5-7 with a heartbreaking loss against Indiana at home which felt like 2019 Illinois all over again.

The life was sucked out of the program and for months, it’s been that way.

Bad news after bad news. Losing commitments, missing out on top targets, and off-the-field issues, Michigan State is in desperate need of a palate cleanse and a chance to turn things around.

That could happen this weekend for the spring game.

Michigan State football’s spring game could bring excitement back

While we won’t be seeing a live game like we all had hoped for, we’re going to get our first taste of the 2023 roster and the potential for a turnaround.

East Lansing isn’t quite buzzing like it was prior to the 2022 season for the spring game festivities, but maybe that’s not a bad thing. This team is working hard behind closed doors and they’re going to come out with something to prove in 2023.

But that starts on Saturday afternoon.

Not only would an exciting “practice” be just what the fanbase needs, but maybe even a 2024 commitment or two would get things trending back in the right direction. There will be some big names on campus (David Stone, for one) and landing some top targets could bring the excitement back to the program and temporarily fix things until the season starts.

Mel Tucker knows that he needs to turn things around quickly and he’s proven he can do that, but we need to feel some excitement this weekend, and I have a feeling he’ll deliver.