Michigan State Athletics: My 3 favorite things from this past weekend

2. The football team won a game on the road as an underdog

If you watched the entire Michigan State at Indiana football game, you may be entitled to compensation. It was ugly offense on both sides, it was ugly defense on both sides, and it was ugly coaching on both sides. But, someone had to emerge victorious and it was the Michigan State Spartans for the second time in three games.

It does not mean much in the grand scheme of things and by no means does it mean any of these coaches should be retained, but it’s important for the returning players to keeping fighting in a game where they were not expected to win, and lost the lead late in the fourth quarter.

It’s important to see in a game where they saw multiple teammates go down with injuries and no one would blame them for looking out for themselves and not sell out for the team. But despite the coaching decision to leave No. 12 and No. 27 on the field in known passing downs, the Spartans got an important stop after the offense mustered everything they had into a game-winning drive.

It also gives the Spartans some momentum and a slim, but non-zero chance at making a bowl game. If not enough teams win six games, the NCAA will pick a few 5-7 teams to fill in the 142 bowls games this season.

Do we really want these players exposed to more practices with these coaches? Probably not, but the players will never say no to playing more football. It also gives them that much more motivation to beat Penn State and end this nightmare season on a high note.

As frustrating as this season has been for the fans, I can’t imagine what it’s like going into the football building day in and day out giving 100 percent and not seeing it pay off. Even if it doesn’t result in a bowl berth, beating Penn State would be a great send off for these seniors, who have been through the end of the Mark Dantonio era, COVID-19, and now the end of the Mel Tucker fiasco, so they deserve to feel good about something.