As we close another football season, it appears that the Spartans are, again, bowl bound. Yet the usual chorus is complaining that we’re not winning enough football games. Let’s dissect the issue to see if the MSU football program is on the right track.
Even though Albuquerque, New Mexico is 1,529 miles from the Red Cedar River, all the neighbors know our loyalties. We wear our MSU garb everywhere, the car is appropriately adorned with Green and White and our Spartan flag has flown proudly in front of every home we’ve ever owned.
Our blood is greener than any Vulcan, and when our kids were little, their first words were “Go State!”
Our passion for Michigan State University is not just founded on alumni fraternal loyalty. We’ve stayed connected and involved with the institution since I graduated in 1978. MSU has evolved into one of the premiere educational institutions in the world. It’s done so in spite of a struggling state economy and competition for a host of equally worthy competitors.
When I talk with fellow Spartans about what makes MSU great, some commonalities instantly emerge.
MSU provides a superb educational product.
MSU focuses on building integrity, diversity and character.
MSU continues to offer value to alumni long after graduation.
MSU has invested in long term, continuous improvement.
MSU is dedicated to making the world a better place, and is doing it.
What does all of this have to do with football? Everything.
If you study Coach Dantonio’s program, it meets all the criteria above.. and then some. His students have access to a great education, learn important leadership lessons and enter the same lifelong family of Spartan alumni who instantly lend a hand the moment they recognize another Green Blood.
Dynasties take time to build. Ask Jud Heathcote and Ron Mason.
Even in defeat, the Spartans are showing signs that the Dantonio turn-around is working. I will always remember the Iowa game as one of the greatest defensive performances I’ve ever seen. And when the offensive line gives him time, Kirk Cousins can shine as brightly as any quarterback in the league.
None of this is lost on the recruits. We’ve outclassed that team down the road for the last two years in attracting exceptional student / athletes. From these seeds, mighty oaks can grow. All it takes is time, tenacity and training.
There were many moments this season that could have gone another way. We’re moving into the rarefied arena where winning is determined by who makes the fewest mistakes. We made a few too many.
But peel beneath the surface and you can see the improvement.
I had the good fortune to stay at the Kellogg Center for Homecoming. The team traditionally sleeps at Kellogg the night before each home contest. On game day, I ran into about 20 players in the conference center’s crowded hall.
You could immediately sense the discipline, the respect for the mantle each has chosen to carry, and the explosive energy that is palpable behind the suits and ties each team member wears.
These kids (lets not forget that they are kids) have learned Coach D’s most important lesson. That the real field of play exists well beyond Spartan Stadium. And the lessons they learn about teamwork, their opponents and themselves will continue to have an impact long after they leave East Lansing.
We’ll go bowling for sure. The kids will get post season experience and national television exposure for the University. And having watched Spartan sports for four decades, I believe that, in time, Mark Dantonio will win more games. But, if building a dynasty is about continuous improvement, a good education, integrity and preparing generations to make the world a better place…
He’s already there.
