football program heading into the 2011 season.
The Spartans had a lot of success in 2010, posting an 11-win season — the most in school history — and winning the program’s first Big Ten championship in 20 years.
But the Spartans also fell short in big games, getting stomped by Iowa (37-6) and later Alabama in the Capital One Bowl (49-7).
With senior quarterback Kirk Cousins leading the way and a talented trio of running backs in the backfield, the Spartans will be anxious to avoid a hangover and are poised to make a run at the BCS Championship in 2011.
On offensive team chemistry: “Offensively, when you look at our football team, you always have to start first of all with the quarterback position.Kirk Cousins is a young man that not only is an outstanding football player on the field, but he brings a sense of calm, a sense of confidence to our football team. He’s got great game-management skills.Maybe more importantly than that, he has great locker room management. We’ve got great team chemistry in our locker room right now and that’s where it starts for us.”
On the young defensive side of the ball: “Defensively, we’re a young football team there. We’ve got two seniors in our top 22 players, but I do think we bring a blend of experience there. Jerel Worthy sort of anchors our defensive line, but we have a lot of experience up there. We have numbers at our linebacker position. We’re going miss Greg Jones and Eric Gordon, certainly. We’ve got — I think — very, very good players coming back. … So, (it’s) very exciting with Max Bullough and some of the other young men. Chris Norman, who sat out this spring but should be an outstanding player. Some of the other guys: Denicos Allen, a very good player, as well. Secondary should be solid, as well.”
On the 49-7 Capital One Bowl loss to Alabama: “We climbed one mountain, and you think you’re getting to the top of the mountain, but you find out there’s another mountain there to climb, as well. When you look at our football team and how we performed in the bowl game, obviously we took a step backwards. Our focus is on what we can do to improve the situation and what we can do.”
On getting snubbed by the BCS : “The (Big Ten) championship game in this conference will be very, very exciting for everybody, and I think that will propel that particular team onward, and that’ll sort of settle all of the problems from last year. I think it was a unique season with three teams really being in the top 10 for a long period of time in the BCS — the top 10. Hey, we got left out there, but we can control our own destiny. If we played better in the bowl game, I could answer that a little bit better, but it is what it is.”
On the addition of Nebraska to the Big Ten: “With Nebraska coming into the conference, it gives the conference as a whole — it strengthens our brand as a conference. You split up the two conferences, and I think there are some pretty good teams in the other conference, too. Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin. The thing you learn about this conference: It’s very, very competitive as you move forward.”
On former Ohio State head coach and mentor Jim Tressel: “I was heartbroken. I look at Jim Tressel as a tragic hero, and heroes will rise up in the end.”
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