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After a bye week to re-charge our batteries, FFFF makes its triumphant return for rivalry week and the clash for Paul Bunyan on Saturday night in Ann Arbor. The Spartan offense enters this year's matchup amid a bumpy season, one that saw them in a groove during the early non-conference before things went sideways in P5 matchups. However, they are also coming off a get-right bye week and are riding an OT win against Wisconsin, so confidence should not be completely absent. The Film: MSU has dealt with rather significant injuries this season, moreso on defense than an offense, but some have hit this side of the ball. Star WR Jayden Reed missed the Washington game and took a little bit of time to get back up to speed fully and thus I felt that it was a good idea to tilt the film more towards the present. Since their most recent opponent, Wisconsin, has a pretty good defense, going with the most recent game made the most sense. So, Wisconsin it is, though I did look at the extended highlights of all the other games against P5 opponents to inform the writing of this piece. Personnel: Click the chart for big or here for PDF: Michigan State returns second year starter Payton Thorne, who has taken a step back from last season. After posting 27 TD to 10 INT at 8.3 Y/A in 13 games last season, the QB is throwing for fewer scores, turning it over more, and not throwing it as deep. The numbers this year? 11 TD to 7 INT at 7.2 Y/A over seven games. Thorne's performance can best be described as fire-and-ice, often within the course of an entire game. He'll make several horrendous, interceptable throws, and then toss out a few daggers. We will investigate that more in the HenneChart section. Last year MSU featured a fella by the name of Kenneth Walker III who you may remember. He was pretty good! Walker now resides in Seattle and the NFL, forcing the Spartans to deal with the inevitable drop-off of not having a RB who can snap his fingers and make a 50 yard rush happen out of nowhere. They hit the portal for the replacements, getting Jalen Berger from Wisconsin and Jarek Broussard from Colorado, with Berger receiving the lion's share of carries so far. It started as a tandem between the two but Berger seized the upperhand as the schedule got tougher, with Broussard only getting three carries in each of the last three games. Broussard may have been Wally Pipp'd by Elijah Collins, who I was stunned to learn was still in college when he emerged against Maryland in week 5. Collins, longtime FFFF readers may remember, was the bellcow of the 2019 Spartans, Dantonio's last team. He rushed 222 times that season for nearly 1,000 yards and did it in only his second year of college football. But then he just... vanished. Collins fell to third on the depth chart in 2020 under Tucker and was buried underneath KWIII last season. After starting the season on the bench, Collins got some play in non-garbage time against Maryland and then rushed it 14 times against Wisconsin, nearly as many as Berger. If that game is any indication, Collins may now be the #2, offering a huskier (225 lbs.) contrast to Berger (205). At receiver, the star Jayden Reed returns. Though he's dealt with injuries this season, Reed is still a dynamic home-run threat who can also bring in his fair share of contested catches. He's this week's Dangerman. Speaking of contested catches, leapy half-basketball player/half-football player Keon Coleman is in the midst of a fun breakout season. He was on the verge of star status and could earn one by the end of the season. Those two make up a very nice duo, with Tre Mosley returning as the third receiving option, still the go-over-the-middle-and-sit-down guy. The top three WRs have combined for 86 catches this season, while the next closest WR has seven (Germie Bernard). Other WRs include Montorie Foster, Cade McDonald, and Christian Fitzpatrick. I have nothing of note to say about them. At TE, Tyler Hunt returns as the blocking TE who is terrible at blocking. I was not a fan of his last season when I charted the Spartans and my assessment of Hunt has not changed. He also isn't a major asset in the receiving game. Illinois transfer Daniel Barker is a better receiver, while ex-Purdue transfer Maliq Carr has only six catches but one particularly big one against Wisconsin (more on that later). The TEs are still a relatively muted element of the passing game like last season. The MSU offensive line was defined by its mass rotation in 2021, mixing in as many as nine or ten linemen during the course of a game. This year it is more static, and that is not necessarily a good thing. This group has struggled to keep Thorne clean consistently and has not been able to open running lanes against P5 competition. Problems start right up the gut with center Nick Samac, who was their worst lineman in the game I charted. Returning starter Jarrett Horst lines up at LT, narrowly avoiding a cyan after an iffy effort against the Badgers as a pass protector. Opposite him is new starter Spencer Brown, who I thought might have been MSU's best blocker in the game I charted, but he did not look great in the footage I saw from other contests. At LG, JD Duplain returns as a starter. I didn't have many chartable plays from Duplain but he looked fine. PFF is a big fan of his, but take that for all the salt in the salt mines. Matt Carrick starts at RG and he was a mess against Wisconsin, particularly as a run blocker, earning a cyan as well. I don't normally talk about special teams but I do want to throw two notes out there, as the specialists have gone in diverging directions. Bryce Baringer and his rocket launcher leg is still around, averaging 51.40 yards per punt, tops in the NCAA. Meanwhile on the flip side, kicking has been a bit of a debacle. Jack Stone is 15/16 on XPs and 1/3 on FGs, his lone make coming from 43 against Akron. Ben Patton has also kicked some, doing the XPs against Wisconsin, while missing his lone FG attempt of the season against Maryland. The game against the Badgers also saw a potential game-winning FG go awry before it could even be attempted, after Baringer fumbled the snap, forcing him to improvise and throw an interception. The reason I bring this up is so viewers of Saturday's game can keep in mind the struggles of the MSU kicking game if/when they decide to go for it on 4th down in plus territory. [AFTER THE JUMP: More bunts, fewer dingers]