What Mel Tucker said following Michigan State’s win over Penn State to secure 10-win season
Michigan State finished off one of the most impressive turnarounds of the college football season.
Saturday, the Spartans posted a 30-27 victory over Penn State in snow globe-like conditions in East Lansing. The win bumped Michigan State to 10-2 on the year, a huge improvement after finishing 2-5 a season ago.
There’s no question, Mel Tucker certainly earned that contract extension.
Michigan State was able to get the job done in all facets of the game and closed out the regular season with an impressive win over a quality Nittany Lions squad. After the game, Tucker met with reporters to discuss the win and reflect on the team’s impressive season.
Here’s what Tucker had to say:
Tucker on his contract extension: “I really haven’t had an opportunity to reflect on that yet, obviously because the preparation for the game was our main focus and my main focus.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker says again he believes MSU is a destination job and not a stepping stone. “We want to bring a national championship to East Lansing and be in the conversation year in and year out. There’s obviously a commitment to that.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker on he and Franklin getting their big contracts as Black head coaches: “Everything I do has significance and meaning across all different type of fronts. Everyone’s watching.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker on Kenneth Walker III: “We’re an all-weather football team, and he’s an all-weather back.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker says MSU “had some issues with our specialists in kicking” today.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker makes pitch for MSU to bowls and said he expects to get players back for postseason game. Says Spartans have “an exciting and attractive team, and our fans travel well.” Adds it is “an exciting team to watch, we have some play-makers” who are elite.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker: “The power of the team, we really tapped into that this week. And when you get into the game, it’s who wants it more.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker said path to today’s win started in locker room in Columbus. “It’s a keep-it-real session with our guys every single day. We knew what our challenges would be, and we had a plan of attack. And our players executed the plan.” Says it came down to mental/physical toughness.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker confirms MSU battled through illness as well as the injuries. “At the end of the day, no one cares how many guys you have out.” Says “the guys really wanted to get this one.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker said MSU had to “shuffle some lineups during the week” and make contingency plans based on illness.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
Tucker: “They’re resilient, they fight like heck out there. You can tell they play for each other.” Says he’s proud of the team and staff, thanks fans who showed up and “gave us a boost today. They were in there deep and thick. … It’s a perfect way to send our seniors out.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
MSU coach Mel Tucker: “A lot to say about this team and their performance today. It was a really gutsy performance from our guys.”
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) November 28, 2021
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Kenneth Walker III closes season, and maybe career, at Michigan State with a bang
East Lansing — It was the last game at Spartan Stadium for at least 10 Michigan State players on Saturday, but the future of one Spartan, in particular, will be the focus over the next few weeks.
No. 12 Michigan State capped its regular season with a 30-27 victory over Penn State, its 10th win of the season and one that puts the Spartans in position to possibly play in a New Year’s Six bowl game.
And while it appears likely running back Kenneth Walker III will play in that bowl game, whether the Big Ten’s leading rusher will return to Michigan State next season remains somewhat of a mystery.
“I’m not sure right now,” Walker said when asked if he had played his last game in Spartan Stadium.
Walker, who is a potential Heisman Trophy finalist, ran for 138 yards and a touchdown against Penn State and finished the regular season with 1,6 yards, second most in the nation behind Lew Nichols of Central Michigan.
The fourth-year junior, who is a finalist for the Maxwell and Doak Walker awards, transferred in the offseason from Wake Forest but would almost certainly be selected in the NFL Draft if he opts to take that route.
And while he said plans to play in whatever bowl game the Spartans end up in, there’s a decent chance his days as a Spartan could be coming to an end.
If they are, his play on Saturday was a gritty performance on a slick track as snow blanketed the field.
“K9, he’s just a player,” coach Mel Tucker said. “We’re an all-weather team but he’s an all-weather back. Doesn’t matter if we’re on grass, we’re on turf, we’re down in Miami and it’s hot, or snowing back here. Doesn’t matter, he’s going to get it done. He can get tough yards, he’s shown that this season. It’s not just a bounce outside and try to get outside the corner and get out of there. He’ll get up in there and get what he can get, because you never know when you’re going to pop one.
“He’s shown toughness and talent, and that’s important. He’s not just a talented guy. He’s tough and that’s what great backs do.”
tality for the last three or four weeks and the guys have really embraced that. They’ve done what they needed to do to prepare to win a game like this, which was a very, very important game. It meant so much to everyone. So we dealt with some illness and we’ve battled through some injuries. Like I told them at the beginning of the week, this is tough sledding, and at the end of the day, you know, no one cares how many guys you got out, how many guys are sick, you gotta find a way to get it done.”
Walker said he never intended not to play on Saturday while others also made it through the entire game.
“This guy right here sucked it up pretty good, he was hurting yesterday,” quarterback Payton Thorne said of Walker. “He still isn’t feeling great. Kevin Jarvis wasn’t feeling great. Jacub Panasiuk wasn’t feeling good. But there were a lot of guys who had the flu during the week, and maybe guys who didn’t have the flu but did not feel good. We had IVs here a couple days ago. It was really a group effort on getting guys ready to go and battling through the adversity of this week.”
Injured list
Sickness was only one issue for the Spartans on Saturday as injuries have been piling up for weeks.
Wide receiver Jalen Nailor was out for the fourth straight game while defensive tackle Simeon Barrow, who has missed the last two games, cornerback Charles Brantley, cornerback Marqui Lowery and tight end Tyler Hunt, who had played in all 11 games, were out. Left tackle was also out for the fourth straight game. And after playing a limited number of snaps last week, linebacker Quavaris Crouch missed Saturday’s game.
The kicking game was also affected.
Senior Matt Coghlin, who has been limited for the past four games, kicked a 22-yard field goal then limped to the sideline and was done for the day. Freshman Stephan Rusnak, who has filled in, kicked off early in the game but gave way Evan Morris.
For extra points, it was walk-on Evan Johnson. He missed his first extra-point attempt but made his second when Michigan State scored its final touchdown.
Farewells
Ten Michigan State players appeared in their final home game, including center Matt Allen, tackle AJ Arcuri, defensive end Drew Beesley, tackle Luke Campbell, Coghlin and Panasiuk. Each came back for a sixth season while transfers Drew Jordan (DE), Spencer Rowland (DB), Anthony Russo (QB) and Cody Waddell (P) also played their final games at Michigan State.
Others who could come back were also celebrated on Saturday, including fifth-year senior tight end Connor Heyward and fourth-year junior defensive back Michael Dowell.
