Michigan State looks to shift run game into higher gear

EAST LANSING, MICH. Michigan State has run the ball effectively through two games. The scary thing for Notre Dame — this week’s opponent — is LJ Scott hasn’t even got going yet.

Scott accounted for a little more than a third of the Spartans’ 260 rushing yards in last year’s 36-28 win. If MSU can match that production in Saturday’s prime-time game, there’s a good chance the Megaphone Trophy stays where it is for the foreseeable future.

MSU’s offence has not been perfect, but good enough for a 2-0 start.

“I’d say we’re a 7.5 out of 10,” centre Brian Allen said. “But the most encouraging thing is that we haven’t played our best football yet from an offensive line standpoint, from an offence. Playing as well as we have for the first two games, it’s just kind of reassuring that there’s so much more left in our offence, left in the O-line unit.”

With a new quarterback and a wideout unit boasting just 14 career catches coming into the season, the anticipation was that the offence would lean heavily on its three-headed running back corps and Scott in particular. Scott started the season on the watch list for the Doak Walker Award.

The junior was held to 39 yards on 15 carries in the opener against Bowling Green, though, coughing up a key fumble on the doorstep of the end zone. He managed to get untracked against Western Michigan, finishing with 86 yards.

Surprisingly, it’s been quarterback Brian Lewerke who has led the team in rushing with 150 yards through two games.

Wideout Darrell Stewart Jr. is the team’s third-leading rusher (98 yards) on six carries, while Gerald Homes (82) and Madre London (75) have contributed to a rushing attack averaging 5.4 yards a carry.

The Irish (2-1) are in a similar position with junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush leading a rush offence ranked fifth in the nation, racking up 207 of Notre Dame’s 515 yards against Boston College. That presents a challenge for MSU’s traditionally stingy run defence.

“(DeShone) Kizer last year was more of a pro-style quarterback, but he could get out and run when he needed to,” linebacker Chris Frey said. “Wimbush has a cannon. The dude can throw the ball far. He might not be as accurate as Kizer, but what he does a little better is he can get out and run. That adds to their game and allows them to expand on what they do.”

Frey says there are two kinds of quarterbacks for which a team must prepare. There’s a “kill guy,” who sits in the pocket, allowing the defence to take a shot at him.

And there’s a “capture guy,” a scrambler who poses a danger. Which is Lewerke? Frey laughed. “He’s a little bit of both,” he said.

I’d say we’re a 7.5 out of 10. But the most encouraging thing is that we haven’t played our best football yet ...