Category: Uncategorized

By Jeremy Harness

PASADENA – Now this is what I signed up for.

On Wednesday afternoon, I witnessed the Rose Bowl Game for the first time, and I will say this: It was much more than I expected it to be for many reasons. After Montsy, Angelita and I stayed up eating take-out pizza until 2:30 am the night before, New Year’s Day started a tad earlier than the previous day.

After quickly wolfing down a few eggs and some bacon at the hotel, I board the 9 am shuttle to the Rose Bowl stadium, a shuttle which is led by a police escort. This certainly made me feel like a celebrity, as if I didn’t feel like one since the moment I checked into the hotel here in SoCal.

After cranking out a pre-game breakdown piece for this site, it was time for me and my newfound partner in crime, ESPN Radio 100.9 FM’s Chance McBride, to take care of some unfinished business. Since both of us now had the needed game-day credentials and had allotted ourselves enough time to take in the atmosphere, we could now get on the field and snap some pictures.

For instances such as this, thank goodness for modern technology, particularly Facebook and Instagram. In a related note, I’ll be hard-pressed to find a period of time that I have used social media as frequently as these past four days.

At the end of the game, which Michigan State came out on top by a 24-20 score, the most encouraging thing that I saw was when the Stanford band played in the corner of the end zone. Yes, there were a good deal of otherwise-downtrodden Cardinal fans, but there were also a few Michigan State fans who were enjoying the band’s performance.

Not that watching this fierce matchup in my first-ever Rose Bowl wasn’t great, but the fun was about to pick up. After my post-game work was done, Chance mentioned that he needed to get out of the press box and grab some fresh air, and I saw an opportunity of a lifetime, even more so than watching the Rose Bowl in person.

See, ever since I was a kid growing up playing football up until the present day, I’ve had dreams of returning a kickoff or an interception down the sideline into the end zone. Since I had seen other folks running around on the field after it had cleared out following the post-game celebration by Michigan State, this was a chance that I simply could not walk – in this case, run – away from.

All that was needed was the permission from the security still remaining on the field level to go back onto the field, which was granted.

Lights. Camera. Action.

Standing two yards deep in my own end zone, using my cell phone and my wallet as a makeshift football, I gently toss them in the air simultaneously as in to field a kickoff. I make one cut to the right toward the middle of the field at around the 10-yard line before dashing back to the left toward the sideline at the 30 and then straighten out as I near the left sideline at midfield.

This is where I start to run away from the coverage guys, so I kick it into high gear with the end zone – and sure glory – in plain sight, and only slow down as I get inside the 10. As I get to about the 2-yard line, I somersault over the goal line and into the end zone, a la 49ers linebacker NaVorro Bowman’s game-winning, playoff berth-clinching pick-six against Atlanta two weeks ago.

Before I have a chance to celebrate, however, an official in the form of a TV reporter working on his own post-game report, had a ruling on the field.

“You stepped out right here,” he said, pointing to the opposing 41-yard line. This meant that a re-do was effectively in order.

Fielding my second imaginary kickoff two yards deep in the end zone, I make the same cuts that I made on the first one but make absolutely sure that I stay inbounds this time – which was ruled that I did – and then make the same dive into the end zone before getting up and slapping hands with imaginary fans in the back of the end zone.

Mission accomplished. That is, until I hear something approximately 50 yards away.

“Do it again!”

Big-time athletes don’t check out when they’re tired – my legs were definitely feeling the weight, most likely due to the fact that I hadn’t worked out since Christmas Eve and had not even stretched before my own kickoff – and I wasn’t about to, either.

So I make the identical pattern for my third return – hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? – and upon my somersault into the end zone, I decide to stay put in that end zone, flat on my back and not in a huge hurry to get back up. Now, my destination has been reached, and all parties present for this journey were satisfied.

Meanwhile, Chance was taking a panoramic picture in the middle of the field with his fancy smart phone – which is now on my wish list for that very purpose – and just so happened to take a picture of Jeremy Harness, the kick returner.

No worries, though, as neither I nor Stanford head coach David Shaw have any immediate plans of my replacing Ty Montgomery on kickoff returns.

I thought this was the best possible ending to this Rose Bowl night, but I was wrong. Chance had found a leftover rose from the long-vacated interview room, which still had several such roses that were otherwise going to be thrown out. With that in mind, I grabbed three of them for Montsy, Bertha and Angelita.

As I returned to the hotel with flowers in hand, each of them were greatly appreciative and made this the perfect finish to this night as well as this journey.

By Chance McBride and Jeremy Harness

PASADENA – Anytime a big game is played, particularly at a neutral site, there are bound to be differences – some more subtle than others – between the teams. Since these teams most often come from different parts of the country, the fans will tend to be a little different from each other as well.

As was the case with the 100^th Rose Bowl Game, which took place Wednesday afternoon and was won by No. 4 Michigan State over No. 5 Stanford, 24-20. A total of 95,173 fans crammed Rose Bowl Stadium, and the fan base appeared to be split right down the middle.

However, the way that the fans were spread out couldn’t have been any different, nor was the manner in which those fans tailgated before walking in through the gates.

Michigan State’s fans traveled in congregations, resembling huge seas of green. Stanford’s supporters, on the other hand, were considerably more spread apart and pretty much fit in with whoever happened to be around them.

The seating arrangement inside the stadium as game time arrived also mirrored this.

These two teams have an incredibly large amount of on-the-field attributes in common. Off the field, on the other hand, is an entirely different story. Both teams were equally represented Wednesday, as the stadium was littered with Cardinal red to go along with MSU’s trademark forest green colors.

The West Coast attitude and influence on the culture of Stanford is plain to see. From the happy-go-lucky nature of the band all the way to the demeanor of the fans. Stanford is by no means lazy nor a pushover, but they simply have a particular way and speed of doing things.

Cardinal fans across the stadium were easily equal to the Spartans in sheer numbers, but they carried a slightly more quiet confidence about them. One aspect that is incredibly endearing about both sides. but specifically Stanford, was how friendly they were while still remaining stoic and strong at the same time.

Meanwhile, Spartan fans are very strong and boisterous in their presence. Their unmistakable aura renders the actual number of fans – whether it be 10 Spartans or even 300 – pointless. With a plethora of various chants and war calls at their disposal, Spartan fans are an undeniable presence wherever they go.

In addition, one would be hard-pressed to find a school that could get nearly 45,000 people to fly to California on such short notice. When the fans did arrive, they traveled in huge packs where the classic “Go Green! Go White!” echoed throughout the stadium and areas surrounding the game.

In a way, this was a microcosm of the cultural differences of the different parts of the country that these two schools represent. People from the Midwest tend to stick together much more and show an interdependent trait. Californians, on the other hand, are much more likely to march to the beat of their own drummer while adopting the “I’ll see ya when I see ya” mentality.

Which makes everything come full circle is the fact that – at least for this Rose Bowl – the two sides of fans come together at the end of the game, just as the Stanford and Michigan State players did. The Stanford band played in one corner of the Cardinal end zone, which cheered up a good deal of its dejected fans. Among those moving to the upbeat music that the band produced were a handful of fans wearing green and white.

That tells us one thing: No matter how hard, or how long, we fight each other, we’re all on the same team in the end.

Chance McBride is reporter for ESPN 100.9 FM based in Michigan while Jeremy Harness is a regular contributor to SportsRadioService.com.

By Jeremy Harness

PASADENA – Kyler Elsworth entered college weighing 180 pounds, looking nothing like a linebacker. He immediately faced long odds as a walk-on of being a contributor for Michigan State’s football team.

Fast forward five years – and 45 pounds of solid muscle – and Elsworth was still fighting an uphill battle going into the 100^th Rose Bowl Game. The fifth-year senior was thrust into a huge role in replacing All-American linebacker Max Bullough, and he came up with the decisive stop by stuffing fullback Ryan Hewitt on 4^th-and-1 with 1:43 remaining to give his No. 4 Spartans a 24-20 win over No. 5 Stanford in front of 95,173 fans.

“Opportunities come for other players, and they have an opportunity to make good on it,” Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio said. “Kyler Elsworth got a chance to make a play, (and he) makes the play of the game.”

Stanford held a distinct advantage in the first quarter and held a 17-14 halftime lead, but Michigan State seized momentum in the second half, particularly on defense.

Gaffney finished with 91 rushing yards and a touchdown on 24 carries, but gained only 22 yards for the final three quarters. Particularly in the second half, the Spartans plugged up every single lane that Gaffney was able to run through in the first quarter, which significantly slowed down Stanford’s offense and resulted in increased three-and-outs and allowed the Michigan State offense to stay in rhythm.

“I told the guys (that) we had a heck of a year and got beat today,” Stanford head coach David Shaw said. “They played better. They made more plays. That’s the bottom line.”

Stanford, however, also didn’t help itself in certain areas. Although they only turned the ball over once – as did Michigan State – the Cardinal dropped two sure interceptions and committed eight penalties, one of which negated a Jordan Richards interception while several others kept drives alive for Michigan State.

Early on, however, Stanford looked like the fundamentally-sound team that took the Pac-12 title. The advantage that it appeared to have following Bullough’s suspension showed up on the very first drive, as the Cardinal sliced through Michigan State’s defense for 77 yards, a drive that was aided by Michael Rector’s 43-yard pass from Kevin Hogan.

Stanford picked up several first downs until Tyler Gaffney broke a tackle near the line of scrimmage and rumbled 16 yards to give the Cardinal a 7-0 lead.

Both teams got away with a turnover in the first quarter. Hogan coughed up the ball after being uprooted on a bootleg play in Michigan State territory, with two Spartan defenders having clear shots at the recovery.

However, neither came up with the ball, and Stanford recovered and continued the drive, which was capped off by Jordan Williamson’s 34-yard field goal.

On the ensuing possession, Stanford linebacker Kevin Anderson had an interception bounce off his chest and end up into the hands of flanker Macgarrett Kings, Jr. for a first down to keep that drive going. The Spartans parlayed that, along with a pass-interference penalty in the end zone, into a touchdown that cut Stanford’s lead to 10-7.

Anderson got another chance to redeem himself when quarterback Connor Cook committed the cardinal sin by backpedaling and throwing a desperation pass into the middle of the field. Anderson converted the gift into an easy 40-yard pick-six.

Cook, however, responded by taking his offense down the field and hit Trevon Pendleton on a 2-yard touchdown pass to again cut Stanford’s lead to three at halftime.

Besides a Michigan State turnover deep in Stanford territory, the Spartans controlled the third quarter and tied the game with a 31-yard field goal by Michael Geiger.

Meanwhile, the Cardinal picked up only two first downs in the third quarter and did absolutely nothing to even change the field position immediately following it. Michigan State got the ball back on the Stanford 27 to early in the fourth quarter and exclaimed the drive when Cook found Tony Lippett, who beat cornerback Wayne Lyons for a 25-yard scoring strike to give MSU a 24-17 lead.

Meanwhile, Lyons, who had two interceptions in the fourth quarter to seal Stanford’s win over Notre Dame in November, had a nightmare of a game. He was beaten several times on long pass plays and, like Anderson earlier, had a sure interception bounce off his chest in the third quarter.

It was a bitter end to the last game of the college careers of Stanford’s seniors, a class that includes Gaffney, linebackers  A.J. Tarpley and Shayne Skov – who made several big tackles and had an overall great game – as well as kicker Jordan Williamson.

“Our group of seniors (is) the most accomplished group of football players to ever go through Stanford University,” Shaw said. “Regardless of (Wednesday’s) outcome, that’s just the truth. When you talk about the best teams of the BCS era, you have to mention Stanford University.”

By Jeremy Harness

PASADENA – During Monday morning’s press conference, Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio said that he and his team were tired of talking about the game and were ready to just play it. Well, after a week of hype and preparation, it is, in fact, time for Dantonio’s No. 4 Spartans to face No. 5 Stanford in the 100^th Rose Bowl.

These two teams are just about a mirror image of each other, as while both have playmakers at the receiver position, they center their offensive attacks on the success of their running game and their ability to win the game in the trenches.

Also key for these teams is their ability to stick with what makes them what they as a team, and they have suffered defeats when they deviate from that in any way. For instance, Stanford got away from their running game against Utah and ended up dropping their first game of the season. Meanwhile, Michigan State committed four pass interference penalties and had a trick play backfire in its only loss of the season, at the hands of Notre Dame.

With that said, here are the keys to victory for each team:

STANFORD

The Cardinal must control the line of scrimmage on both offense and defense, a method that has carried them into their second straight Rose Bowl. That task appears to have gotten a bit easier with the suspension of Michigan State All-American linebacker Max Bullough.

The key to their rushing attack is the extra offensive lineman that are employed in their “jumbo” package, which they continue to have great success, particularly in big games.

Stanford has got to take care of the football. The Cardinal enter the game with a turnover ratio of minus-0.08 compared to Michigan State’s plus-1.08, and turnovers played a big role in both losses this year. In its loss at Utah in October, they lost two fumbles while the Utes had only one turnover while USC intercepted quarterback Kevin Hogan twice while forcing another fumble while the Trojans turned the ball over only once in its upset win in November.

MICHIGAN STATE

Stanford is equipped with perhaps the most dynamic playmaker in college football in Ty Montgomery, who has broken several big plays at wide receiver as well as a kick returner. On offense, expect Michigan State to assign corner Darqueze Dennard, who won this year’s Jim Thorpe Award (awarded to the nation’s best defensive back) to Montgomery for at least the majority of the game, if not all of it.

Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio said earlier in the week that they’re not going to shy away from Montgomery in any way on special teams, so don’t expect to see any corner kicks. However, it will be extremely wise for Michigan State to get quite a bit of hang time on their punts, in order to allow the gunners to get down there by the time he fields the punt.

In Bullough’s absence, the X-factor on defense may not be Dennard but rather firth-year senior linebacker Kyler Elsworth – who originally came to Michigan State as a 180-pound wrestler – as well as Darien Harris, both of which Dantonio has said will see significant time at that position against Stanford’s vaunted running game. The better those guys play, the better chance the Spartans have of taking the Rose Bowl trophy with them back to East Lansing.