Get Really Angry - Take it Out on the Spartans
After last week’s crazy loss at Michigan, the Wildcats must deal with their own emotions as well as a large number of Wildcat fans who are really down right now. The keys are resilience and tenacity. So with that, let’s talk about The Good, The Bad, and the Probable.
The Good:
The Wildcats take the field against the Spartans. The Michigan State fans are smelling blood as well as bowl eligibility. The Spartan defense is fearsome; their offense less so. But still the Spartans believe that the Wildcats will somehow find a way to lose.
The Wildcats show that Sparty’s defense might be a bit overrated - they drive down the field and score on their first series. The Wildcat D stuffs the Spartans early. By the time halftime rolls around, NU has a three score lead. Nonetheless, Sparty is confident.
As the 4th quarter arrives, Northwestern holds a four score lead. And yet, the Spartans think of a 35-point comeback. Their fans think of how Penn State, Nebraska, and Michigan overcame 4th quarter deficits. No one panics.
However as the clock winds down, the Spartans start to realize that merely sitting back and waiting for the Wildcats to self-destruct is going nowhere. Their team starts to get frantic and flail - trying everything to get the win. As they bear down, they make mistakes. The game continues to slip through their fingers like wet sand at a beach.
The Wildcats don’t go conservative. The team continues to play hard, as if they are behind. Northwestern doesn’t try to run the score up, but they don’t slow down, replacing one set of hard playing football players with another. All try to score. By the end of the game, the Wildcats open up a wide lead: Wildcats 48 - Spartans 16.
The Bad:
The Wildcats take the field against the Spartans. The Michigan State fans are smelling blood as well as bowl eligibility. The Spartan defense is fearsome; their offense less so. But still the Spartans believe that the Wildcats will somehow find a way to lose.
The Wildcats show that Sparty’s defense might be a bit overrated - they drive down the field and score on their first series. The Wildcat D stuffs the Spartans early. By the time halftime rolls around, NU has a three score lead. Nonetheless, Sparty is confident.
As the 4th quarter arrives, Northwestern still holds a three score lead. And yet, the Spartans think of a 35-point comeback. Their fans think of how Penn State, Nebraska, and Michigan overcame 4th quarter deficits. No one in green panics.
As the clock winds down, the Spartans start to press the Wildcats. Their team starts to get forceful and energetic - trying everything to get the win. As they bear down, the Wildcats start to make mistakes. The game starts to slip through NU’s fingers like wet sand at a beach.
The Wildcats go fully conservative. The team plays “slow down football”. The dreaded “Prevent D” is in full force. And as before, the only thing the Prevent D prevents is victory. Sparty plays to win. NU plays to “not lose”. The end product: NU 35 - MSU 38.
The Probable:
The Wildcats take the field against the Spartans. The Michigan State fans are smelling blood as well as bowl eligibility. The Spartan defense is fearsome; their offense less so. But still the Spartans believe that the Wildcats will somehow find a way to lose.
The Wildcats show that Sparty’s defense might be a bit overrated - they drive down the field and score on their first series. The Wildcat D stuffs the Spartans early. By the time halftime rolls around, NU has a three score lead. Nonetheless, Sparty is confident.
As the 4th quarter arrives, Northwestern holds a two score lead. And yet, the Spartans think of a certain 35-point comeback. Their fans think of how Penn State, Nebraska, and Michigan overcame 4th quarter deficits. No one panics; everyone is confident.
However as the clock winds down, the Spartans start to realize that merely sitting back and waiting for the Wildcats to self-destruct is going nowhere. Their team starts to get frantic - trying everything to get the win. They take larger chances and make mistakes. The game continues to slip through their fingers like wet sand at a beach.
The Wildcats once again do the expected thing. The team continues to play hard, but conservatively. Sparty pushes their luck hard - but to no avail. The game winds down with a desperate Hail Mary pass - but Sparty fails where Michigan didn’t: Northwestern 38 - Michigan State 34.
More later...
Go Cats!
BJ Mitchell (Former NUMB Spirit Leader)
Twitter: @nuspiritleader.
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