Michigan State’s first loss of the season sent the Spartans into a different kind of week, one with the spotlight squarely on the offense after a 27-10 defeat to Notre Dame. With Nebraska up next in the Big Ten opener, the pressure to clean things up is now centered on an attack that needs to do more to keep Michigan State in games like this.
Offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan addressed that challenge this week, and his message was plain: the Spartans have to execute better, sustain drives and do the little things that decide games.
"We didn't do well enough in the game, collectively, in any area. We didn't sustain enough drives to get enough snaps in the game. We got to be better."
Sheridan kept coming back to the same point - this wasn’t about one isolated breakdown. It was about the offense as a whole.
"On our side of the ball, we did not do enough to win. Coaches and players collectively have to execute well."
There’s work to do, and Sheridan said the group is putting in that work.
"We have a lot of work to do, the guys are working hard."
He also singled out Jordan Hall for the kind of steady communication that helps hold things together on the field.
"Jordan Hall is an elite communicator. A great grasp and understanding of what Coach Rossi and Bullough want him to do.
He's a coach on the field. He's been in the system a long time and it shows."
Sheridan said the staff is still trying to create better looks and keep defenses guessing, but that the operation has to stay clean when it does so.
"You're trying to break tendencies, communicate. You're trying to present different pictures for the defense. We are constantly looking at that."
For Sheridan, the simplest issues remain the most important.
"The simple things are what ultimately decide if you win or lose."
That includes the kind of mistakes Michigan State can’t afford if it wants to compete in bigger games.
"Our standard and expectations are higher than not jumping offsides/false starting."
Sheridan also offered praise for Antonio Johnson, calling the young lineman a player on the rise.
"Antonio Johnson is doing well. He's a young, developing lineman.
He's doing well. He's done a nice job."
As for Les, Sheridan said the coaching point is to help him handle the moment better while also making the play design easier to navigate.
"We're coaching Les to do better in that moment, and he will. We have to give him a better outlet from a play standpoint, as well."
Sheridan acknowledged the staff may have gone a little too far with the variety of looks it tried to present.
"(We gave) maybe a touch too many (different looks). We want to be creative, but at the same time we have to execute better. There are plays where we didn't, as a staff, create enough clarity for the players."
That, in the end, is the issue that keeps circling back to execution.
"It doesn't matter if it was a good play design, if we don't execute, it's still a bad play."
Sheridan closed by stressing trust in the players, while also noting that mistakes are part of the equation and that the focus stays on what comes next for Kenneth Williams, whom he called a strong player.
"We trust the players. We all recognize there will be errors.
K-Dub (Kenneth Williams) is an awesome player. We are always looking at what is next."
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Cam Fancher, Ben Murawski, Rakeem Johnson, Rodney Bullard and Kai Rios all landed in that group, which should give fans something to chew on as they sort through where the offense is actually headed. The debate now is less about what went wrong in South Bend and more about which pieces looked usable against a defense as good as Notre Dames, especially with the line play and quarterback performance drawing the most scrutiny from a fan base looking for answers. [Read more 🡒]