Welcome to your Anti-Preview for Sparty. Friends, it's been a wild week since the last AP, but this here is about footbaw and footbaw players playing the game of footbaw on a footbaw field. The Irish had a massive gut last week against an improved Purdue team. Notre Dame saw 6 starters fall to injury and still found a way to win the game.
That's footbaw guys. The Irish will need more of the same this week- minus the injuries, of course. Bring on…
Michigan State
In the Pantheon of Notre Dame rivalries, I always feel like Sparty is pushed to the side far too often by Irish fans. There is no doubt that USC is, and will always be, Notre Dame's top rival, but there could be a serious argument made that Michigan State could be #2, and if not, that still makes them #3 which ain't too bad.
I fucking hate them. Fuck Sparty. Right now, MSU is getting a lot of love and a ton of respect from most of the media outlets out there. I get it, and I do hold a certain level of respect for those bitches, but it seems to me that Sparty is getting trumped up with manufactured air.
Their defense is rock solid, but far too much attention is given to William Gholston. He's a badass, I get it… but you could have called him Casper for his ghostly performance against Boise State.
Le'Veon Bell is a beast and is the player that everyone puts out front in this game as the one Sparty will ride to victory. However… there is a failed mention of his 29 yards versus the Irish defense last year. OH SNAP!
Look, I'm not exactly sure how good Michigan State is right now. Maybe they are a legitimate top 10 team. But I'm here to tell you that it just doesn't matter. This game is going to be a fist fight. A brawl. A fucking Hell In The Cell match. Anything can (and probably will) happen.
What Should You Be Drinking?
I don't normally push a beer in this segment, but in this type of game… you go blue-collar or you get sent to the emergency room. You don't show up to a street fight with a six pack of some raspberry-amber-wheat-pale-ale-cider microbrew bullshit. You gotta come correct with a 30 pack of PBR- like your name is Dalton, or even Wade.
What Should You Be Eating?
While you got 30 of 'em, you might as well use one can of PBR to get your dinner ready.
Beer Can Chicken
- 1 (4-pound) whole chicken
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoons of your favorite dry spice rub
- 1 can beer
Remove neck and giblets from chicken and discard. Rinse chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with oil then rub inside and out with salt, pepper and dry rub. Set aside.
Open beer can and take several gulps (make them big gulps so that the can is half full). Place beer can on a solid surface. Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, plunk the bird cavity over the beer can. Transfer the bird-on-a-can to your grill and place in the center of the grate, balancing the bird on its 2 legs and the can like a tripod.
Cook the chicken over medium-high, indirect heat (i.e. no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover on, for approximately 1 1/4 hours or until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F in the breast area and 180 degrees F in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when stabbed with a sharp knife. Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.
Irish Stew
Seriously. This ritualistic listening. I will never get sick of hearing this:
Tweeter
I may not hear your voice anymore but I do feel your presence!
— Manti Te'o (@MTeo_5) September 13, 2012
Offensive MVP
Tyler Eifert. It should come as no surprise to anyone that Tyler Eifert is Notre Dame's leading receiver after two games. The All-American has been the GO TO guy for Everett Golson. In fact, Eifert has been used in a variety of different ways whether it be with his hand on the ground or split wide- you can tell he's the man.
In a game where it will be about MANHOOD for most of the night as two teams with great defensive fronts look to impose their will upon their opponent, Notre Dame and especially Everett Golson will be looking to play it safe and lean on Eifert to be in the right place at the right time, and to make the catches that keep drives alive and put points on the board.
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Defensive MVP
Stephon Tuitt. Remember last year when Aaron Lynch just unleashed hell on Kirk Cousins and was one of the biggest difference makers in the game? Yeah, I thought so- you do. Lynch, of course is gone, and with Michigan State having a first year starter that hasn't seen a defensive front even REMOTELY close to being as good as the one Notre Dame will put on the field- one of these studs will shine as bright as the Golden Domes on their heads.
We talking Tuitt.
Tuitt has 4 sacks already this year as well as 2 quarterback hurries and a 77 yard fumble return that showed just how athletic this 6'6" 305 pound monster really is. This is the game. Prime time and against a favored top 10 team where Stephon Tuitt's name will begin to continually be vomited out by every talking head as one of the best defensive linemen in the country. Shredder style.
Something Else To Watch For
I'm sure you may already know, and perhaps the lone tweet in the "TWEETER" portion of this AP will be a bigger clue. Manti Te'o. Te'o lost some special people in his life as they passed away to a better world. Manti will play Saturday, but it is hard to imagine just what he will be able to do on the field with such a heavy heart. He may have the game of his life or he may just get lost in the shuffle. For me, it doesn't matter. I would still love and respect this guy no matter what happens. He already knows, but it should be said again… ND Nation is here for you brother. We have your back. Much love and prayers from all of us to you.
Bragging Rights
Known only as The Megaphone Trophy, this trophy may now be the most famous of the Notre Dame trophies…or should I say infamous. Introduced in 1949, it is a joint sponsorship by the Alumni Clubs of Notre Dame and Michigan State in Detroit. Half of the megaphone is painted blue with an ND monogram and the other side is white with a green MSU. The score from each year is painted on it. The current trophy is the third one in use since it has run out of room for scores twice before.
This award became nationally known after the 2005 and 2006 games. The Spartans were outraged when Notre Dame did not present them with the trophy after they were victorious against the Irish in 2005. Notre Dame stated that it has been the custom all along to give the trophy to the opposing team after a defeat away from the field. This may have been the starting point for Johnelle to becoming crazy as a bat. Most of the Notre Dame players and Coach Weis himself, admitted to not even knowing the trophy existed. This is probably true since there was little written about the trophy prior to this game, and I don't remember hearing much about it until EA Sports NCAA Football began showing what games had rivalry trophies.
Notre Dame leads the series with a 46-28-1 mark. The one tie was one of the most famous ties in all of college football history, the 1966 "Game of the Century."
At The End Of The Night
There are going to be some sore football players on both teams. I expect a brutally physical game and one that may be on the edge chaos. Notre dame proved that they can gut out a victory this season, and despite the seeds of doubt planted and encouraged by some of the media in regards to Notre Dame's quarterback situation, I think the Irish will find all sorts of motivation for this road game. Irish win 21-13.
