Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio is not one to beat his chest. Not literally, anyway.
But minutes after his team played an exciting and clean game — one turnover, two penalties — in beating Oregon 31-28 Saturday night, he took a little shot at his neighbors to the east. And then he looked ahead.
“This was the place to be in this state today,” he said. “Spartan Stadium was rocking. It was a great atmosphere. It had it all. The game delivered.”
And …
“In my mind, this was a steppingstone game,” he said. “This is a game that pays dividends at the end of the season.”
Yes, if Michigan State were to finish 11-1 with a close loss at top-ranked Ohio State on Nov. 21, they’d have a strong case to make the four-team playoff. Chew on that, SEC fans.
Between now and then, Michigan State’s toughest games are at Michigan on Oct. 17 and at Nebraska three weeks after.
If Michigan State and Ohio State stay unblemished until Nov. 21, that clash will go down as the biggest Big Ten game since the 1 vs. 2 showdown between Michigan and Ohio State in 2006.
The Spartans moved from No. 5 to No. 4 in the AP poll and received the only two first-place votes that did not go to Ohio State. But the only opinions that matter belong to the members of the playoff selection committee, whose first rankings will be released Nov. 3.
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He’s the one: Michigan tailback De’Veon Smith knows who butters his bread.
“Shout-out to my offensive line,” he said. “They made some huge holes that a bus could drive through.”
Smith powered through them to the tune of 126 rushing yards, part of a 225-yard attack against Oregon State.
Coach Jim Harbaugh said the linemen also spoke up for Smith.
“They were commenting on the sideline, ‘Hey, De’Veon’s really running hard, he’s making people miss, he’s running through contact,’ ” Harbaugh said. “That inspires them.”
Smith emerged from a full-house backfield in fall camp to emerge as Michigan’s top dog. He gets criticized for lacking vision, but the 228-pound junior tries to make up for it with toughness.
As ABC/ESPN analyst Chris Spielman put it: “That dude runs with bad intentions.”
Sweet 16: My vote in the Football Writers of America-National Football Foundation Super 16 Poll: 1. Ohio State; 2. Alabama; 3. TCU; 4. Michigan State; 5. Oklahoma; 6. LSU; 7. USC; 8. Oregon; 9. Georgia; 10. Notre Dame; 11. UCLA; 12. Baylor; 13. Clemson; 14. Florida State; 15. Georgia Tech; 16. Ole Miss.
Battle of the weak: Penn State and Rutgers are limping into their Saturday game, the first conference matchup of the season.
Penn State is averaging 4.3 yards per play to rank among the nation’s bottom 10. The Nittany Lions did keep quarterback Christian Hackenberg upright against Buffalo, but he threw for just 128 yards.
Those issues are microscopic compared to what has taken place at Rutgers. Coach Kyle Flood on Sunday announced that receiver Leonte Carroo, the team’s best player, has been suspended indefinitely. Flood would not say if it’s related to a “fistfight” that Washington State beat reporter Jacob Thorpe tweeted about after Saturday’s game, which Rutgers lost by allowing a touchdown with 13 seconds to play.
“Never seen a fan fistfight during my walk from postgame interviews to press box before today. Now I’ve seen three,” Thorpe wrote.
And today: “Was in football building near Carroo last night with fights going on outside. A teammate told him to stay in.”
Flood, already under fire for player arrests and suspensions and an allegation of emailing a faculty member regarding a player’s grade change, said he could not comment while the matter is under investigation.
The final word: Harbaugh on Michigan’s formula for success: “Everyone does a little, and it adds up to a lot.”
Twitter @TeddyGreenstein