EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) – Pat Narduzzi will have enough to worry about when Michigan State takes on Oregon this weekend, so the talkative defensive coordinator dismissed the idea that jet lag or the heat might play a significant role in the outcome.
“You can say food’s a factor, the airplane’s a factor. We can name all kinds of factors, if you let it be a factor,” Narduzzi said. “The factor is that offense. That’s what we’re looking at, so that’s the only factor we care about.”
Narduzzi has helped turn Michigan State into one of the nation’s top defensive teams over the last few years, but Saturday’s game at No. 3 Oregon might be his biggest test yet. The matchup between the seventh-ranked Spartans and the high-scoring Ducks is perhaps the most intriguing nonconference game on this year’s college football schedule – and Oregon’s quick-paced offense will put plenty of pressure on Narduzzi’s talented unit.
“They’re a lot faster than we are, if you watch the tape,” Narduzzi said. “We’ll have our hands full.”
Narduzzi may have been posturing a bit with that comment. There’s no reason to sell Michigan State short after the Spartans finished second in the nation in total defense last season. Michigan State won the Big Ten and then beat Stanford in the Rose Bowl.