What Mel Tucker said following Michigan State's win over Northwestern
Michigan State had the big upset of the day around college football as they took down No. 8 Northwestern, 29-20.
They gave the Wildcats their first loss of the season and improved to 2-3 on the season. They jumped out to a 17-6 lead going into halftime before closing it out in the fourth quarter with 12 more points.
With the Spartans feeling high about themselves, here’s what head coach Mel Tucker had to say after the game.
Head coach Mel Tucker now up:
Opens by saying he hopes everyone had a happy Thanksgiving, and as he always does, credits the medical staff for the opportunity to play today’s game.
“Today was a great win for our guys — very proud of them.”
— The Only Colors (@TheOnlyColors) November 29, 2020
“It was an awesome team effort, we still have a lot of work ahead of us,” Tucker says, adding the “24-hour rule” is in effect.
— The Only Colors (@TheOnlyColors) November 29, 2020
Mel Tucker: "Culture doesn't change overnight. It just doesn't. But wins like today show what we're capable of."
— Graham Couch (@Graham_Couch) November 29, 2020
Mel Tucker explaining MSU's improvement: “The practices started to sound like they were supposed to sound.”
He's talking about pads and physicality, to be able to close his eyes and hear it.
— Graham Couch (@Graham_Couch) November 29, 2020
Tucker: "When we do it right, we are efficient in the run game. We were excited because we were getting better, especially in our run game."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Tucker: "What we need is consistency in performance."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Tucker: "We're gonna be able to build on some of the things we did well today. It's never going to ease up. Players want more of that feeling."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Tucker says what happens after a big win like this is “players want more” of this feeling. Tucker says you can coach off these wins maybe even more so than losses. “Tighten the screws,” so to speak.
“This is not time for relief. This is part of the process.”
— The Only Colors (@TheOnlyColors) November 29, 2020
Tucker: "We as a staff know we're on the right track. We can see the progress."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Tucker: "Now's a time we need to continue to build."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Tucker on the Dline: "In the second half we felt like we were starting to get pressure with four."
— Sutton Magee (@suttonmagee12) November 29, 2020
Michigan State’s next game will be against No. 4 Ohio State next week in East Lansing. Kickoff will be at Noon ET and the game will be televised by ABC.
