***** NCAA Football Preview - Michigan State Spartans *****

By Mike Castiglione, Associate College Football Editor

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) -
2009 SEASON IN REVIEW: For the second straight year, the Michigan State
Spartans were tripped up early in the season. Only this time, they never
really picked themselves up. Despite playing in a post-New Year's Day bowl
game -- a 41-31 loss to Texas Tech in the Alamo Bowl -- the Spartans didn't
make a whole lot of noise on the national radar. They followed up a stunning
week two loss at home to Central Michigan (29-27) with consecutive losses to
Notre Dame (33-30) and Wisconsin (38-30).

A three-game win streak, highlighted by a victory over then 22nd-ranked
Michigan and another at Illinois, provided a glimmer of hope. But they went on
to lose three of their final five regular-season contests, with one of the
victories coming against Western Michigan, and the other necessitating an 11-
point comeback in the fourth quarter against Purdue. However, the real fallout
came after the team's awards banquet, when 15 players were involved in a brawl
with a fraternity, leaving a big scar on the program.

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