White topped Green 24-17 in front of 22,500 spectators at Michigan State’s spring game Saturday afternoon. Defense appears to be ahead of the offense at this stage of the offseason and accounted for two touchdowns in the contest (both scored by White). That’s not a surprise given the fact that Michigan State finished 2012 ranked fourth nationally in total defense and 95th in total offense.
2013 Michigan State spring game recap: Andrew Maxwell, Connor Cook battle for starting QB spot
Both quarterbacks were inefficient Saturday, but drops by their wide receivers had a lot to do with that.
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The Spartans have a returning starter at quarterback -- Andrew Maxwell -- but head coach Mark Dantonio hasn't ruled out the possibility of starting Connor Cook. Maxwell will head into the fall as the No. 1 quarterback, though.
Dantonio says Maxwell will start camp No 1 but if Cook can clean up mistakes "he's right there."
— Joe Rexrode (@joerexrode) April 20, 2013
Prior to the spring game, SB Nation’s The Only Colors wondered if one of the quarterbacks would separate themselves with a strong performance. Unfortunately for the Spartans, neither player delivered a breakthrough effort. Maxwell finished 9-20 for 110 yards and a score, though he did not throw an interception. Cook was 10-26 for 217 yards and a touchdown. But they also didn’t get much help.
Ok, that's drop No. 9
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) April 20, 2013
That's not an encouraging sign for a team searching for a go-to option. Aaron Burbridge led all receivers with five grabs for 113 yards, and Bennie Fowler had 84 yards on four receptions.
Linebacker Taiwan Jones led all defensive players with 11 tackles, and Denzel Drone finished the afternoon with a pair of sacks. There aren't a lot of concerns for the Spartans' defense, which returns seven starters from last year's outstanding group. They still need to figure out which players will start at defensive tackle, but beyond that, they appear set.
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