EAST LANSING — Effrem Reed looked outside and saw the ground coated in white. Snow had fallen near the banks of the Red Cedar River, which caused the south Louisiana native to groan.
“I’m not used to it,” he sighed.
But the Michigan State football running backs coach was in good spirits nonetheless, buoyed by the recent upsurge in production generated by the Spartans’ ground attack. For the first time this season, MSU rushed for more than 100 yards in consecutive Big Ten games during a pair of victories over Illinois and Rutgers.
The improved results have offered further confirmation that the fortunes of Mel Tucker’s program are directly tied to the performance of the players tasked with carrying the ball.