Power of Caring
  presented by CIGNA

16. Michigan State

Flozell Adams remembers the gleam in his mother's eyes. After nearly every game last season, Rachel Adams would greet her son in the tunnel outside the Spartans' locker room. "Good game," she would say. "You're the best, Flo." She was proud not only of Flozell's football prowess but also of his dogged pursuit of a criminal justice degree.

Adams, a senior offensive tackle, had promised his mother he would graduate from college. His resolve only grew stronger after he received a phone call last January. He was told to come home to Chicago immediately; his mother was in the hospital again. Rachel had been battling breast cancer for more than five years, and now her chemotherapy was failing. When Flozell saw his mother, he reiterated his vow—he would return to school for a fifth year and not enter the NFL draft, in which he might have been a first-round pick. A few days later Rachel Adams died.

"She kept her illness from me for years," says Adams, who learned about his mother's cancer in December 1995. "I wish she would have told me sooner because I could have taken care of her, but she wanted me to graduate. I can still hear her voice. She'd say, 'You made a good decision, Flo, when you chose to stay in school.'"

ALSO

Michigan State team page 1997 schedule

SEARCH

Adams's decision sat well with Michigan State, too. The 6'7", 330-pound tackle, nicknamed the Hotel, headlines a group of 17 returning starters for the Spartans, including much of a unit that in 1996 averaged 399.6 yards per game in total offense, second in the Big Ten behind Ohio State.

But for all its offensive potency, Michigan State finished 6-6 and was blown out 38-0 by Stanford in the Sun Bowl. The Spartans beat many of the teams they were favored to beat, but mental lapses cost them chances to upset Michigan, Iowa and Penn State. Of the three-point loss to the Nittany Lions, coach Nick Saban says, "We lost in the last two minutes because we didn't feel we should win. That's been the story with this team. We've been young, but we've certainly been talented."

Perhaps the most talented is sophomore tailback Sedrick Irvin, a cousin of Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin. Last fall he scored a team-high 18 touchdowns and became the first freshman in school history to rush for more than 1,000 yards. The passing game was also effective at times—i.e., when quarterback Todd Schultz (1,693 yards, seven TDs) was healthy; he sat out three games after injuring his left knee against Nebraska in September. A senior, Schultz had arthroscopic surgery during the off-season and is expected to be ready for the Sept. 6 opener against Western Michigan.

On defense the Spartans welcome back the core of a unit that held five opponents to less than 100 yards rushing. The unit is built around 6'3", 220-pound outside linebacker Ike Reese, a four-year starter. Michigan State also has the good fortune to face Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State at home. If the Spartans win those games, they should take their first Big Ten title since 1990.

"We have the talent to win the league; our problem has been self-imposed limitations," Saban says of a team that ranked last in the Big Ten in takeaways with 16. "You need the mental toughness to go along with your ability. We haven't had that."
—B.J. Schecter

TELLING STAT
18 Touchdowns scored in '96 by freshman Sedrick Irvin, who led the Big 10 in scoring with 108 points (9.82 points per game).
TWO GAMES TO WATCH
OCT. 25 VS. MICHIGAN Home-field advantage is powerful in this intense rivalry; hosts have won the last five meetings. NOV. 29 VS. PENN STATE The Spartans can't afford to squander opportunities as they did in last year's 32-29 loss.
RETURNING LEADERS
Passing	Todd Schultz, Sr.	130 comp., 209 att., 1,693 yds., 7 TDs
Rushing	Sedrick Irvin, Soph.	1,067 yds., 16 TDs
Receiving	Irvin	40 catches, 337 yds., 2 TDs
Tackles	LB Ike Reese, Sr.	115
Interceptions	FS Sorie Kanu, Jr.	3