Maryland Terrapins Fans: Meet The Michigan State Spartans

Mar 28, 2014; New York, NY, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo signals to his team during the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers in the semifinals of the east regional of the 2014 NCAA Mens Basketball Championship tournament at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

I have been touring around Big Ten Country to show Maryland Terrapin fans a small bit of information about each of these new schools they will face throughout the year. So lets venture to Michigan.

Michigan State University is located in East Lansing, a city of a little less than 50,000 people located next to Lansing, the state capital. With Lansing’s 115,000 population, this metro area is a decent size. Detroit is about an hour-and-a- half west of the area.

Michigan State has one of the better-known mascots in Sparty the  Spartan warrior. The nickname started after the school moved away from their agricultural roots when they were previously known as the Aggies. Three Greek restaurateurs from Sparta convinced school officials that the story of the 300 proud warriors of the city was a good symbol for the school’s spirit.

People around the Lansing area are overwhelming fans of the Lions, Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons. There will also be many fans of the rival Michigan Wolverines since they are located about an hour southeast of the area. The single A Midwest League affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays known as the Lansing Lugnuts play in 13,000-seat Cooley Law School Stadium.

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Basketball is the most successful team on campus. Well-respected coach Tom Izzo has the team playing at a national championship level every year. In fact they even won in 2000 under Izzo to go along with Magic Johnson’s 1979 title. Izzo’s ability is cemented by the fact that “State” has reached 16 consecutive NCAA tournament bids with six final four appearances.

Football is also huge on campus and is a perennial contender for high-level bowl games, but it is still not quite there as a BCS championship caliber squad. Mark Dantonio impressed with his 2014 Rose Bowl team that may have ushered that next level of football team to the scene. Men’s ice hockey and cross country are some other quality teams on campus.

It has been awhile since I went to a restaurant or bar around campus so I hesitate to recommend anything at this time.