It certainly will come as a surprise in a game we did not win that our Player of the Game honors go to someone on the defensive side of the ball. But that is exactly what happened in Michigan State’s 24-21 loss to Northwestern. Defensive tackle Ben Roberts, aka “Big Worm”, muscled his way for a stat line of 8 total tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks.
Roberts, who stands 6’3” and weighs 325, had season highs in all three of the above stats, and was a big part of the reason MSU was in this game until the very end. His monster performance earned him 71% of the vote.
Through 7 games, we have given out the award 5 times, with 2 games where it was decided that no one was deserving. Roberts joins previous winners K Liam Boyd, RB Cam Edwards, LB Jordan Hall, and RB Jaziun Patterson. Next week, we travel to the Rose Bowl to take on the UCLA Bruins. Anyone care to prophesize who will win the award in game #8?