Alabama Crimson Tide

Michigan State plans to hit Derrick Henry and hit him hard

Published Dec. 21, 2015 3:51 p.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

foxsports

The matchup to watch when the Crimson Tide have the ball in the Jan. 1 national semifinal Cotton Bowl between No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Michigan State will be running back Derrick Henry, winner of the 2015 Heisman Trophy, against the Spartan front seven. 

That's something Michigan State's No. 7 ranked rush defense is well aware of as they prep for the first playoff game in school history. Several members of the Spartan defense spoke to 247Sports on the effort it's going to take to slow down Henry and 'Bama's run game. 

Sophomore linebacker Jon Reschke:

And co-defensive coordinator/linebacker coach Mike Tressel, who seemed particularly impressed by studying Henry on film, said:

Getting to and stopping Henry have been two different challenges for Alabama opponents this season. Rarely does the bruising running back go down after initial contact. Check out this amazing stat regarding the Heisman winner's yards after contact this season:

Judging by that percentage, 922 of Henry's 1,986 rushing yards came after contact in 2015.

Talking about stopping Henry is one thing, actually doing it is something else. Will Michigan State be up to the task?

share

Get more from Alabama Crimson Tide Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic

Alabama Crimson Tide

Michigan State Spartans