Tight ends play big in opener

EAST LANSING - Charlie Gantt is Michigan State's starting tight end and was an honorable mention All-Big Ten pick last season.

But as evidence of the Spartans' newfound depth at the position, Gantt's backups - newcomers Dion Sims and Brian Linthicum - made the bigger impact during MSU's 44-3 win over Montana State on Saturday.

Sims made his highly anticipated debut as a true freshman. The Orchard Lake St. Mary product caught passes on consecutive plays early in the second quarter, the second a 26-yard touchdown from Keith Nichol.

"I was just thinking about catching the ball," Sims said. "I can't actually remember the catch. I remember the ball in the air and me hitting the ground - that was it."

Sims was a highly regarded prospect out of high school, receiving scholarship offers from Iowa, Louisville, Michigan, Purdue, Ohio State and Tennessee, among others. He was the No. 5 ranked tight end in the country, according to Rivals.com.

Sims, an imposing figure at 6-foot-5, 268 pounds, will likely be used more as the season progresses and he gains comfort with the system.

"Game to game, you're gonna see him learn more," Dantonio said. "So you may feature him doing one thing this game, and you may feature him doing different things in another game."

Just as impressive was Linthicum, who was also in his first game as a Spartan. The sophomore, who sat out last season after transferring from Clemson, finished with three catches for 26 yards and a touchdown, also thrown by Nichol.

Linthicum put Michigan State ahead 28-0 in the closing seconds of the first half, scoring on a play-action pass in the north end zone. He made five starts and caught three touchdown passes at Clemson in 2007.

"I think it just gives us additional personnel we can use," Dantonio said regarding tight end depth. "They're all big targets, they can all catch the ball very well, (and) they can all run."

The 6-foot-5, 248 pound Gantt caught one pass for 15 yards as the tight ends produced 73 of the Spartans 318 total receiving yards. The group also part of an offensive line that didn't allow a sack and cleared the way for 175 rushing yards.

All three players saw significant playing time, as MSU often lined up with two tight ends.

"We don't have a feature player like Javon Ringer this year," offensive coordinator Don Treadwell said after the game. "But we anticipated all things being well and equal because the experience overall would help us with the receivers and tight ends. They did produce today, so that was very nice to see."

NOTHING NEW ON QB PLANS: Dantonio would not say Sunday if Kirk Cousins will be the starting quarterback again Saturday against Central Michigan. He did say, however, he was pleased with the QBs after watching the game tape.

"The quarterbacks played pretty well," Dantonio said. "They can do some different things to improve their game, but I thought at the same time they both played winning football and we can win with both of those guys."

Cousins was 10-of-17 for 183 yards and 3 touchdowns as the starter, while Nichol finished 9-of-18 for 135 yards and two touchdowns.