Connor Cook Returning to Michigan State Makes Sparty a Strong 2015 Playoff Team

Connor Cook indicated Tuesday that he will forego the NFL draft and return to Michigan State for his senior season. If he does, the Spartans will have taken their first major step toward competing with Ohio State in the Big Ten East and contending for the 2015 College Football Playoff.

Cook is a 6'4" quarterback whose name has been floated as a potential first-round draft pick. But he said he plans to stay in school because he has "unfinished business" that he wants to accomplish, per Noah Trister of The Associated Press.

The news is not official but appears to be headed that direction. Joe Rexrode of the Detroit Free Press spoke with Cook's father, who said his son's return, while likely, is not quite 100 percent certain:

Cook finished with 2,900 passing yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions this regular season, improving his efficiency from 135.5 as a sophomore to 152.4. His completion percentage (58.2) stayed the same, but his yards per attempt (9.0) rose dramatically.

The Spartans are set to lose 1,300-yard running back Jeremy Langford and 1,100-yard receiver Tony Lippett this offseason and might have regressed to the dark ages—i.e., the Andrew Maxwell era—had Cook left for the NFL with them.

But now? They should remain a conference favorite.

Cook was improved but far from perfect in 2014, chasing NFL-caliber throws with occasional easy misses. Another offseason to work on his mechanics should improve his repetitive accuracy.

But the real reason Cook is so vital is because of leadership. The defense regressed when Darqueze Dennard, Max Bullough, Denicos Allen and Isaiah Lewis left this past offseason. It's fair to guess that losing Langford, Lippett and (most importantly) Cook would have had the same effect on the opposite side of the ball.

Cook played two of the best games of his career in the 2013 Big Ten Championship and the 2014 Rose Bowl, the latter against a tough-as-nails Stanford defense. He also played well at Oregon this past season and showed the backbone of a leader against Michigan:

Cook's return ensures the Spartans will be good next season. But it doesn't ensure the Spartans will be great. And the difference between good and great comes down to something independent of Cook: the players who have yet to decide on their NFL future.

Defensive end Shilique Calhoun said he hasn't really thought about going pro, per Trister, and cornerback Trae Waynes and left tackle Jack Conklin are also candidates to make the leap.

All three of those players have a chance to be selected in the first round (Calhoun and Waynes more likely than Conklin). They would all make the preseason All-Big Ten team next season. The loss of all three would turn making the playoff into a semi-unrealistic goal.

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But as long as Cook returns, it's possible. He has a chance to be the top quarterback in college football next season, depending on who does and doesn't declare for the NFL draft. He won't post gaudy numbers—that is simply not Michigan State's style—but he makes throws few other college quarterbacks can make. And he's more mobile than he's often given credit for.

Marcus Mariota led the nation in passer rating and won the Heisman Trophy this season. J.T. Barrett (pre-injury) finished No. 3 in passer rating and was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. Blake Sims finished No. 7 in passer rating, and Jameis Winston, despite a lower passer rating, is a former Heisman winner himself.

All four of those quarterbacks made the playoff.

To wit, the correlation between great QB play and success is not overstated. Michigan State would have needed a magical defense such as 2013's to make the playoff without Cook under center. And next year's defense will not be that magical.

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But the offense has a chance to be just as good as this year's, which finished No. 15 in Football Outsiders' F/+ ratings.

Lippett and Keith Mumphery will be gone, but slot receiver Macgarrett Kings Jr. and tight end Josiah Price should return. And the Spartans have a deep cast of options to replace Lippett and Mumphery, chief among them former top-100 recruit Aaron Burbridge.

Burbridge won the Tommy Love Award as the most improved offensive player on the team, per Rexrode. He is 6'2" and toolsey but has maddened Spartans fans with inconsistent play.

But would it really be so crazy for him to break out as Cook's No. 1 receiver during his senior year next season?

The talent is certainly there.

Michigan State has a difficult schedule that once again features Oregon (this time at home) and Ohio State (this time on the road) next season. It also features road trips to Michigan and Nebraska and nonconference games against three more teams—Western Michigan, Air Force and Central Michigan—that made a bowl game in 2014.

The road will be tough, but an 11-1 record against a quality schedule would be enough to get Sparty into the playoff conversation. And as daunting as a trip to Columbus sounds, it's not unwinnable.

The only Big Ten team Urban Meyer has lost to in his three years with the Buckeyes was Michigan State. The only quarterback he's lost to was Cook. And that was back when Cook was just a sophomore.

Imagine what he might do as a senior.

Follow Brian Leigh on Twitter: @BLeigh35