Well, that sucked didn't it? In its 24-3 loss on Saturday, Michigan State just didn't show up on offense vs Nebraska in a repeat of their poor performance against Notre Dame earlier this year. Captain Kirk looked lost in his worst performance of the year, and the offensive play calling was even more lost with a vanilla gameplan sprinkled with gimmicks at consistently the wrong time - just a pathetic, anemic performance by Spartan offense. The offense never gave the resolute Spartan defense (holding Nebraska to just 270 total yards) a chance. Hell, the MSU defense played pretty well for much of the day... but ain't no team gonna win many games with its offense scoring 3 points. The defense showed up, and the offense had a hangover from last week's sensational win over Wisky. Don't get me wrong -- give the Huskers defense some credit for wearing on and tearing up the Spartan offensive line -> but when the MSU offense needed to make plays, they couldn't make a good call, a sharp pass, a serviceable block, or a damn catch. The Spartan offense went out of their way to make it easy for the Nebraska defense.
Michigan State dropped to #15 in the AP, #16 in the USA Today, and #17 in the BCS standings. What I can't figure out is how scUM is ranked ahead of the Spartans... again, this is a Michigan team that, yes, beat Notre Dame, but has no other quality wins on its resume. Sigh, it must be that mystique rearing its ugly head again.
Michigan State ain't out of it folks. What is amazing is the Wisky loss to Ohio State, the JoePa win, and the Iowa loss to Minny. If the Spartans can sweep their favorable schedule and Nebraska stumbles on the road at either JoePa or at scUM, MSU could head to the Big Ten title game against JoePa or Wisky. Right now, JoePa has a two game lead over the field in the Leaders division; the Spartans and Huskers are tied at 3-1 atop the Legends.
The Spartans are early 28-pt favorites over Minnesota this upcoming weekend.
Well, the ES guess correctly last week, picking Sparty 26-24 over Wisky... and predicting a blocked kick - pretty good year for the ES so far. So what about tomorrow, with the Big Green Machine taking on Nebraska?
Michigan State Spartans (6-1/3-0) at Nebraska Cornhuskers (6-1/2-1)
Lincoln, NE. 12:00 pm.
ES pick: MSU 20, Nebraska 14.
Stat of the week: This will be a defensive battle, and Defense Wins Championships. MSU will load up to stop the run, and with solid corner play will force Neb QB Taylor Martinez to throw. Expect 3 INTs by Spartan DBs en route to a TD victory.
Two days after, and the ES has watched the last minute drive at least 50 times. AT LEAST. What an amazing story by Wojciechowskiat ESPN.com.
I have ripped on Herbstreit & Co. for their blanket endorsement of Wisconsin, something that you don't expect out of someone as talented as he and the Game Day crew. But, I have to give credit to Herbie and Brent Musburger for the post-game analysis, which I've just watched for the first time (since I was at the game, then at the Roadhouse to celebrate). Musky called it "one of the great football games that I've been around.... It was unbelievable, I mean the whole game.... Oh, what a ball game, and what an unbelieveable ending." Herbstreit: "and that's saying something... This is what makes college football so special." Looking at the video, it is amazing how thousands of fans just wouldn't leave after the game, everyone just stunned celebration. Several bloggers, including yours truly, are ranking it among the greatest college football games EVER PLAYED IN HISTORY (or try this) (dating back to Princeton & Rutgers in 1869).
I want to share with you below several clips that I've found from within the stadium of the timing of the announcement. Seriously, it must have hit 140 decibels in the stadium (ie a jet engine) -- the loudest single sound I have EVER HEARD in Spartan Stadium. I have been attending Spartan football games for 25 years and never, NEVER, had it been as loud as on Saturday night. These all give you the sense of how AMAZING the experience was -- I'm not lying, it was truly one of the greatest single experiences of my entire life.
Thank you THANK YOU to everyone taking video in the Stadium. It was historic, an amazing climax to one of the best games ever played.
Here is the announcement - just a BANG like an atomic bomb blast. Swear to the good Lord above.
Here is a video from the student section, right where the ES was standing, everyone in the stadium with their arms up signaling TD, when IT HAPPENED:
Here is a clip of the entire last drive, including the announcement:
Here is an amazing video of "Rocket," front row seat - ROW 3 to be exact:
Finally, a clip taken by the ES of the celebration of the players running to the corner of the endzone to celebrate with the student body:
Sweeter words have never been said. And, the ES now is officially a supporter of Instant Replay in college football.
OMG. Where does one begin? Let’s start with ESPN Game Day. Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Chris Fowler – the ES hopes last night’s Spartan victory finally turns you into a believer about Michigan State football. I’d love to stick last night’s game ball up Herbstreit’s "the-only-way-Spartans-can-win-is-with-a-miracle" butt, stick it right where the sun don’t shine. As MSU safety Trenton Robinson said "it is just the ultimate in disrespect." Screw your 326-lb Wisconsin offensive line… we got Smash Mouth Spartan defense!!!! DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS.
The Spartans are for real. This is a new era. Spartan history says we don’t win these close games, Spartan history says we blow it… Nope, not any longer. We are now seeing a Dantonio-led Spartan team that consistently comes up with big (shall I say HUGE) plays when they need it most, a team that plays all 60 minutes to the last second. We, the Spartan Nation, have earned this victory and earned this new era after decades of heartbreak. Screw ESPN and everyone consistently writing off the Spartans.
Last night’s sweet 37-31 victory over frigging Bucky Badger was maybe the most important victory in Spartan recent history – at least dating back to the 1999 Saban-era win over Michigan. But, this is big big. Bigger than big. MSU is now in the driver’s seat for the Legends Division title with a 6-1 overall mark and a 3-0 record in the Big Ten. Noone – NO ONE -- gave MSU a shot with a Murderer’s Row of Ohio State-Michigan-Wisconsin-Nebraska. Talk was “if MSU can go 2-2, they can have a good year.” Well, let the ES share with the national pundits that Michigan State is 3-0. Murder’s row? Who is murdering who anyway? It’s turned out that, the Spartans are the murderers. Why? Because DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS. The Spartan defense is absolutely smash-mouth vicious, relentless, as it was again last night. BRING ON NEBRASKA.
Wow, what an amazing, thrilling, fun game – one of the greatest Spartan games ever, and certainly one of the best in the ES’ 43 years on this GREEN earth. Michigan State, after spotting Wisky with an early 14-points, came back to hit Wisky right in the mouth, beginning with defense (a safety nonetheless), and outscoring the “vaunted” Badger offense 31-3 before holding on for a last-second Hail Mary victory. Indeed, other than the first eight minutes and last eight minutes, MSU dominated the game. That’s right. Michigan State pushed Wisconsin all around the field, and that “great” Wisky quarterback, Russell Wilson, was terrorized throughout the evening by a bruising Spartan defense. Wilson had just 30 yards rushing, and completed 14-of-21 for 223 yards, and 2 bad INTs (as a result of Spartan pressure). Spartans sacked Wilson three times, but beyond that had heat on him all game long, forcing errant throws due to unrelenting pressure. DL Jerel Worthy? Pure muscle, pound for pound a total stud. He wrecked Wisconsin’s O-line play after play after play (he finished with 3 tackles, one for loss, and a QB hurry). LBs Max Bullough, Chris Norman, and Denicos Allen? Just in the right place at the right time all evening long, especially on third downs.
The Doctor, Mark Dantonio, yet again, showed Wisky coach Brett Bielema how to coach. Brilliant use of time outs before the end of the first half, giving the Spartans an opportunity to block a punt… which worked, and which resulted in a TD. MD’s call for a double reverse in the second quarter could not have been more timely, and helped to jump start the Spartan offense. Yet, Kirk Cousins almost gave the game away, playing scared late in the fourth quarter, not risking errant throws and instead taking several sacks. Cousins, who finished 22-of-31 for 290 yards, was sharp most of the game and threw 3 TDs and converted on a critical 2-pt conversion with a beautiful catch by BJ Cunningham. This was Cunningham’s best game of the year, coming up with timely catches all game long to keep drives alive – he finished with 6 catches for 102 yards and a beautiful 35-yard TD catch from Cousins in the 2nd quarter.
The Spartans had arguably their best offense of the year, and it was timely.
How good was the Spartans’ offense? They led in time of possession, with 31:31, and converted on 8-of-16 tries (50%). Spartan FB LeVeon Bell got the bulk of the work after the Doctor realized early that Ed Baker wasn’t big enough to move the ball. It was a good move going to Bell, who ended up with 87 yards on 16 carries (5.4 average), and several nice runs up the middle to keep the chains moving.
Special teams? Not special all season, but my-oh-my did it come through last night. MSU blocked a FG, blocked a punt for a TD, and allowed only a long of 25 yards for UW kick returns. Even Spartans punter, Mike Sadler, had a good game – other than one shank, he had several critical punts that pinned Wisconsin deep or hung up long enough to allow only short UW returns.
A “dirty team?” After the 13-penalty performance week, the Spartans had ZERO penalties vs Wisconsin. That’s right, none. How about “chippy” or “tough” or “nasty”… but not dirty. Michigan State put that argument to rest last night.
THE DRAMATIC CONCLUSION
Funny, the ES was in the upper deck but came down to the lower bowl on the final Wisconsin drive to watch the thrilling ending. A beautifully called and executed shovel pass from Captain Kirk to LeVeon Bell was timely and set the stage for the final play. The use of time outs by MD and by Bielema was truly a fascinating chess match – only to see Bielema botch it again by calling time out and giving the Spartans a final chance with :10 left. Bielema is such a ding-dong. A beautiful throw by Cousins to Lithincum that could have put MSU into FG range went awry with great Wisconsin defense knocking the ball away. And, the dramatic conclusion…
The ES had to look at the video monitor because Cousins was flushed right and too many fans were in the way. I couldn’t believe Nichol caught it on the deflection… it just fell into his hands. Even from the odd angle, it looked as if Nichol made it and crossed the goalline into paydirt. The ES will never forget, as the official took just 1 minute and ran back on the field to announce the official call. The ES's brother was sitting underneath the press box/suite area, and he said that he turned around and everyone in the suites was going crazy with their arms pointed up, knowing the replay was going to give MSU the win. The referee headed out onto the field, he said, “After further review, it was determined the receiver broke the plane…”
I never heard anything else. The atom bomb that is the Spartan Nation was detonated. The place went completely ape-shit. The Spartan bench cleared onto the field, trampling the referee. OMG it was beautiful. Watch the video below.
Replay officials did a great job, an easy call as video demonstrated without a doubt that Nichol crossed the plane.
One helluva game, what a great day to be a Spartan. I HATE WISCONSIN. Hate them with a passion. I’m glad we kicked their arse. Hope to see them again in Indianapolis, and we can kick their tail again. ESPN Game Day: I hope you never come back – give the Spartans some credit for once… when will you believe? MSU deserved to win that game. Michigan State played better defensively and offensively, MSU played better on special teams, and the Spartans outcoached the Badgers. Sweet, sweet victory!
The Spartan Nation rejoices. Top Ten: welcome the Michigan State Spartans.
Team Statistics (Final)
2011 Michigan State Football
#4 Wisconsin vs #15 Michigan State (Oct 22, 2011 at East Lansing, Mich.)
More updates here shortly, but the ES is ecstatic!!! What an amazing victory for Michigan State over the hated Bucky Badgers - MSU deserved to win the game with a pounding defensive effort, and the miracle Hail Mary (that never works). Michigan State is a top 10 team easily...
Will update more - ES is traveling to Washington DC. GO STATE! What an amazing day to be a Spartan!
ES pick: MSU 26, Wisconsin 24.
Stat of the week: Again, defense wins championships. Spartans get three take-aways and hold Wisconsin to under 150 rushing yards to key the victory.... and, Sparty blocks a kick!
Spartan DE William Gholston, who has become a big-time playmaker in his second season with the Green and White, will be suspended for the Wisconsin game.
As noted by Rittenberg at ESPN, Gholston received the suspension for punching Michigan offensive lineman Taylor Lewan following the final play of the third quarter of the Spartans' 28-14 win. It was one of two personal fouls he had in the game. The Big Ten rulebook prohibits "striking or attempting to strike or otherwise physically abusing an official, opposing coach, spectator or athlete." Brady Hoke didn't mind that much, obviously.
The ES didn't see it at the game, but after witnessing it on television, I figured he'd be suspended. Nevermind the fact that big #77 of scUM pushed his head into the ground, but slugging someone in the Adam's apple ain't the best advice on how to handle it.
What does this mean? Drenzel Drone will take place of Gholston... and MSU is very deep and athletic along the defensive front (did I ever think I'd write that in my lifetime?), but are they athletic enough? We shall find out. This defense has a swagger about them that is reminiscent of the 1988 Rose Bowl team. Just plain mean. Take it out on the hated Badgers on Saturday, is all I say.
The ES keeps thinking about the ferocious Spartan defense on Saturday, which put to rest for good the argument any notion of scUM's Denard Robinson as Heisman-trophy caliber. Indeed, he looked downright ordinary on Saturday, with a bludgeoning and bruising Spartan front line that completely dominated the "vaunted" Wolverine offense. When Michigan's 4th-and-1 effort was smashed with yet another Spartan sack of Robinson, the AArogant Nation has to wonder if Robinson's shoelaces aren't more effective tied to the bench, even if tied at all. Sweet beauty, sweet beauty. It was as vicious of an effort by the Spartan defense witnessed by the ES in his lifetime.
As loud as the cheers are roaring in Spartan Stadium is the whining out of Ann Arbor, which has never been louder: "the Spartans play dirty", etc etc. Whatever, what the whining shows is several things:
inability for the Wolvies to use multiple gifts from MSU; the Spartans penalized 13 times for 124 yards, giving the Wolverines 6 of their 20 first downs by penalty... five personal fouls by MSU resulted in a FRESH SET OF DOWNS each time... and in EVERY CASE, Michigan punted. Yes, Michigan got NOTHING from the 15 yards and first downs each of the five times through the entire game.
difficulty for the AArrogant Nation to accept the fact it has taken a back-seat to Michigan State in football. This is four years of pounding in a row.
unwillingness for the AArogant Nation to acknowledge the fact of being physically and mentally defeated. They weren't as tough, and couldn't compete. They were pounded into submission, and the AArrogant Nation just can't accept that, either.
sore losers.
As my parents always said, stop yer bitchin' and keep your nose to the grindstone. Or, more bluntly: "Let me tell you a thing about stupidity: It is better to be quiet than to open your mouth and remove all doubt."
At least the players weren't complaining, and recognize the game of football involves physical brutality. Even Robinson told the New York Times: “They were playing football. It’s a dirty game.” “They were definitely more physical,” said Michigan redshirt junior safety Jordan Kovacs. “They pounded us. They beat us up.”
NY TIMES, MEDIA PRAISE SPARTANS FEROCITY
The praise for Michigan State's ferocity is wide across the nation (NY Times called the win over scUM a "beating"; USA Today acknowledges MSU defense; even the Michigan Daily acknowledged MSU's pummeling.). In back-to-back games, against Ohio State and Michigan, the Spartans looked, well... MEAN and unrelenting. Jeez, it looked like an Alabama-defense. Right now, the Spartans rank No. 1 nationally in pass defense (119.1 yards per game) and pass-efficiency defense (84.3 rating), along with a No. 2 ranking in total defense (186.1 yards), No. 3 in run defense (67 yards) and No. 4 in scoring defense (10.8 points).
ESPN GAME DAY COMING TO TOWN
Now, the #13 Spartans get the supreme test: hosting #4 Wisconsin. The Badgers are a 7 1/2-pt favorite at Spartan Stadium. Notably, it is not only MSU's Homecoming... but ESPN Game Day crew are coming to town, likely to set up shop at Munn Field - it is Corso and Herbstreit's fourth visit to Spartan Stadium, and first since 2005. In other Big Ten tilts, Iowa favored by 23 over Indiana, Illinois favored by 6 at Purdue, Nebraska favored by 25 at Minnesota, and Joe Pa favored by 4 at Northwestern.
TIDBITS
ES predicted MSU 27-18 (final 28-14)... not bad, eh? And, the ES poll relating to how many yards would MSU limit Denard Robinson? The answer was 167 total yards -- more than 50% below his average of 342 entering the game. 39% of the 181 who responded to the ES poll said Robinson would be held under 150 yards; 9% said between 151-200; 7% said between 201-250, 4% said between 251-300; and, 38% said he would gain more than 300. The ES grins, "Ha ha ha."
RANKINGS: MSU #13, #15, #16
For Michigan State, they've climbed to #13 in the USA Today, #15 in the AP Poll, and #16 in the first BCS rankings released today.
What a game! Notch up another top-flight effort out of the Spartan defense in its 28-14 annihilation of the overrated Michigan Wolverines. That is four straight years the Spartans have dominated the roadkill on the gridiron: the first time that has happened in 50 years. Once again, MSU ended scUM illusions of grandeur as Michigan State opened up and exploited all of the Wolverine weaknesses: a weak scUM interior on both offense and defense, and a brittle quarterback in #16 who is nothing more than average when competing against a real defense. (Photo courtesy MSU Media Relations).
MSU held "the nation's most exciting performer," scUM's Denard Robinson, to just 42 yards rushing and a miserable 9-of-24 passing for 123 yards... that is just 167 total yards of offense, folks. That was less than half of his total of 342 yards per contest prior to the MSU tilt. The defense also battered Robinson all day long, with 7 sacks and countless hits. The pick-six by Spartan DB Isaiah Lewis in the fourth quarter was a result of a brutal blitz package by MSU, with Spartan LB Max Bullough right in his face. Indeed, after Michigan scored to close the Spartan lead to 21-14, the defense picked up the pressure, with blitz after blitz harassing the scUM QBs. Indeed, if Robinson was such a great player, why not have him in at the end of the game? In addition, the Wolverines were held to a miserable 20% third down conversions, just 3-of-15. It was misery all day long for scUM, thanks to the Spartan vice-grip defense.
Asf for the Spartan offense, Kirk Cousins was as sharp as he was all year -- actually the biggest issue on offense were the several dropped passes by both Cunningham and Martin (although Martin's sideline tiptoed efforts on the 2 TD catches were fantastic). The OL started opening up gashing holes for Edwin Baker and LeVeon Bell. Baker's 167 yards was his best of the year, and the 213 yards rushing dominated the measly 82 yards of Michigan.
As for the Nike combat uniforms, they looked better in photos than in action -- it was real tough to see the numbers throughout the game, at least from the upper deck.
A dominating performance on all sides of the game from the opening kickoff to the final seconds. Congrats to the 5-1 Spartans who have a chance to make the claim as the Big Ten's best this weekend's homecoming vs. Wisconsin. Go GREEN!
Team Statistics (Final)
2011 Michigan State Football
#11 Michigan vs #23 Michigan State (Oct 15, 2011 at East Lansing, Mich.)
MICH MSUFIRST DOWNS................... 20 16
Rushing..................... 8 9
Passing..................... 6 7
Penalty..................... 6 0
NET YARDS RUSHING............. 82 213
Rushing Attempts............ 36 39
Average Per Rush............ 2.3 5.5
Rushing Touchdowns.......... 1 1
Yards Gained Rushing........ 151 224
Yards Lost Rushing.......... 69 11
NET YARDS PASSING............. 168 120
Completions-Attempts-Int.... 12-31-1 13-24-0
Average Per Attempt......... 5.4 5.0
Average Per Completion...... 14.0 9.2
Passing Touchdowns.......... 1 2
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS........... 250 333
Total offense plays......... 67 63
Average Gain Per Play....... 3.7 5.3
Fumbles: Number-Lost.......... 2-0 2-2
Penalties: Number-Yards....... 5-40 13-124
PUNTS-YARDS................... 7-223 5-205
Average Yards Per Punt...... 31.9 41.0
Net Yards Per Punt.......... 27.1 36.6
Inside 20................... 4 1
50+ Yards................... 0 0
Touchbacks.................. 1 0
Fair catch.................. 1 0
KICKOFFS-YARDS................ 3-158 5-333
Average Yards Per Kickoff... 52.7 66.6
Net Yards Per Kickoff....... 37.0 48.2
Touchbacks.................. 0 3
Punt returns: Number-Yards-TD. 2-22-0 1-13-0
Average Per Return.......... 11.0 13.0
Kickoff returns: Number-Yds-TD 2-32-0 3-47-0
Average Per Return.......... 16.0 15.7
Interceptions: Number-Yds-TD.. 0-0-0 1-39-1
Fumble Returns: Number-Yds-TD. 0-0-0 0-0-0
Miscellaneous Yards........... 0 0
Possession Time............... 29:27 30:33
1st Quarter................. 8:23 6:37
2nd Quarter................. 6:31 8:29
3rd Quarter................. 6:50 8:10
4th Quarter................. 7:43 7:17
Third-Down Conversions........ 3 of 15 7 of 14
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 2 of 4 0 of 0
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 1-2 3-3
Touchdowns.................. 1-2 3-3
Field goals................. 0-2 0-3
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 0-0 7-62
PAT Kicks..................... 2-2 4-4
Field Goals................... 0-0 0-0
Time to dominate scUM with our old Spartan ways of pounding the ball with the run, running rough-shod all over the Wolverines... and playing nasty, no-holds-barred defense.
SPARTANS WHAT IS YOUR PROFESSION?!!! Beat Michigan!
Sorry for the delay, Spartan fans... the ES is out and about on vacation on the other side of the country. That said... IT IS ROADKILL WEEK. Time to open up a can of whoop-arse on scUM and kick some Robinson butt. How many total yards (rush, pass, receive) will the Spartans' top-ranked defense hold that little feller to this weekend? Make your guess is on the right.
The Michigan State Spartans are favored by a FG for the home tilt against the overrated #10 Wolvies. #15 Illinois is favored by 4 at home over the Buckeyes. #25 JoePa is favored by 13 at home over Purdon't. Iowa is favored by 6 at home over Northwestern. And.... poor ole Indiana, the Hoosiers are a 39-pt dog to #4 Wisconsin.
Notably, while the ES was gone, Michigan State moved up to #19 in the coaches (USA Today) poll, and #23 in the media (AP) poll. The USA Today poll is below.
No. 14 South Florida (4-1, lost to Pittsburgh 44-17), No. 16 Baylor (3-1, lost to then-unranked Kansas State 36-35), No. 20 TCU (3-2, lost to Southern Methodist 40-33 OT).
Others receiving votes
Houston (5-0) 97; Baylor (3-1) 90; Texas Tech (4-0) 68; South Florida (4-1) 49; Penn State (4-1) 37; Washington (4-1) 30; Notre Dame (3-2) 13; Pittsburgh (3-2) 11; North Carolina (4-1) 10; Southern Methodist (4-1) 10; Tennessee (3-1) 6; Iowa (3-1) 5; Air Force (3-1) 3; Southern Mississippi (4-1) 3; Cincinnati (4-1) 1; Duke (3-2) 1; Ohio State (3-2) 1.
It was as big a win for Michigan State as any in recent years. The monkey that is Ohio State is now finally off Mark Dantonio's back. The Spartan defense had its most dominating game since the 1987 Rose Bowl years, with a smothering, continuous attack all game long, dominating a Buckeye offensive line. MSU lived up to its statistical billing as the nation's top-ranked defense, and its reputation as the best Spartan defense in the ES' lifetime. (photo courtesy MSU Media Relations).
Let's talk first about this crushing Spartan defense. William Gholston, Jerely Worthy, Max Bullough, and Marcus Rush (who? Yeah, that #44 guy) were in the Ohio State backfield all game long -- making 9 sacks and holding the Buckeyes to just 35 rushing yards on 39 attempts (that is an 0.9 yard average). But, what was really impressive was early in the third quarter, seeing OSU QB Braxton Miller, and his eyes looked SCARED, terrified of this never-ending Spartan blitzkrieg. As the ES noted in his post on Buckeye Battle Cry going into the game: "So far, MSU’s 2011 defense is better than in any year since the ES has been alive the past 43 years. Interestingly, it is also ranked #1 in the nation. Why is it so good? The defensive line (Worthy, Pickleman, White, Strayhorn, Drone, etc.) is the most ferocious and by far the deepest for the Spartans since before the ES was born – too much talent, too deep to keep at bay"
And, you know what, MSU more than lived up to it. It was a crushing, physical ass-kicking of the Ohio State offensive line.
After giving up just 178 total yards to Ohio State, the Spartans are now allowing just 173.4 yards per game IN TOTAL DEFENSE. That remains #1 in the land. It's rushing defense of 64 yards per game is #6 in the nation, and its passing defense of 109.4 yards per game is #2 in the nation.
Look at this drive chart out of Ohio State... Read it and weep. OSU had only one posession over 4 minutes long, and 9 of its 14 drives were 10 yards or less (four went backwards). Amazing. Too bad about the TD at the end, but by then the game was out of reach.
OSU 1st O23 15:00 Kickoff O30 13:28 Punt 3-7 1:32
OSU 1st O21 12:26 Punt O23 10:02 Punt 3-2 2:24
OSU 1st O28 07:36 Kickoff O25 05:23 Punt 4--3 2:13
OSU 1st O13 02:17 Punt O30 13:13 Punt 6-17 4:04
OSU 2nd O37 09:45 Downs M34 07:39 Int 4-29 2:06
OSU 2nd O18 05:58 Punt O22 02:33 Punt 6-4 3:25
OSU 2nd O37 00:50 Fumble O47 00:00 Halftime 4-10 0:50
OSU 3rd O32 12:54 Punt M47 09:41 Punt 5-21 3:13
OSU 3rd O34 05:46 Missed FG O39 02:41 Punt 5-5 3:05
OSU 4th O20 14:09 Int O03 11:50 Punt 3--17 2:19
OSU 4th O38 10:28 Kickoff O26 08:52 Punt 3--12 1:36
OSU 4th O07 07:04 Punt O04 05:31 Punt 3--3 1:33
OSU 4th O24 04:24 Int M43 03:06 Downs 8-33 1:18
OSU 4th O38 01:51 Punt M00 00:10 *TD 7-62 1:41
When have you Spartans ever cheered so loudly for a 50-yard field goal? That long kick by Conroy -- the Peanut Barrel in EL exploded in cheers, knowing that would be the difference because our defensive line had just dominated all game long.
As for the Spartan offense -- again it squandered away so many opportunities. MSU was by far more dominant moving the ball between the 20s, but a la the Notre Dame game, mistakes by Kirk Cousins at inopportune times led to empty possessions. The ES felt bad for Cousins about the ball falling out of his hands -- it happens. But the interception to the corner of the end zone at the end of the 3th quarter on third down deep in OSU territory -- that ball should have never been thrown; into double coverage, no less. What a waste of a perfectly good drive. Cousins' INT late in the fourth quarter also should have never been thrown, just a poor pass on a well covered out pattern. Cousins also missed open receivers all game long, including a wide open Cunningham streaking down the sidelines, and a wide open Sims. Those are TDs you need against good teams. Cousins has to make those plays. Indeed, the ES figures you can put much of the blame on the Spartans' #103 ranking in Red Zone Offense on the shoulders of Captain Kirk. (25 drives, 18 scores, 110 pts for a 0.72 scoring pct). Thank God for the nation's best defense.
The offensive line for MSU, actually was serviceable -- Bell and Baker combined for 86 yards on 26 carries, about a 3.3 average.... and Cousins had time to throw much of the day, he wasn't sacked though he was whacked a few times. The biggest question mark from this point forward for MSU is one: Kirk Cousins. He is playing nowhere near the level of last year, and his accuracy is most telling again on third down - where MSU was just 3 of 14 (just 21%). Cousins has to finish drives; he just has to get better in his decision-making on third downs.
A well coached game by Dantonio for the most part -- the ES doesn't question going for it on 4th down, nor the missed 51 FG attempt by Conroy... MSU needed points, and was having difficulty getting the ball deeper into OSU territory, and its defense was ferocious. So, why not take those gambles?
Bottom line, this was a game MSU HAD to win to be considered the real deal, and to make a run for the B1G Ten title game. The Spartans have work to do, but we have an extra week to prepare and kick Denard Robinson's tail all over the field - wait till scUM gets a load of the Spartan defense instead of the pansies they've been playing all year. The ES is licking his chops.
But, congrats to MSU for an amazing defensive domination! We did what is among the most difficult things to do in major college football: win in Columbus (and a near shut out at that). Congrats to the Big Green Machine!
Team Statistics (Final)
2011 Michigan State Football
Michigan State vs Ohio State (Oct 1, 2011 at Columbus, Ohio)
MSU OSUFIRST DOWNS................... 15 12
Rushing..................... 2 4
Passing..................... 12 6
Penalty..................... 1 2
NET YARDS RUSHING............. 71 35
Rushing Attempts............ 31 39
Average Per Rush............ 2.3 0.9
Rushing Touchdowns.......... 0 0
Yards Gained Rushing........ 104 110
Yards Lost Rushing.......... 33 75
NET YARDS PASSING............. 250 143
Completions-Attempts-Int.... 20-32-2 12-25-1
Average Per Attempt......... 7.8 5.7
Average Per Completion...... 12.5 11.9
Passing Touchdowns.......... 1 1
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS........... 321 178
Total offense plays......... 63 64
Average Gain Per Play....... 5.1 2.8
Fumbles: Number-Lost.......... 2-1 1-0
Penalties: Number-Yards....... 6-54 9-82
PUNTS-YARDS................... 6-245 10-406
Average Yards Per Punt...... 40.8 40.6
Net Yards Per Punt.......... 38.3 38.8
Inside 20................... 3 2
50+ Yards................... 1 0
Touchbacks.................. 0 0
Fair catch.................. 1 2
KICKOFFS-YARDS................ 3-188 1-70
Average Yards Per Kickoff... 62.7 70.0
Net Yards Per Kickoff....... 40.3 50.0
Touchbacks.................. 0 1
Punt returns: Number-Yards-TD. 5-18-0 1-15-0
Average Per Return.......... 3.6 15.0
Kickoff returns: Number-Yds-TD 0-0-0 3-67-0
Average Per Return.......... 0.0 22.3
Interceptions: Number-Yds-TD.. 1-0-0 2-4-0
Fumble Returns: Number-Yds-TD. 0-0-0 0-0-0
Miscellaneous Yards........... 0 0
Possession Time............... 28:26 31:34
1st Quarter................. 6:26 8:34
2nd Quarter................. 6:52 8:08
3rd Quarter................. 8:42 6:18
4th Quarter................. 6:26 8:34
Third-Down Conversions........ 3 of 14 4 of 16
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 0 of 1 1 of 2
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 0-1 0-0
Touchdowns.................. 0-1 0-0
Field goals................. 0-1 0-0
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 9-64 0-0
PAT Kicks..................... 1-1 1-1
Field Goals................... 1-2 0-0