Michigan State: 2021 Peach Bowl Champions

 

ATLANTA -- — Michigan State capped its turnaround from from a two-win season with a fourth-quarter comeback in the Peach Bowl.

Payton Thorne's 22-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Reed gave No. 11 Michigan State the lead with less than three minutes remaining and the Spartans overcame an 11-point deficit to beat No. 13 Pittsburgh 31-21 on Thursday night in the Peach Bowl.

Led by Thorne, the Spartans outscored the Panthers 21-0 in the final quarter.

"The whole game, my teammates just kept telling me to stay up and keep chopping like we talk about," Thorne said.

Linebacker Cal Haladay's 78-yard interception return for a touchdown with 22 seconds remaining ended Pitt fill-in quarterback Davis Beville's bid for a last-minute comeback in the game the Panthers played without star QB Kenny Pickett.

Thorne threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes as Michigan State (11-2) rallied after trailing 21-10.

"We got stronger and stronger as the game went," second-year coach Mel Tucker said. "We ... were able to find a way to get it done."

Michigan State finished 2-5 in its pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

Cam Bright returned a fumble recovery 26 yards for a touchdown only 20 seconds into the second half for Pittsburgh (11-3). The Panthers lost fill-in starting quarterback Nick Patti to a broken collarbone in the first quarter.

Defensive end John Morgan forced the fumble by Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne that was returned by Bright for a 21-10 lead.

It was the second big play by Pitt's defense. Brandon Hill's interception late in the first half set up an 87-yard touchdown drive for a 14-10 lead.

Thorne's 15-yard scoring pass to tight end Connor Heyward cut the Panthers' lead to 21-16 with 8:06 remaining. The Spartans were stopped on their 2-point play, with Heyward kept out of the end zone on another reception.

Thorne completed 29 of 50 passes for 354 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Thorne's scoring pass to Reed with 2:51 remaining gave the Spartans a 22-21 lead. A 2-point pass to Jalen Nailor pushed the lead to three points.

With Pickett, who opted out of the game after finishing third in the Heisman Trophy voting, watching from a coach's box, the Panthers' transition at quarterback quickly took on added drama.

Making his first start since 2019, Patti was knocked out of the game in the first quarter.

On third down from the Michigan State 16 on the Panthers' second possession, Patti dropped back before taking off on a run and diving for the end zone, reaching out for the touchdown before landing hand on his left shoulder.

Patti grabbed his shoulder after rising to his feet and was escorted to the Pitt locker room. When he returned later in the first half, he was not wearing shoulder pads and his left arm was in a sling.

Beville took over for Patti and completed 14 of 18 passes for 149 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

"Davis did a great job, as good as you expect a third-team quarterback to do," said Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi. "Wasn't good enough to win the football game."

Brandon Hill's interception of Thorne's pass for Maliq Carr gave Pitt the ball at its 13, setting up the 87-yard touchdown drive.

Beville completed passes of 10 and 52 yards to Jordan Addison, the Biletnikoff Award winner as the nation's top wide receiver, against Michigan State's pass defense, which ranked last in the nation. Beville's 5-yard touchdown pass to Jared Wayne gave the Panthers a 14-10 halftime lead.

Addison had seven catches for 114 yards.

THE TAKEAWAY

Pitt: The game was expected to be a chance for Patti to make his case for the starting job next season. Former Southern Cal starter Kedon Slovis has announced he is transferring to Pitt and also will be part of the competition. Beville may have shown enough to be another contender.

Michigan State: Thorne showed poise in regrouping from a slow start. His two turnovers — one on an interception and one on a fumble — were costly, leading to two touchdowns. Thorne took advantage of his experience to take over the game in the final quarter.

NO WALKER

The Spartans were without running back Kenneth Walker, who opted out of the game after finishing sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting. Jordon Simmons led Michigan State with 16 carries for only 23 yards.

"Obviously, we're missing Ken but we felt we could get some stuff in the pass game," Thorne said. "In the fourth quarter we were able to string some stuff together and take advantage of the areas we thought we were going to be able to."

BLAME FOCUS, NOT FATIGUE

Pitt linebacker Phil Campbell said fatigue wasn't an issue in the final quarter.

"It was probably just lack of focus in certain areas," Campbell said. "We weren't more tired than they were."

RAINY DAY

Due to rain throughout the morning and most of the afternoon, the annual Peach Bowl parade in downtown Atlanta was canceled. The rain stopped in time for the retractable roof at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to be open for the game.

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AP Sports Writer George Henry contributed to this report.

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Michigan State: 2019 Pinstripe Bowl Champions

NEW YORK – Michigan State ended a disappointing season on a high note.

The Spartans (7-6, 4-5 Big Ten) topped Wake Forest (8-5, 4-4 ACC) 27-21 in the Pinstripe Bowl on Friday at Yankee Stadium in New York. It was their third straight victory and their first time accomplishing that feat since beating Washington State in the Holiday Bowl to close the 2017 season.

Michigan State, which won its final two regular-season games just to become bowl eligible, came out on top of an entertaining bowl game that featured five lead changes. The Spartans squandered chances to put the game away late, including a 28-yard missed field goal by Matt Coghlin with three minutes left, but got the defensive stops they needed while blanking the Demon Deacons in the second half.

Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke closed his career with an impressive outing in his 38th and final start. The fifth-year senior was 26-for-37 passing for 320 yards, one touchdown and one interception and had 11 carries for 46 yards and a score. With that performance, he passed Connor Cook for the most yards of total offense in program history and finished with 9,548.

Cody White had eight receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown to lea the Spartans, Jalen Nailor had five catches for 60 yards while tight end Trenton Gillison had four grabs for 88 yards. Elijah Collins led the team with 21 rushes for 96 yards.

Wake Forest quarterback Jamie Newman finished 12-for-27 passing for 175 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and had 17 rushes for 87 yards before leaving the game injured late in the fourth quarter. Cade Carney had 15 carries for 64 yards.

Michigan State won the opening coin toss, deferred to the second half and Wake Forest quickly took the lead. The Demon Deacons went 65 yards in just seven plays and Newman hit Kendall Hinton for a 29-yard touchdown.

The Spartans mounted a 16-play drive on their second possession of the game but stalled after facing first-and-goal from the 6-yard line. Matt Coghlin made a 23-yard field goal to pull the team within four points with 2:44 left in the first quarter.

Michigan State took a 10-7 lead three plays later on a 14-yard interception return for a touchdown by senior defensive tackle Mike Panasiuk. Newman’s pass was deflected by Panasiuk’s younger brother, junior defensive end Jacub Panasiuk, bounced off linebacker Noah Harvey and Panasiuk returned his second career interception for his first touchdown. Panasiuk was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for taking off his helmet and lifting it to the crowd after he was mobbed by teammates.

Wake Forest reclaimed the lead when Newman connected with Donavon Green for a 16-yard touchdown. Michigan State needed just three plays to respond as Lewerke hit Gillison for a 64-yard completion and the quarterback followed with an eight-yard touchdown run on the next play for a 17-14 lead midway through the second quarter.

Michigan State’s lead lasted less than two minutes as Wake Forest responded with a big play by their tight end. A blown coverage led to Newman finding a wide-open Jack Freudenthal for a 44-yard touchdown as Wake went ahead 21-17.

The Spartans had a chance to reclaim the lead, but they had another long drive stall in the red zone. A 13-play possession ended with Coghlin making a 44-yard field goal to pull Michigan State within one at 21-20 with 49 seconds left in the second quarter that stood up as the halftime score.

Michigan State opened the second half with an impressive scoring drive. Lewerke rushed for two yards on fourth-and-1 and Collins ripped off a 31-yard gain on the next play. That set up a 10-yard touchdown pass from Lewerke to White for a 27-21 lead.

The Spartans had a chance to extend their lead to two scores but came up empty after driving inside the Wake Forest 30-yard line. On third-and-7, Lewerke’s pass was a bit high and behind Collins crossing the middle of the field and it bounced off his hands and was intercepted by Ryan Smenda Jr.

Michigan State’s next possession was another blown opportunity after reaching the red zone. Lewerke threw a shovel pass to Gillison, who was stripped of the ball and fumbled as Wake Forest recovered at its 6-yard line while the Spartans came away empty.

After Michigan State’s defense got another much-needed stop, Lewerke used his arm and legs to drive the team down with a chance at a potential game-sealing score. However, Coghlin missed a 28-yard field goal wide left as Michigan State’s lead remained at 27-21 with 3:03 remaining in the fourth quarter.

On the ensuing possession, defensive end Kenny Willekes got to Newman for a sack to force a fumble and the quarterback had to leave the game. Sophomore Sam Hartman took over on third down but threw a pair of incompletions as the Demon Deacons turned over the ball on downs and the Spartans ran out the clock.

GAME NOTES:

* Michigan State was shorthanded on offense and that included a new injury as tight end Matt Seybert didn’t dress and was spotted with a brace on his right leg while using a crutch. The fifth-year senior leads the team’s tight ends with 26 catches for 284 yards and three touchdowns. Offensive linemen Luke Campbell, Tyler Higby, Kevin Jarvis and Cole Chewins were also out for the Spartans. Campbell, a redshirt junior, missed the last two games of the regular season. Higby, a fifth-year senior, missed the final five games of the regular season. Jarvis, a junior, missed the last nine games of the regular season. Chewins, a fifth-year senior, didn’t play this year due to a back injury.

* Fifth-year senior receiver Darrell Stewart Jr. returned to the lineup to close his college career for Michigan State after missing the final four games of the regular season with a lower leg injury. Redshirt junior center Matt Allen was also back after missing the previous four games and started. True freshman Nick Samac started at center in the final four games of the regular season while burning his redshirt.

* During a press conference prior to the game, Michigan State president Samuel Stanley Jr. voiced support for Dantonio before the end of a disappointing season. Asked if he was confident in the direction of the program, Stanley said “Yes. I am excited about the future and I think this is a great opportunity. … I think Coach Dantonio has really an incredible track record – as you know, the winningest coach in MSU history – so I am pleased with the direction of the program overall.”

Michigan State: 2018-19 Big Ten Men's Basketball Champions

CHICAGO -- Michigan State coach Tom Izzo had one simple question for his team. He got the answer he wanted, and the sixth-ranked Spartans picked up their sixth Big Ten Tournament championship.

Now, they'll try to bring home the biggest prize of all.

Matt McQuaid scored a career-high 27 points, Cassius Winston converted the go-ahead layup in the closing minute, and the Spartans rallied to beat No. 10 Michigan 65-60 in the Big Ten final on Sunday.

Top-seeded Michigan State (28-6) scored the game's final 10 points to capture its first championship since 2016. No other program has won the conference tournament as many times as Michigan State, and this one was particularly sweet.

After all, the Spartans prevented a championship three-peat by Michigan (28-6) and beat their rivals for the third time this season.

"I asked them all today, `What do you want to do?" Izzo said. "Pregame meal, `What do you want to do? You want to play for the (NCAA) Tournament or you want to play the game?' That sounds like a stupid question, but if you knew where my guys were at as far as physically, it was a good question to ask. Once they said `We want to play the game,' I said, `You just gave me a license for 40 minutes of hell, so you better get going because I'm not letting up."

"They responded and I think they enjoyed it," he continued. "So did I."

McQuaid nailed a personal-best seven 3-pointers. Winston, the Big Ten Player of the Year, had 14 points and 11 assists as Michigan State won for the 10th time in 11 games.

"It's always big," McQuaid said. "Michigan's a really good team. Beating them three times ... it's hard to do."

Both teams were awarded No. 2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament and will play Thursday in Des Moines, Iowa. Michigan State faces Bradley in the East Region, while Michigan goes against Montana in the West. The Wolverines beat Montana last year on the way to the national championship game.

Ignas Brazdeikas led Michigan with 19 points. Jordan Poole scored 13. Jon Teske had 10 points and 10 rebounds, and Zavier Simpson added 10 assists.

But the third-seeded Wolverines fell again to Michigan State after blowing their chance to win the league by losing to their rivals twice in the final four regular-season games.

"You lose three times in a season to your rival, it's gonna hurt" Isaiah Livers said. "But we'll use it as motivation for the NCAA Tournament. I'm glad we don't have a week or two weeks to sit there and think about that last game. We can get right back to playing."

Michigan led by 13 early in the second half, but Michigan State went on a 13-4 run to tie it at 48 with just over seven minutes remaining.

The Wolverines were up 60-55 after Livers hit a 3 with 2:29 left, but they didn't score again. McQuaid answered with one of his own to start the game-ending run and Xavier Tillman made a tying layup for Michigan State.

After Simpson missed a 3 for Michigan, Winston drove to his left for a layup -- which Teske thought he blocked -- to put the Spartans on top 62-60 with 28 seconds left.

Brazdeikas then missed a pull-up jumper that got tipped by Aaron Henry with 14 seconds to play. Teske and Tillman went up for the rebound, the ball got knocked out of bounds and the referees gave possession to Michigan State after a review as Michigan coach John Beilein screamed on the sideline.

Henry made a free throw and missed the second, making it a three-point game. Poole then appeared to get bumped by Winston -- Michigan State had a foul to give -- just before he launched a long 3 off the dribble, but there was no call.

The Spartans' Kenny Goins hit two free throws to make it 65-60 with two seconds left.

AHRENS INJURED

Michigan State forward Kyle Ahrens was relieved X-rays showed his left ankle wasn't broken after he was taken from the court on a stretcher in the first half, though the extent of the injury was not clear.

He expects to have an MRI once the softball-sized swelling goes down.

Ahrens landed awkwardly when he collided in midair with Goins going for a defensive rebound with 4:34 left in the first half.

He clutched his lower left leg as he screamed in pain. Medical personnel placed an air cast on his leg and teammates gave him hugs before he was wheeled away, pounding his chest as he was taken to the back. He returned to the sideline on crutches in the second half.

BIG PICTURE

Michigan: The Wolverines have their sights set on another big NCAA run after losing to Villanova in the championship game last year.

Michigan State: The Spartans head to the tournament with high hopes, though their rotation figures to be a little thinner after Ahrens went down.

UP NEXT

Michigan: NCAA Tournament.

Michigan State: NCAA Tournament.

Michigan State: 2017 Holiday Bowl Champions

SAN DIEGO -- Michigan State put a nice, big exclamation mark on its turnaround season.

Brian Lewerke threw for 213 yards and three touchdowns, and LJ Scott ran for 110 yards and two scores for No. 18 Michigan State, which took advantage of Luke Falk's absence to rout No. 21 Washington State 42-17 in the Holiday Bowl on Thursday night.

Lewerke also rushed for 73 yards for Michigan State (10-3), which rebounded from a dismal 3-9 record last year to reach double digits in wins for the eighth time in program history.

"We were ready to play. We were fresh," said Mark Dantonio, who earned his 100th victory in 11 seasons as Spartans coach. "It wasn't good enough to win nine games. We needed to win 10. We needed to have a great bowl game. This was a national stage. Holiday Bowl is an outstanding bowl. It's catapulted us up the rankings at least a little bit further.

"We reaffirmed our stature a little bit in college football. This has been a good football team and should continue to be a good football team."

Falk, who was photographed earlier in the week with a cast on his left wrist, went through warmups but came out in street clothes at game time. He was replaced by redshirt sophomore Tyler Hilinksi, who made his first start and eighth appearance of the season. It's unclear precisely when Falk injured the wrist on his non-throwing hand, but he had issues with it throughout the season.

Coach Mike Leach refused to give specifics during the week and was condescending afterward when asked about Falk's injury.

"Luke is doing exactly what we want Luke to do and Luke has had a fine career here and also done a great deal for this program, probably more than most people will ever realize," Leach said. "Tyler was the ideal guy to start with our lineup today."

Pressed on Falk's injury, Leach said: "You will remain unclear on it. Next question."

Hilinski led WSU (9-4) to a 45-yard field goal by Erik Powell on the Cougars' second drive, but the Cougars were overpowered by the Spartans.

Lewerke threw the first of two TD passes to Cody White, a 7-yarder midway through the second quarter, when he was flushed to the left but found the receiver in the back of the end zone.

On MSU's next possession, Lewerke took the snap and glanced at his running back, which froze the secondary and allowed Felton Davis III to get wide open for a 49-yard scoring pass.

"The quick answer is our eyes weren't in the right place," Leach said. "But the answer is we didn't do our job. I did think we unraveled a little bit after that play."

Scott scored on a 3-yard run to give the Spartans a 21-3 halftime time.

Early in the third, Lewerke rolled left and had his pass tipped, but a sliding White caught it for a 7-yard touchdown.

Lewerke, who finished 13 of 21, was hit hard on a keeper in the third quarter and came out for a few plays. His backup, Damion Terry, scored on a 6-yard keeper to make it 35-3.

The Cougars closed the gap when Hilinski threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Tay Martin late in the third quarter and a 15-yarder to Tay in the fourth quarter.

Scott scored on a 28-yard burst up the middle with about six minutes left to play.

Hilinski was 39 of 50 for 272 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception.

QUOTABLE

Lewerke said he was "very careful" on his long throw to Davis. "I saw how wide open he was and I tried to throw it right at him and make sure."

THE TAKEAWAY

Washington State: It was the second straight lackluster Holiday Bowl for Leach's Cougars, who lost 17-12 to Minnesota last year. Besides being without Falk, leading receiver Tavares Martin Jr. was kicked off the team after the regular season and third-leading receiver Isaiah Johnson-Mack left the squad. The Cougars, who started 6-0, were routed in their final two games, including a 41-14 loss to rival Washington.

Michigan State: Scott had his third 100-yard game of the season and ninth of his career. Felton had four catches for 118 yards.

UP NEXT


Washington State: Falk will move on to the NFL Draft while Hilinski will take over the Air Raid offense. It was Hilinski who led the Cougars to a comeback victory against Boise State in triple overtime on Sept. 9 after Falk was knocked out of the game.

Michigan State: The young Spartans appear to be in good hands with Lewerke, who was just a redshirt sophomore this season. "We can build off the momentum this game brings us," he said. "We've got a lot of young guys, still a lot of work to be done, a lot of potential to be reached. It's very big for us."

Michigan State Spartans: Big Ten Men's Basketball Champions

INDIANAPOLIS -- Michigan State has won its warm-up tournament thanks to a critical late shot by its national player of the year candidate, and can now at last prepare to take its shot at the title that means the most.

The Spartans beat Purdue on Sunday afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, 66-62, to claim their second Big Ten conference tournament championship in three years.

Michigan State will now immediately find out its draw in the NCAA Tournament, when the field is announced starting at 5:30 p.m. on CBS.

The Spartans entered the day projected as a No. 1 seed in the tournament, and is expected to hold on to that seeding after winning three games in three days to take the Big Ten title.

The Spartans head into that tournament overflowing with momentum. They've lost just once since Jan. 20, having won 13 of their last 14 games. They picked up plenty of recognition along the way as a national title favorite.

Michigan State led for the entire second half Sunday, but Purdue pulled within one point with 2:48 left.

Denzel Valentine then hit a contested, double-pump midrange jumper with 1:47 left to send Spartans fans into a frenzy. Michigan State held on through the finish, as Matt Costello missed a key free throw but then atoned for the miss with a block on the other end.

While Valentine hit the key late shot, Michigan State relied on its depth as much as it has all season, especially early in the game.

After Purdue led for most of the first 13 minutes, Michigan State retook the lead with a nine-point run primarily with an unlikely lineup on the floor: Tum Tum Nairn, Alvin Ellis, Eron Harris, Gavin Schilling and Colby Wollenman.

After Harris hit two free throws, Nairn found Schilling for a transition alley-oop, then Wolleman scored a layup over Swanigan to force a Purdue timeout. Ellis made consecutive baskets later in the half to send the Spartans into the break with a 36-26 lead.

In all, eight Michigan State players scored in the first half.

Purdue fought back to within one point in the second half, at 52-51 with 7:47 left, after a seven-point run capped off by an A.J. Hammons dunk.

From there, Michigan State went on a tournament-clinching run, started by its key players but finished off by a reserve.

Michigan State scored on four straight possessions to retake a seven-point lead. Valentine assisted the first two baskets, a Bryn Forbes 3-pointer and a Matt Costello running layup.

Wollenman recorded an assist on an Eron Harris 3-pointer, then notched perhaps the most improbable basket of Michigan State's season: a putback dunk off of a missed Costello 3-pointer that put the Spartans up 62-55 with 5:08 left. And the Spartans held on to the lead.

Valentine finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. He was the only Michigan State player in double figures.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Purdue came into the game having shot 50 percent or better from the floor in its last six games, a stat that had helped the Boilermakers win five straight games. A night after the Spartans held Maryland without a field goal for a 10-minute straight late in the game, it held Purdue to 38.2 percent shooting with another stretch of tough defense.

• An afterthought for most of the season, Alvin Ellis capped off a strong Big Ten tournament with his best outing yet. He scored six points against Maryland in the tournament semifinals, and followed that up with five points Sunday in extended minutes. His two late first-half buckets helped the Spartans head into halftime with momentum.

• The tournament final pitted the top two rebounding teams in the Big Ten, and Michigan State came away with a decisive victory in the category. The Spartans won that battle, 41-31, and had 14 second-chance points compared to four for Purdue.

LOWLIGHTS
• Bryn Forbes capped off a quiet Big Ten tournament with a 1-for-6 effort from 3-point range, and had nine points. He was guarded largely by Rapheal Davis, one of the conference's premiere defenders, but also turned down shots he typically takes. He opened the second half by missing a wide open 3-pointer on a set play for him.

• Michigan State started the game 4-for-15 from the field and allowed Purdue to jump ahead to a four-point lead on multiple occasions. As was the case in the two teams' regular season matchup, Michigan State struggled to finish underneath against Purdue's frontcourt, which features a pair of 7-foot centers plus 6-foot-9 Caleb Swanigan.

• Michigan State's heavy reliance on its reserve frontcourt players in the first half was in large part due to Deyonta Davis picking up two fouls before the midway point of the first half. He had to sit the rest of the half.

NOTES
• Michigan State has now won five Big Ten tournaments championships, including three since 2012. Its total is now one more than Ohio State, which also entered the tournament with four Big Ten tournament titles.

Michigan State: 2015 Cotton Bowl Champions

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Connor Cook and the Michigan State Spartans want to have a different role in the playoff talk next season.

With their big comeback finish in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, the No. 8 Spartans could be set up as a viable championship contender next season, after their only losses this season were to playoff teams.

Michigan State scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter on New Year's Day to beat playoff-snubbed and No. 5 Baylor 42-41 in the highest-scoring Cotton Bowl ever.

"For us to win in such an emotional and dramatic fashion like you just saw out there, really just I think with all the guys coming back, all the juniors, really just makes us feel good and brings us closer together," said Cook, who threw a 10-yard TD pass to Keith Mumphery with 17 seconds left.

Michigan State (11-2), which won the Rose Bowl as Big Ten champions last season, has won four consecutive bowl games after trailing in each of them at halftime. The Spartans' only two losses this season were to Pac-12 winner Oregon and Big Ten champ Ohio State.

Down 41-21 going into the fourth quarter, Michigan State got the winning touchdown afterMarcus Rush blocked Chris Callahan's 43-yard field goal attempt with 1:05 left.

"It's just sort of crazy," coach Mark Dantonio said. "I really probably can't put it into words. We just kept pace. We didn't panic."

When two-time Big 12 champ Baylor got the ball back for one last try, Bryce Petty was sacked on consecutive plays before Riley Bullough's clinching interception.

That was quite a final defensive stand under coordinator Pat Narduzzi, who after 11 seasons and two schools with Dantonio is leaving the Spartans to take over as head coach at Pittsburgh. Narduzzi will be about 20 miles away Friday to watch the Panthers play Houston in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl on the TCU campus.

The Cotton Bowl was the lead-in game Thursday to the two national semifinals that Baylor (11-2) hoped to be part of instead -- though that doesn't matter now.

"We've played a lot of really good games over the last seven seasons. Won a lot of really good games. And this is one of the tougher non-wins that I've ever experienced," Baylor coach Art Briles said. "It's got nothing to do with the big picture. The small picture right now is letting a game get away from us today."

Petty completed 36 of 51 passes for a Cotton Bowl-record 550 yards and three touchdowns, two to speedy freshman KD Cannon and the other to 390-pount backup guard LaQuan McGowan in the third quarter for a 41-21 lead. Baylor had 583 total yards, even with minus-20 yards rushing.

Jeremy Langford ran for 162 yards and three touchdowns for the Spartans. Cook was 24-of-42 passing for 314 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions.

Langford's 1-yard plunge with 4:55 left got the Spartans to 41-35, a play after Cook's 10-yard scramble that was initially ruled a touchdown before a replay review.

Callahan had a 46-yard field goal attempt that ricocheted off the right upright to start the fourth quarter. Michigan State then got Cook's 8-yard TD pass to tight end Josiah Price and recovered an onside kick.

Cook threw a 39-yard pass on the first play after the recovery, but was scrambling to avoid pressure on the next when he threw an awkward pass right to linebacker Taylor Young, who ran 84 yards to the end zone.

Young's apparent touchdown was wiped out by an illegal block, pushing Baylor back to its 43. After Petty's fourth-down incompletion, Michigan State went 60 yards for Langford's final score.

"You hate to 'if' it, but if you don't hit the upright, if you don't get a field goal blocked, if you don't have an offensive facemask, if you don't get a penalty on an interception return, then I think we feel a lot different right now," Briles said.

Baylor was fifth in the final College Football Playoff rankings, a spot ahead of Big 12 co-champion TCU, which the Bears beat 61-58 in October with its own 21-point comeback in the fourth quarter. The Horned Frogs won their bowl game handily, beating Mississippi 42-3 in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Wednesday.

Cannon, already with a 49-yard TD catch, split two Michigan State defenders and was in a full sprint when he reached out with both hands and made a fingertip grab near the 35. He gathered the ball in and ran to the end zone to finish a 74-yard TD before Callahan added another field goal for a 34-14 lead early in the third quarter.

Cannon finished with eight catches for 197 yards. Corey Coleman had seven catches for 150 yards, including a 53-yard score on a throw from fellow receiver Jay Lee.

"When you're down like that against a potent offense that's pretty much scoring at will, it doesn't really look too good," Cook said. "It's just a true statement never to give up."

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Michigan State: 2013-14 Big Ten Men's Basketball Champions

INDIANAPOLIS -- Adreian Payne scored 18 points and Gary Harris and Branden Dawsonadded 15 each to lead No. 22 Michigan State to its second Big Ten tournament title in three years with a 69-55 upset of No. 8 Michigan on Sunday.

The third-seeded Spartans (26-8) are getting healthy and will have some momentum entering the NCAA tournament with four wins in five games.

Top-seeded Michigan (25-8) was led by Big Ten player of the year Nik Stauskas with 17 points and Derrick Walton Jr. had 11, but the Big Ten regular season champs had their seven-game winning streak come to an end.

It was never really close.

Michigan State took control with an early 12-0 run, led 38-29 at halftime and opened the second half with an 8-0 spurt to make it 46-29.

Michigan never got closer than 10 points again.

The Spartans had lost their previous two meetings with Michigan this season but weren't about to lose again Sunday.

For the first time all season, Michigan State started the same five players for a fifth straight game. Harris, who hurt his left shoulder early in the second half, returned later.

Harris, an Indiana native who never got to play for a state basketball title at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, took advantage of this opportunity. He scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half. Dawson, another Indiana native who was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half.

Michigan State has four tournament titles since the Big Ten started the event in 1998.

Michigan, meanwhile, will be waiting to see if this ugly loss could cost it a No. 1 seed in next week's NCAA tournament.

The Wolverines, who narrowly escaped with wins in the quarterfinals and semifinals, were not their usually strong shooting selves as they played for the third time in three days. They avoided matching their season-low point total when Zak Irvin hit a 3 with 15.9 seconds to go and their shooting percentage (31.5) nearly matched a season low, too. Michigan shot 31.1 percent from the field in a 63-61 loss to Charlotte on Nov. 24. And they were outrebounded 38-28.

Michigan's problems started early.

The Spartans went on a 12-0 run to take a 16-9 lead -- and never gave it up.

They led by as much as 25-14 in the first half, getting Michigan's top two big men -- Jordan Morgan and Jon Horford -- into early foul trouble. Coach John Beilein even was called for a technical foul midway through a dreadful half.

Harris finished it off emphatically by taking a pass at midcourt and driving right through Michigan's defense for a one-handed dunk to make it 38-29.

Things didn't get any better for Michigan in the second half.

Michigan State scored the first eight points to make it 46-29, then closed it out with a late 10-4 run that extended the lead to 69-52.

Michigan State: 2014 Rose Bowl Champions

Michigan State has defeated Stanford, 24-20, in the 100th Rose Bowl after the kind of defensive stand -- and offensive play-calling -- that might have been expected.

The game was decided on this play: Stanford has the ball on a fourth-and-one play at its own 34 with less than two minutes to play.

The Cardinal used its final timeout, presumably to decide whether they would hand the ball off to the left of center or right of center.

Then Michigan State used a timeout, apparently to talk about whether Stanford would run to the left of center or the right of center.

Stanford came out in a fullhouse backfield -- the Cardinal call it their "elephant" set -- and handed the ball to Ryan Hewitt, who was carrying the ball for the first time.

He went nowhere.

It was one of many questionable play calls by Stanford in the second half.

The tackle was made by Kyler Elsworth, the fifth-year senior linebacker -- and a former walk-on -- who started the game because star linebacker Max Bullough was benched for the game after violating an undisclosed team rule.

With 1 minute 43 seconds left, No. 4 Michigan State ran out the clock for its 13th win in 14 games this season.

Fifth-ranked Stanford dropped to 11-3.

A crowd of 95,173 enjoyed mid-70s temperatures, a cloudless sky and the type of game many predicted.

It was a test of wills between Stanford's bone-crunching running game against a top-rated Michigan State defense.

The defense won.

Stanford's Tyler Gaffney ran for 91 hard-earned yards in 24 carries. But take away a 47-yard gain early in the game and he wasn't much of a factor. Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan passed for 143 yards and ran for 41.

The game's top player on offense was Michigan State's Connor Cook. The redshirt sophomore completed 22 of 36 passes for 332 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. And while he was productive, he was also lucky. He threw at least three other passes that should have been intercepted.

Jeremy Langford led the Spartans' running attack, gaining 84 yards and scoring a touchdown in 23 carries.

Michigan State: 2012 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Champions

Michigan State 17, TCU 16: Dan Conroy's kick sends Spartan seniors off with bowl win

freep.com

By Joe Rexrode

Detroit Free Press Sports Writer

TEMPE, Ariz. – The Michigan State Spartans walked away from Sun Devil Stadium early today with a winning record, a quarterback competition and a group of seniors feeling much better about a trying final season.

Heading that list was senior kicker Dan Conroy, who had missed nine field goals in a regular season full of narrow defeats. Conroy nailed his only try in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, a 47-yard attempt with 1:01 left to give MSU a 17-16 win over the TCU Horned Frogs in front of 44,617 fans.

“He’s a clutch player and he came through in the clutch for us,” said Le’Veon Bell of Conroy, whose junior season ended with a 33-30 triple-overtime Outback Bowl win over Georgia in which he kicked the winning 28-yard field goal.

“With so many close games,” Conroy said, “losing like we did so many games in this season, to have one go our way this way was definitely exciting.”

So that’s two straight bowl wins for Mark Dantonio after losing his first four at MSU. And that’s a happy finish for an MSU team (7-6) that was ineffective on offense and dominant on defense for most of the evening, just as it was for most of the season.

“Continue to say it all along, we have great chemistry on our football team, great leadership at the ground level, which to me is the players' level,” Dantonio said. “We pushed through the tough times.”

They did it behind Bell’s 32 rushes for 145 yards in what may be his final game at MSU. Taking into account his 29-yard completion on a trick play, Bell accounted for all but 53 yards of MSU’s offensive output.

They got second-half domination and an end-of-game closeout from a Will Gholston-led defense. And punter Mike Sadler was MSU’s other standout specialist.

He averaged 43.7 yards on a career-high 11 punts, and his 55-yard bomb in the fourth quarter was dropped by TCU’s Skye Dawson and recovered at the TCU 4-yard line by MSU’s RJ Williamson.

Bell took it in two plays later for a 14-13 MSU lead. TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin, harassed all night by the blitzing Spartans, moved the Horned Frogs (7-6) 28 yards for a 53-yard field goal from Jaden Oberkrom with 2:42 left.

That made it 16-14 and forced MSU’s coaching staff into a tough decision: junior Andrew Maxwell or redshirt freshman Connor Cook?

Maxwell started as usual but struggled as much as he has all season. Cook replaced him in the third quarter and led a 90-yard touchdown drive – the Spartans’ longest of the season – capped by his 15-yard scoring strike to Aaron Burbridge.

Maxwell (6 of 15, 28 yards) returned two series later and manned the next three, including the 4-yard touchdown drive after the fumbled punt recovery.

But with 2:42 left and MSU starting at its 25, MSU quarterbacks coach Dave Warner, offensive coordinator Dan Roushar and Dantonio all agreed that Cook was the way to go.

He had played with poise and had made some plays with his feet.

“What's going through my mind?” Dantonio said of the decision. “I'm not quite sure. I had a feeling on that situation. We had to go with a guy that had moved us a little bit. Maybe more importantly, we felt like he could scramble a little better than Andrew. We needed to get in field goal position. So that's the way we went. We came out on top.”

Cook (4 of 11, 47 yards) threw to Bell for 12 yards. He hit Dion Sims with a strike for 14.

Bell and a holding penalty on TCU did the rest of the work in setting it up for Conroy -- and setting MSU up for an offseason of questions about its quarterback position.

Warner and Roushar both said it will be an open competition, with redshirt freshman Tyler O’Connor and incoming freshman Damion Terry also in the mix.

Connor said he thought he helped himself, though he didn’t want to dwell on that in the wake of a big win.

Maxwell agreed that it will be open and called it “understandable” that Cook replaced him.

“This doesn’t have to turn into being about me,” Maxwell said. “This night belongs to us. This night belongs to the Michigan State Spartans.

“I think everyone is so excited and so thrilled with how we won the game, there’s really no room to worry about how I’m feeling or who was playing quarterback. The bottom line is we won the game.”

Butler 52, Michigan State 50

Butler Bulldogs will play for national title with 52-50 win over Michigan State

By Steve Yanda
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 4, 2010



INDIANAPOLIS -- Playing in its first Final Four in school history, Butler struggled to shoot, but it did not struggle to handle the spotlight of performing on college basketball's grandest stage in front of a hometown crowd. The Bulldogs held off Michigan State for a 52-50 win and advanced to play in Monday night's national title game.

Led by junior forward Gordon Hayward, who tallied 19 points and eight rebounds, Butler shot just 30.6 percent but made up for it with stingy defense. The Bulldogs registered 12 steals and forced 16 Michigan State turnovers.

With 56.3 seconds remaining in the game, Michigan State forward Draymond Green made a pair of free throws to pull the Spartans within one point. Butler guard Ronald Nored missed a short-range shot attempt on the Bulldogs' ensuing possession, and the Spartans grabbed the rebound.

After a Michigan State timeout with 23 seconds to play, the Spartans inbounded the ball and found Green in the lane. He missed a turnaround jumper and Nored grabbed the rebound with 6.1 seconds left. Nored was fouled immediately and made both of his free throws at the other end, pushing Butler's lead to three.

Throughout the month of March, the Bulldogs have insisted to anyone who would listen that they are not the Cinderella that their conference affiliation would suggest. Yes, Butler plays in the Horizon League, and yes, technically, Butler is a mid-major program.

But Cinderella? The Bulldogs -- who were ranked in the top 10 at the season's outset and who carried a 24-game winning streak into Saturday's game -- will stick to sneakers instead of glass slippers, thank you.

Butler took the lead with just more than 18 minutes remaining in the second half and steadily built it from there. The Bulldogs -- not the Spartans, who were competing in their second Final Four in as many seasons -- played as though they were the experienced bunch that had played on this stage before.

With just more than 12 minutes to play, Butler forward Willie Veasley stole the ball from Michigan State point guard Korie Lucious and surged downcourt for a fast-break dunk to push the Bulldogs' lead to seven.

However, Butler would not record another made field goal for more than 10 minutes. The shooting of Lucious, Green and Durrell Summers kept Michigan State in contention. The Spartan trio shot a combined 13 for 27 from the field. Summers led the Spartans with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Hampering Michigan State's cause was the fact that senior forward Raymar Morgan -- one of the Spartans' leading scorers -- got into early foul trouble and never found his rhythm. Morgan picked up three fouls in the first 10 minutes of the game and played only eight minutes in the first half. He drew his fourth foul with 12 minutes 38 seconds remaining in the game and was benched immediately.

Butler had several opportunities to extend its lead and perhaps put the game away, but the Bulldogs struggled to find their shooting touch all night long. And it eluded them down the stretch, as well.

But Butler's defense continued to come through on a night when the shots did not often fall. With 2:27 to play, Nored stole the ball from Green and fed Veasley, who was fouled. Veasley made one of his two ensuing free throws to push Butler's lead to four.

Butler is not known for possessing a fluid and efficient transition offense. In fact, the Bulldogs make up for their lack of front-court size by frequently sending all five players to the defensive glass. They're not usually the most prolific bunch when it comes to forcing turnovers, either.

But against Michigan State, Butler played at a quicker tempo than usual. With 35 seconds remaining in the first half, Bulldogs guard Shawn Vanzant stole the ball from Lucious. Vanzant fed the ball to Shelvin Mack, who pulled up for a quick three-pointer before the Spartans' defense had a chance to get set. The shot was true, and the score was knotted up, 28-28, at halftime.

Made baskets came at a premium before the intermission, which shouldn't have come as much surprise considering the track records of each participant. Butler had not allowed an opponent to score as many as 60 points during its NCAA tournament run, and Michigan State's foes averaged 64.1 points per game on the season.

On Saturday, neither squad made more than 10 baskets before the break. During a stretch that lasted 4:39 during the latter part of the first half, the two teams registered three points -- combined.

Mack and Hayward shouldered the scoring load for Butler in the first half, combining to tally 25 of the Bulldogs' 28 points.

Michigan State 70, Tennessee 69

Michigan State returns to Final Four...again

By NANCY ARMOUR (AP) – 25 minutes ago

ST. LOUIS — Don't bet against Tom Izzo and Michigan State this time of year.

Raymar Morgan's free throw with less than 2 seconds left gave the Spartans a 70-69 victory over Tennessee in the Midwest Regional final Sunday, sending Michigan State to its sixth Final Four in 12 years and second in a row.

No team in the country — not North Carolina, not Kentucky, not UCLA — has done it better during that span. And all six trips have come under Izzo, the hard-nosed coach who preaches defense, rebounding and physical play.

"I like it more than I used to," Izzo said of playing in March. "It's even better than I thought."

Oh, and how's this for some symmetry? This happens to be the 10th anniversary of the "Flintstones," the team that gave Michigan State its second national title. Highlights from that run were included in the video montage of past championships that played on the Edward Jones Dome's massive Jumbotron during halftime.

The fifth-seeded Spartans, last year's national runner-up, will be looking for championship No. 3 next weekend in Indianapolis. They play Butler, also a No. 5 seed and sure to be the hometown favorite, in the semifinals Saturday night.

The Spartans (28-8) led by as many as eight in the second half, but Brian Williams pulled sixth-seeded Tennessee (28-9) within 69-68 on a putback with 2:10 left. Korie Lucious, who took over as point guard after 2009 Big Ten player of the year Kalin Lucas ruptured his Achilles' tendon last weekend, missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 29 seconds left and Scotty Hopson got the rebound.

Hopson was fouled at the other end, and made the first. But after a Michigan State timeout, he missed the second and Lucious — generously listed at 5-foot-11 — ended up with the rebound.

Draymond Green fed the ball inside to Morgan, who got hacked by J.P. Prince with 1.8 seconds left. Morgan made the first and, after timeouts by both teams, missed the second — on purpose. Williams came up with the rebound but Prince fumbled the inbounds pass and had to heave up a prayer just before the buzzer.

"It's just tough, 1 second," Prince said. "You want to shoot it perfect but you've got to rush. You don't want it to come down to a half-court shot, but that's what it came down to."

Prince wasn't even close, and Michigan State and its fans — led by Spartan-in-chief Magic Johnson — began what's become a traditional postgame celebration.

"I'm not surprised," Johnson said. "Tom Izzo does his best in the NCAA tournament."

Hard to argue with that.

Izzo, who took over from longtime mentor Jud Heathcote for the 1995-96 season, is 6-1 in the regional finals. The only loss was to top-seeded Texas in 2003.

Michigan State is the only team from last year's Final Four to make it back. Heck, North Carolina, which demolished the Spartans in the title game, didn't even make the NCAA tournament. Neither did Connecticut, and Villanova was knocked out in the second round.

"There is nothing greater than going to a Final Four that I know of," Izzo said, "except winning it."

And while it's hard to beat that title in 2000, this might be the finest coaching job Izzo has done. In addition to losing Lucas, Delvon Roe is playing on a torn meniscus and Chris Allen has an aching foot. The Spartans have been forced to go to an offense-by-committee, led by Durrell Summers.

Summers, who played just 9 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble, finished with 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Morgan and Green added 13 each, and Morgan also had 10 rebounds.

Tennessee, meanwhile, will have to take comfort in knowing it got further than any other Volunteers team. This was their first appearance in the regional finals, and there is no question they belonged. They made their first six shots of the game — going 4 for 4 from 3-point range, shot 51 percent overall and had four players in double figures, led by senior Wayne Chism's 13 points.

Prince finished with 12 on 5-of-5 shooting, and Williams had 11.

Tennessee has long been a basketball powerhouse — in women's hoops. But coach Bruce Pearl has energized the men's program, as evidenced by the orange-hued dome and the Vols' first appearance in the regional final. Few would have thought the Tennessee men would last longer than the top-seeded women, who were beaten by No. 4 Baylor on Saturday in the regional semifinals.

"We came to St. Louis expecting to win two games and we played pretty well both nights," Pearl said. "We saw all that orange out there. This isn't close to home, either. They got in their car and they drove here. I think they enjoyed this group tremendously."

Though they were going against a program that oozes experience — "Final Fours are a big thing in this program," Green said Saturday — the Vols came in with swagger and strut.

Chism's 3-pointer put them up 50-45 with 15:46 left and prompted another roar from the thousands of Tennessee fans who had made the trek north. But come tournament time, the Spartans simply find a way to get it done. Cranking up the in-your-jersey defense that makes Big Ten opponents shudder, they held the Vols without a field goal for the next 7 1/2 minutes while ripping off a 14-1 run.

Chris Allen made a 3, and Summers converted a three-point play after being fouled on a jumper just inside the line. After Williams' free throw, Morgan scored on a layup and Lucious hit a 3-pointer to put the Spartans up 56-51 with 12:25 to play.

As a timeout was called, Lucious held up his right hand toward the Michigan State section as if to say, "Bring it on."

Green then converted another three-point play, giving the Spartans a 59-51 lead, the largest of the game, with 11:42 to play.

But the Volunteers had one more run in them. Bobby Maze scored on a layup — Tennessee's first field goal since 15:46 — and Williams followed with two jumpers to put the Vols back on top, 62-61, setting up the frenetic finish.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

So…who’s afraid of the Big Bad Wolf, anyway?

It ain’t me, of course. The Big Bad Wolf I am referring to is UCSB men’s water polo coach Wolf Wigo. He thought he could come to our house, and huff, and puff, and blow it down. And the UCSB fans thought the same way. Fools! We bent, but didn’t break, and Gavin Arroyo’s guys took it to ‘em, 9-8.

Bring out the lime, Beach Nation, on November 11^th…a whitewash may be in order. I’m not scared of wolves…I’m a 49er, inshallah. I hunt wolves! I may have to pantomime a shotgun and pretend to point it at the Big Bad Wolf next meeting, if he complains that I am ruining his concentration. There are bigger things to worry about than suffering another heartbreaker. I leave it to you to figure it out, Gaucho[ke]s.

Now, we aren’t done yet with those punks from Goleta. Our women’s volleyball team isn’t feeling too happy after getting an assraping of the worst kind from the Mustangs of Cal Poly. But if they can’t successfully take their anger out on UC Santa Barbara down at the Thunderdome tonight, I won’t be done chewing Brian Gimmillaro up and spitting him out for his Central Coast futility, either, God forbid it happens.

EDIT: It didn't. The Beach swept 'em, 3-0. Our job's done here for today.

Regis Philbin! You said that “It’s time to stop the bleeding.” Well, when the Jews crucified Jesus (yes, it was the Jews, via the Romans, Caiaphas, the chief priests and those bloody Pharisees, the scumbags, not our sins, that crucified Jesus), they didn’t stop the bleeding. Why should it stop for Charlie Weis’s Fighting Irish football team? Michigan State took it to them, 31-14.

Next time, Mr. Philbin, two words: SHUT UP.

Now here is a brewing storyline that even the Wyrd sisters from Macbeth couldn’t have concocted even if they gave 1000% on it: the Seattle Mariners winning the rest of their games, while the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim lose the rest of their games.

In Seattle, they can call it “The Mariner Miracle.” In Anaheim, we should call it “The Curse of Jorge Campillo.” Seattle won, 3-2. One is still the “magic number.”

Haruhi Suzumiya, send help.

Why hello there, Mr. Koulax…

On a day where the Dirtbags claimed another series after being in a funk the last three goes, the Long Beach State softball team fail in predictable fashion against Cal Poly, while the women’s water polo team are given a refresher course in Water Polo 101 by Stanford.

Congrats to the Michigan State Spartans for winning the Frozen Four on the eve of Christ’s supposed resurrection. Ironically, the Spartan Fight Song is based on a Christian revival hymn called “Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus.” Divine Intervention? (They did score three goals…one for the father, son, and holy ghost.) Timing of the best case? King Leonidas getting his revenge with the Green and White fighting in the shade? I leave it to you schmucks to figure it out.

And as for our men’s volleyball team…it’s over, unless they get help fast. Cue the long beep sound you hear on those medical drama’s like Gray’s Anatomy, E.R., and whatever garbage the big three network decide to place on as a Blue Plate special on the boob tube.

I hope the Galaxy wins on Sunday. And I personally welcome Dan Monson as the next coach for the 49er hoopster guys. But now he has to prove to us why he was the right decision....starting with the recruiting trail.
lbsu,