East Lansing, Mich. - Michigan State didn’t necessarily strengthen its case as an underdog threat to Ohio State, or for a higher place in the College Football Playoff rankings, but here stand the No. 7-ranked Spartans with a sparkling 9-1 record after an entertaining, bounce-back victory over Maryland, 40-21, at Spartan Stadium, Saturday.
Payton Thorne threw for 287 yards and four touchdowns, on efficient 22-of-31 passing, in lifting the Spartans to victory, a week after their unbeaten streak was snapped at Purdue.
Heisman Trophy candidate Kenneth Walker III pounded out 143 yards rushing and touchdown runs of 1 and 3 yards against a Maryland defense that was sturdy at the defensive line and stacked to stop him with extra safety help in the box.
Michigan State led 27-7 in the second quarter after Walker’s first TD run. Maryland’s passing attack, which ranked No. 3 in the Big Ten coming into this game, warmed up after a slow start and made things interesting at times in the second half, but the Spartans kept answering, as they have done in surprising fashion most of the season.
But it’s becoming less of a surprise.
“The preparation during the week was outstanding,” said Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker, whom SpartanMag.com has learned is entertaining contract-sweetening talks from Michigan State University. “I just really have a lot of respect for our players and I admire how they approach these games and how much they put into it and how hard they play. It was a relentless effort. Guys really dug in this week and made a conscious effort to get better. We got the result we wanted.”
This sets up a showdown at No. 4 Ohio State next week.
“We know who we’re playing and we know where we’re going, at their place,” Thorne said. “In our side of the division, in order to get to Indy, you have to go through Columbus. We know that. It’s going to be a huge game for us and a big game.
“We are going to have to put in a great week of preparation and play good football on Saturday.”
Was Michigan State bothered and motivated by being ranked by the CFP committee a slot behind Michigan, a team the Spartans defeated two weeks ago?
“Are we happy about it? I mean no,” Thorne said. “But at the same time I feel like these things are going to work themselves out. We have two big games left on our schedule and I feel like the rankings will sort themselves out.”
Tucker scoffed at the notion that the rankings motivated Michigan State.
“It didn’t have anything to do with anything,” Tucker said sharply. “Didn’t have anything to do with our preparation. Didn’t have anything to do with our mindset. That’s just nothing.”
Maryland fell to 5-5.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Sophomore WR Montorie Foster had one reception, but it was a big one - a 52-yard TD off a flea-flicker to give Michigan State a 7-0 lead.
“We had our (play call) script and the play we scored on was the third play on the script,” Thorne said. “Montorie did a good job getting open and getting to the end zone.”
With Maryland committing a safety to run defense at the linebacker level all day, that meant the remaining safety had more room to cover, sometimes too much. And Maryland’s single safety couldn’t get over quickly enough to help against the flea flicker. Give Walker an assist on that play, for being a threat and causing safety convergence.
“I expect the flea-flicker to work a lot of times because a lot of defenses key the run,” Walker said.
What goes through his mind when that play is called?
“Just doing my assignment and doing what I have to do and making sure to get the pitch to him and that’s about it,” he said.
Thorne and Foster did the rest.
Tre Mosley had four catches for 52 yards, stepping up his workload and importance as the Spartans continue to play without Jalen Nailor, who is out indefinitely with a hand injury.
Thorne went to Mosley twice on the first drive of the second half, getting completions for 21 yards on an over route, and 12 on a hook. Those passes fueled a TD drive which extended MSU’s lead to 34-13.
“We had good football weather today,” Tucker said of the 39-degree temperatures at kickoff. “We were in The Woodshed, we are undefeated at home. It was good to be back there. Guys were playing hard for each other.”
For Walker, it was his seventh 100-plus yard rushing game of the year, and his third straight game with at least 100 yards rushing.
NEXT MEN UP ON DEFENSE
Xavier Henderson, Darius Snow and Marqui Lowery each had seven tackles. Lowery returned to help a hurting cornerback situation for the first time since leaving the Michigan game with a lower body ailment.
Lowery, a redshirt freshman transfer from the University of Louisville, turned in a hard sweep tackle in the fourth quarter that was so aggressive that it was reviewed for targeting. There was no targeting. It was just a fabulous hit.
Lowery, Ronald Williams and Chester Kimbrough rotated at cornerback, a position that was hampered by injury last week at Purdue. They were solid against Maryland.
Williams had a huge pass break-up on a fourth-and-four in the fourth quarter with Michigan State up 34-21 and Maryland in the red zone. Williams allowed a little bit of separation on a double slants route, but closed quickly to bat the pass away.
“I could see on Ronald’s face that he was tired of giving up passes,” Henderson said. “I saw it in him before the game. He wasn’t going to let it happen, especially after the loss last week.”
Defensive end Jeff Pietrowski had two tackles for loss, including a big one inside the 5-yard line in the third quarter when Michigan State was in danger of seeing its lead shrink to six points.
Noah Harvey, filling in for injured Quavaris Crouch at weak outside linebacker, had five tackles, a sack and an interception. He also had a QB hurry on a play which resulted in Maryland being flagged for intentional grounding. Crouch was a surprise scratch due to an undisclosed injury.
Michigan State was without Nailor, Crouch, defensive tackle Simeon Barrow, left tackle Jarrett Horst and cornerback Chuck Brantley.
Place kicker Matt Coghlin came in to kick extra points in the second quarter after his replacement, Stephen Rusnak, missed one after Michigan State took a 13-0 lead.
Barrow had to sit out the first half after being ejected for a targeting call last week. His absence in the second half, presumably for health reasons, was a surprise.
Maverick Hansen started in place of Barrow. He played well, but was ejected midway through the second half for throwing a punch.
Before and after Hansen's ejection, Michigan State had to go with a rotation of Jacob Slade, Dashaun Mallory, Jalen Hunt, Kyle King and true freshman Derrick Harmon at d-tackle. Slade’s effectiveness has been lessened in the past two weeks due to a lower body ailment.
Those d-tackles weren’t bad, but they weren’t nearly the plus area that Michigan State has enjoyed at that position when Slade and Barrow were at their best a few weeks ago.
“We are going to try to get some guys back and we will just keep chopping,” Tucker said. “Two plus two is four. It’s not going to change. We are going to do what we have to do and we have a process and we are going to stick with it.”
CONTINUED PASS DEFENSE PROBLEMS
Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa came into the game completing more than 70 percent of his passes, ranking among the best in the country in that category.
However, he completed just eight of his first 19 passes for 50 yards through the first quarter and a half as Michigan State built a 27-7 lead.
Michigan State’s pass defense was looking pretty good.
But then he came back strong with a lightning-quick, four-play, 80-yard TD drive at the end of the first half.