FOOTBALL The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - December 1,1997 - 9B Finally! Spartans whip Penn State EAST LANSING (AP) - Joe Patemo expected Michigan State to run the ball. He just never dreamed the Spartans would run it so well. Sedrick Irvin and Marc Renaud each ran for more than 200 yards against No. 4 Penn State as Michigan State rolled to a 49-14 victory Saturday, virtually killing the Nittany Lions' hopes for a berth in an alliance bowl game. "I was surprised with the way they ran," Paterno said. "I knew they were going to run, but I thought it would be a contest. They're good backs, but we've got to tackle better than we did." Irvin rushed 28 times for 238 yards and three touch- downs; he also caught one of two touchdown tosses by Todd Schultz. Renaud rushed 21 times for 203 yards, including a 42-yard scoring dash. Afterward, Michigan State (4-4 Big Ten, 7-4 overall) accepted an invitation to play in the Aloha Bowl on Christmas Day. It was the first time Penn State (6-2, 9-2) had ever had an opponent with two 200-yard rushers. The Spartans' 452 total rushing yards allowed were the most ever by a Penn State team, topping the old mark of 425 yards by Notre Dame in 1989. "I thought we practiced well this week," Patemo said. "The thing I don't think people realize is how good Michigan State is, and that worried me. Michigan State really killed themselves all year. "They really should have been an 8-2 team if they kicked a couple of field goals." Penn State was outplayed through much of the first half, but came back from a 14-0 deficit to tie the score 14-14 at 3:45 of the third quarter. Then, the Spartans answered with two touchdowns in a span of 2:56 and added three more touchdowns before the game's end. "What I was most proud of is the way we came back after they tied it up," Michigan State coach Nick Saban said. "There have been times when we've shown a capac- ity to not be able to respond to a situation like that." It was Michigan State's first victory over a ranked opponent since Nov. 4, 1995, when the Spartans upset No. 7 Michigan. It was also the first time the Spartans had knocked off a team ranked higher than No. 5 since a 1990 victory over Michigan. Penn State's Curtis Enis rushed for 106 yards on 16 carries, including a 54-yard touchdown dash, giving him a school-record eight straight games of 100 yards or more, breaking the mark set by Blair Thomas in 1989. Enis has 17 career games of 100 yards. Mike McQueary, who was 13 of 27 for 176 yards with three interceptions, passed 14 yards to Joe Jurevicius for Penn State's other touchdown. Still, the Nittany Lions were held to 313 yards and only 14 first downs. Penn State turned the ball over four times. "I've said since August that Michigan State was going to be the toughest game of the year," McQueary said. "They proved me right today. Still, it's hard to say why we lost. But at certain times this season we have lost. focus. All we can do now is regroup and try to play4 great bowl game." The loss snapped Penn State's four-game winning streak against Michigan State and denied Paterno his 299th career victory. "These things are hard to explain," Paterno said. "All of a sudden they get loose, they get confident, and they take off. Then we can't get in a groove." Schultz, who completed 17 of 23 for 144 yards with one interception, tossed a 19-yard touchdown pass to Gari Scott in the first quarter and Renaud went 42 yards for a 14-0 lead with 3:48 left in the second quarter. But the Nittany Lions quickly rallied. Enis broke his long touchdown run just before the half and McQueary connected with Jurevicius for the score with 11:15 still remaining in the third quarter. "We felt good at that point," McQueary said. "it was 14-14. We thought things were going to start going our way." AP PHOTO Michigan State's Marc Renaud ran for 203 yards and a touchdown as he and Sedric Irvin combined for 441 rushing yards to beat Penn State, 49.14, on Saturday. Tennessee, Nebraska survive upset bids 3 , - B KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Jamal Lewis gained 196 yards and No. r. Tennessee clinched the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division title with a 17-10 victory over Vanderbilt on Saturday. The Volunteers (10-1, 7-1) earned their first division crown since the leagii&split into divisions in 1992, will play Auburn for the SEC and automatic alliance bowl beith next Saturday at Atlanta's GeorgtaDome. Vanderbilt (3-8, 0-8) put up yet anothevaliant defensive effort - the Cammodores held on to the leaguc's No. 1 defensive ranking by holdiigithe Vols to 339 yards - but en.ded Without a conference victory for'the second straight year. unidteers quarterback Peyton Manning ended his home career with 12 completions in 27 attempts for 159 yards, an interception and a touchdown. The Volunteers seemed to have figured out the Vanderbilt defense in the second half, but couldn't hang onto the ball. Tennessee fumbled at or inside the Commodores' 20 three times in the half. The Vols' defense was up to the task, however, holding Vandy to 215 total yards and coming up with four turnovers. Vols cornerback Dwayne Goodrich intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble. What proved to be the winning score came after Goodrich inter- cepted a Damian Allen pass and returned it 4 yards to the Vanderbilt 41 early in the third quarter. NEBRASKA 27, COLORADO 24 Ahman Green rushed for 202 yards and two touchdowns and No. 2 Nebraska survived a fourth-quar- ter scare to keep its national cham- pionship hopes alive with a 27-24 victory over Colorado on Friday. Scott Frost passed for 92 yards and ran for 76 yards and a score as the Cornhuskers (11-0, 8-0 Big 12) extended their conference winning streak to 39 games. Colorado (5-6, 3-5) completed its first losing season since 1984. The Buffaloes, who entered the game as 21-point underdogs, fell behind 27-10 after a dominating third-quarter by Nebraska. The Huskers gained 234 yards in the period, had nine first downs and held the ball for 11:05 compared with 3:55 for Colorado. But the Buffs rallied as John Hessler threw two late touchdown passes - a 32-yarder to Marcus Stiggers with 3:16 left and, after a successful onside kick, an 18-yarder to Robert Toler with 2:37 left. Clear Indiuale Logical Proof Sri . L ..: 'f .., . ! l Ml " " " n The Princeton Review's national average score improvement is 8 points ... clearly the most comprehensive way to prepare. I UNITED AEU T 0 AND FL E E T REPAIR 2321 Jackson Ave. Ann Arbor 48103 313) 665-7130 STUDENT SPECIALS *Oil Changes $17.95 -Winterizations $39.95 *General Maintenance Inspection $22.50 *Foreign and Domestics Serviced . Please Call for Appointment THE PRINCETON REVIEW 313/663-2163 800I2REVI EW 8 points from a 1997 ICR independent study. 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