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4B -- October 27, 2008
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
GAME STATISTICS .
TemStER
FrstDons
Rush/Yds
Passing Yards
Offensive Plays
Total Offense
Kick returns/ Yds
Punt returns/ Yds
Comp/Att/nt
Punts/Avg
Fumbles/Lost
Penalties/Yards
Time of Poss
PASSING
Player
RPSHING
Player A
Minor 1
Thret I
McGuffie
Totals
RECEMNG
Player N
Clemens
Rogers
PIeE
storm
Totals 1
PUNTNG
Player N
Mesko
Totals
KICKOFFRETURNS
Player
Tota
PUNT RETURNS
Player
Odoms
Totals
TACKLES
Player
Thompson
Mouton
Harso
am-n
Graham
Stwr
Ten
Moosman
Moundros
Johnson, Z.
Johnson, W
Totals
MI
PASSING
PaerR
Totals
RUHING
EAM
Hoyer
Tota
RECEVNG
Player N
White
Dell
Ringer
Martin
Hawen
Cnngham
Rouse
Gantt
PUNTING *
Payer
Totas
KICKOFF RETURNS
Hawken
limmrson
PUNT RETURNS
Player
TACKLES -
Davis-Cark
Weaver
Hyde
Gordon
Kershaw
Denson
Holmes
Gantt
Rolf
Totals
MSU
48/167
257
306
473
4/62
3/2
18/30/0
4/42.8
4/3
7/52
35:18
M I C HIG APN
C-A Yds
Att Yds Avg
15 55 3.7
14 19 1.4
2 10 5.0
31 84 2.7
MICH
13
31/84
120
168
252
5/127
1/6
13/27/3
8/44.0
2/1
7/70
24:42
TD Int
1 3
Blown call
gives Blue
first score
Lg
20
16
7
20
No.
1
1
13
Yds
29
19
19
163
TD
1
1
' 0
2
'TD
0
0
Avg
29.0
19.0
s90
13.0
Lg
29
19
19
13s
Po. Yds Avg Lg
8 352 44.0 s3
8 3s2 44.0 s3
No. Yds Avg
s 12 2s.4
No. Yds Avg
1 6 6.0
1 6 6.0
Solo
7
7
6
4
4
3
3
3
3
3
'2
2
2
1
1
1
-1
1
1
1
0
0
0
56
Asst
3
t
_2
2
2
3
1
1
0
0
t
t
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
t
i
i
20
Lg TDo
4 0
41 0
Lg TO
6 0
6 0
Tot
8
8
6
4
4
3
3
1
1
1
16
1
6462
23 0
0 0
3 20
Lg TDO
44 0
13 0
10 0
0 0
24 2,
61 1
24 10
By COURTNEY RATKOWIAK
Daily Sports Editor
With less than two minutes
remaining in the first quarter
and Michigan State already
ahead 7-0, the
Wolverine NOTEBOOK
football team
needed some momentum. .
They got it from the referees.
After Michigan free safe-
ty Stevie Brown recovered a
fumble by Spartan quarterback
Brian Hoyer at the Michigan
State 18-yard line, the Wolver-
ines had a prime opportunity
to tie the game. On third down
and 11, redshirt freshman quar-
terback Steven Threet threw a
19-yard pass to junior running
back Brandon Minor in the front
left corner of the north end zone.
Minor caught the ball in the air
before his right foot touched the
goal-line pylon and he fell out of
bounds.
The Michigan student section
closest to the goal line was slow
to react, and the field referees
ruled it an incomplete pass.
After review, the call was
overturned and the play was
ruled a touchdown to put Michi-
gan on the board for the first
time.
"Obviously, he must have,
scored," Michigan coach Rich
Rodriguez said. "He came off,
said he hit the pylon. I'm glad he
did. They reversed it. That's why
they have replay."
Section 2, Article lb of the
2008 NCAA Football Rules and
Interpretations states that "a
player or an airborne player
who touches a pylon is out of
bounds."
"The play was, he caught the
ball in the air, touched the pylon
first, and was out of bounds," ref-
eree David Witvoet confirmed
after the game through the
Michigan Athletic Department.
When told that the touch-
down call contradicted the rule,
Witvoet said, "I can't really tell
you anything else."
Michigan State coach Mark
Dantonio said he agreed with
the original call on the field.
"Whentheyshowed the replay
nobody in the stands thought he
was inbounds because we didn't
hear a big roar," Dantonio said.
"I'm just glad we won the foot-
ball game, so we don't have to
deal with that."
OFF TARGET: Though Michi-
gan State's sloppy play in the
first half initially kept the game
close, Threet's three intercep-
tions were what partly prevent-
ed the Wolverines from gaining
offensive rhythm throughout
the game.
The Michigan offense was
stagnant in the first quarter, tal-
lying just 39 passing yards and
scoring its only touchdown on
the pass to Minor after recover-
ing a Spartan fumble.
And Threet's statistics only
worsened with five minutes left
in the first half and the game
tied at seven. Threet threw a
33-yard pass to fullback Mark
Moundros that was intercepted
by Spartan safety Marcus Hyde,
giving Michigan State the ball at
the Michigan 41-yard line. The
Spartans missed a field goal on
the ensuing drive to keep the
game tied.
"That's just mistakes by me,'
Threet said. "Not putting the ball
where it needs to be, sometimes
trying to force it too much, just
a matter of making better deci-
sions and getting guys the ball."
But Threet's most deflating
pick came in the fourth quar-
ter. On Michigan's first offen-
sive play after the Spartans took
a 28-21 lead, Threet threw a
13-yard pass to sophomore wide
receiver Toney Clemons, who
was completely covered by the
Spartan defense.
The pass was picked off by
Spartan cornerback Chris Ruck-
er and Michigan State scored on
its next drive to break the game
open.
Late in the game, the Spartans
intercepted another Threet pass
before Michigan right guard
David Moosman forced a fumble
16 yards later.
Threet had just three inter-
ceptions on the season before
doubling his total Saturday.
I C H I G AN S TAT E
C-A Yds TD
17-29 282 3
1-1 24 0
18-30 306 3
Att
37
1
5
48
No.
4
3
2
2
2
1
1
Yds
194
25
1
-8
-45
167
Yds
143
72
25
10
10
24
12
7
4
-1
306
Avg
5.2
25.0
1.0
-2.0
-9.0
3.5
Avg
35.8
24.0
12.5
5.0
S.0
24.0
12.0
70
4.0
-1.0
170
6
e
6
L
4
2
1
t
t
t
,
t
w
Junior running back Brandon Mno
1 "Inconsistent like it alw
sis," offensive coordinator Ca
t Magee said sharply when as
-about Threet's play. "We j
gotta get better. That's it."
NO GOOD: Michigan S
- kicker Brett Swenson ente
- Saturday's game with a progri
record streak of 15 consecu
i field goals made, a streak thatu
fourth-best in Big Ten history
- That meant his first mis
field goal against the Wolveri
seemed like a fluke. His sec
could be considered uncharac
- istic.
But after missing a t
straight field goal, his- per
mance could be described as s
s ply disastrous.
s The Spartans' kicking w
I started with eight minutes lef
z the second quarter on a SO-y
attempt. With the wind to
- back, Swenson's kick fell shor
Five minutes later, Mi
gan linebacker John Thot
RTANS
m Page 1B
- won't walk the alleys, we can
k in the street," Dantonio said.
olverine coach Rich Rodri-
z became the fifth straight
higan head coach to lose his
: game against Michigan State.
'he loss means Michigan (1-3
Ten, 2-6 overall) will need to
its final four games to become
r eligible, and sends the pro-
o to its worst record since a 2-7
paign in 1962.
fichigan stopped the Spartans
, 7-2) on that third and one late
he game, but its performance
third and long decided the
it. Beside the kneel to finish
game, the Spartans were 8-of-
n third downs of at least five
s and scored two touchdowns
hose situations.
A couple of touchdowns that
Ten in pass defense, allowinga
average of 243 yards per game.
Despite the struggles, don
expect any big personnel chan
es for this week's game at Pu:
due.
"We're playing the best gul
we think right now can help t
win, we're going to continue 1
do that," Gibson said.
J The defensive backfield
struggles have been somewh;
surprising considering the unit
experience.
But opposing offenses as
still slicing the secondary fi
big plays, and the group is sti
searching for answers.
"I was just telling the gul
we've got to communicate ot
there," Warren said. "That
the main thing, is communica-
every play."
Whatever the stumblir
block, Michigan will have I
address it quickly. Purdue
second in the conference in pa
offense.
ays son blocked Swenson's 32-yard
lvin attempt. Michigan sophomore
ked cornerback Donovan Warren
just tried to make a play but picked
the ball up and fell, giving the
late Wolverines no yardage on, the
red return.
am- Warren said his choice to pick
live up the ball in the end zone was
was "instinctive."
. "I see the ball on the ground,
sed try to pick it up and make some-
nes thing happen," Warren said. "I
ond shouldn't have touched it, they
ter- said, but being me, I seen the ball
on the ground and I just tried to
hird do something with it."
for- After Swenson missed a
im- 24-yard attempt wide left with
7:48 left in the third quarter,
oes Dantonio decided not to take any
t in more chances with his usually-
ard reliable kicker.
his Though he insisted Swenson's
t. track record Saturday didn't
chi- affect the Spartans' decision to
mp- go for it on a critical fourth-and-1
they got on us, we practiced allv
week," defensive coordinator Scott r
Shafer said. "Make it in practice,y
got to make it in the game. It's as i
simple as that."
The Spartans averaged more 1
than 11 yards per play on thirdd
down. V
Entering the game, the question C
was whether Michigan's defen-
sive line could contain Ringer ande
pressure Michigan State fifth-year
senior quarterback Brian Hoyer. a
Penn State running back Eric F
Royster averaged more than 10y
yards per carry against the Wol-
verines last week, and the defen- t
sive line hadn't registered a sacka
since the Wisconsin game. Addz
on Graham's victory guarantee, E
and this highly touted group had t
plenty of motivation to save its t
- reputation.
At times Saturday, the defensive t
line appeared to make the game-
changing play. Graham led theg
Ss
ZACHARY MEISNER/Daily
cored the Wolverines' first touchdown.
late in the fourth quarter, it like-
ly made the decision easier.
"We'd already missed a couple
of field goals, bad snap, whatever
the case," Dantonio said. "Didn't
want it to come down to that."
INJURY UPDATE: Freshman
running back Sam McGuffie was
knocked out of the game in the
first quarter with what Rodri-
guez called a "shot to the head."
McGuffie was hit hard on . a
Wolverine third-and-seven and
fumbled.
Though Michigan State
gained possession, Michigan
recovered the ball on the next
play to set up its first touchdown
of the game.
"They got him," running
backs coach Fred Jackson said.
"They got him. That's why he
didn't know if he had the ball or
didn't."
- Redshirt freshman safety
Michael Williams also left the
game with a concussion.
way with three sacks, but it didn't
attle Hoyer, who threw for 281
yards, three touchdowns and no
nterceptions.
"We put a lot of pressure on
Hoyer today, but the pressure
didn't get to him like I thought it
was, but he made some big plays,"
Graham said.
The line couldn't stop Ringer,
either.
For the first 27 minutes, it
appeared as if it had contained
Ringer, limiting him to about three
yards per carry.
But then he broke a 64-yard
ouchdown run, scampering
almost untouched into the end
zone. Redshirt sophomore Obi
Ezeh called it a "backbreaker." In
he second half, Ringer continued
to pound away, taking 20 carries
for 85 yards and the go-ahead
ouchdown.
"They deserved to win," Rodri-
guez said. "We didn't."
No. Ts AA g Lg
4 11 428 E 4
No. Yds Avg Lg TD
2 20 10.0 18 0
2 42 21.0 2s 0
4 62 15.5 25 0
No. Yds Avg Lg TD
Solo Asst
8 2
4 3
4 0
3 1
2 2
2 2
2 2
3 0
0 3
2 0
2 0
2 0
1 1
1 0
1 0
1 0
1 0
1 0
40 16
Tot
10
7
4
4
4
4
4
3
3
2
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
56
CIF REEDER/Daily
Junior defensive end Brandon Graham tried to live up to last week's
victory guarantee by recording three sacks in the Wolverines' loss.
BIG TEN STANDINGS,
Team Big Ten Overall
Penn State
Ohio State
Michigan State
Minnesota
Northwestern
owa
litnois
Michigan
Wisconsin
Indiana
Purdue
5
4
4
3
2
2
2
1
1
1
a
0
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
4
9
7
7
7
6
5
4
2
4
3
2
0
2
2
1
2
3
4
6
4
5
6
SECONDARY
From Page 1B
Spartans had 306 yards and
three touchdowns through the
air.
On Michigan State's second
offensive drive,Brownand fifth-
year senior cornerback Mor-
gan Trent were on the sideline,
replaced by fifth-year senior
safety Charles Stewart and
freshman cornerback Boubacar
Cissoko. It was a particularly
odd spot for Trent, who made
his 29th straight start. Trent
declined to speak with report-
ers after the game.
Throughout the game, those
pairs rotated on and off each
series.
"(We were) just rotating all
the guys, seeing who's going to
make plays," Michigan defen-
sive backs coach Tony Gibson
said.
Missed tackles were the big-
gest problem for Michigan's sec-
ondary and plagued the group
most on third downs.
Michigan State finished the
game 9-of-18 on third-down
conversions, with seven of them
coming through the air. Those
seven passing conversions went
for, an average of 32 yards and
accounted for almost three
quarters of the Spartans' entire
passing offense.
"It's real frustrating, they just
keep happening over and over,"
sophomore cornerback Dono-
van Warren said of the big plays.
"It's not like it's on the coaches.
It's on us. We've just got to make
plays and tackle when we've got
them in space."
Considering how much
Michigan's pass defense, has
struggled this season, perhaps
Warren shouldn't have been so
exasperated with his unit's play
against Michigan State.
Entering the game, the Wol-
verines ranked 10th in the Big
THIS WEEKEND'S RESULTS
Michigan State 35, MICHIGAN 21
INDIANA 21. Northwestern 19
Minnesota 17, PURGUE 6
Penn State 13, OHIO STATE 6
WISCONSIN 27, Illinois 17
CLIF REEDER/Daily
Sophomore cornerback Donovan Warren is part ofla Michigan secondary that is
currently ranked second to last in the Big Ten in pass defense.
x
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