From Roses to Thorns for Michigan State Football

Indianapolis – With the Rose Bowl in their grasp the final minutes of the Big Ten championship game turned into a gut wrenching defeat for Michigan State. In the final minutes a punt return by Keshawn Martin deep into Wisconsin territory was nullified by a running into the punter call on Safety Isaiah Lewis. 

The Roses the MSU players had worked 11 months for in a matter of seconds had turned to thorns as a game with wild momentum swings ultimately ended in a Wisconsin 42-39 victory for the Big Ten Conference championship and bid to the Rose Bowl game to face Oregon.  Senior WR Keith Nichol said he “Could taste the rose in his mouth before the Badgers (11-2) snatched it away.”

The Spartan locker room after the game was full of heartbroken and depressed faces. Mark Dantonio said, “It was a great football game. Both teams showed a tremendous amount of maturity. It was tough to lose the way we did. Have to take the tough times sometimes.” Dantonio went on to say, “I do think that the two best teams in the Big Ten played tonight. I do think we are worthy to compete and play at a BCS level, but you’ve got to get the votes to do that. I can only say that I do believe we’re a BCS-type football team. We’re a 10-3 football team. You know, it could have gone the other way today. It will be an instant classic for sure.”

The #13 Spartans outplayed #15 Wisconsin for much of the game after Wisconsin had taken a 21-7 lead late in the first quarter on Montee Ball’s second touchdown run.  In the second quarter on a fourth and one play Kirk Cousins connected with B.J. Cunningham for a 30 yard TD and momentum turned to MSU.  The MSU defense started stopping the Wisconsin run game and Cousins again connected with Cunningham for a 7 yard TD, followed by a fake two point conversion run by Brad Sonntag and the Spartans had their first lead of the game 22-21`at the 10:21 mark of the second quarter. After the Spartan defense again stopped the Badgers on a four and out, MSU put together a eight play 84 yard drive capped by a six yard Le’Veon Bell TD run which put MSU up 29 -21 with 3:26 to play in the first-half.

MSU had 471 total yards to 345 for the Badgers, and 23 first downs to 16 which made the loss even more gut wrenching for a team that had put so much emotion into their goal of taking MSU to its first Rose Bowl in 24 years.   In two classic games the cumulative score for the year ends; Michigan State 76 – Wisconsin 73.

Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson was named MVP of the game after passing for 187 yards and three touchdowns. While Big Ten Offensive MVP RB Montee Ball who leads the nation in touchdowns, ran for a game high 137 yards and scored three TD’s bringing his season total to 34. 

For the Spartans Kirk Cousins was 22-30 for 281 yards and 3 TD’s and 1 interception. BJ Cunningham had 5 catches for 115 yards and 3 TD’s, while Keshawn Martin had a game high 9 catches also for 115 yards. Sophomore Le’Veon Bell led the ground attack with 106 yards in 18 carries.   

The MSU defense was hurt by the first-half loss of senior DT Kevin Pickelman with an apparent knee injury. Pickelman has been a force on the inside particularly in the second half of the season.  LB Denicos Allen had career-high three sacks, the most sacks by a Spartan since Trevor Anderson had three against Michigan in 2008.

Michigan (10-2) which lost to MSU and finished a game back in the Legend’s Division race jumped MSU for a BCS Bowl game berth. Kirk Cousins said that is wrong. “Clearly the best two teams played for the championship…and it is not right that a team that sits home and watches on the couch would move over us. If that is the case then I think the system is flawed!”   

MSU is going to play a SEC team in Tampa in the January 2nd Outback Bowl. A familiar opponent in (10-3) Georgia who lost to #1 LSU 42-10 in the SEC Championship game.