Sack, fumble in 2nd quarter was MSU's last chance to make it a game
After one look at the final score and the statistics, it's hard to say one play changed the game in Michigan State's 49-7 loss to Alabama in the Capital One Bowl on Saturday. Coach Classic bags After all, the Spartans (11-2) were outgained 546-171 for the game and managed minus-48 yards rushing. While some of the lost rushing yards came on quarterback sacks, Michigan State gained just 28 yards on running plays and it caused problems for the offense the entire game. But there was one point in the second quarter when the Spartans were still in the game and looked like they were about to cut a 14-0 Alabama lead in half. The Spartans had a strong opening drive before it ended in an interception from quarterback Kirk Cousins. They converted three consecutive third downs and moved the ball. It carried over into the next drive and Cousins marched the Spartans back into the red zone with the help of a 28-yard pass to tight end Brian Linthicum to set up first-and-goal at the Alabama 7-yard line. basketball shoes Edwin Baker was held for no gain on first down before Cousins hit Keith Nichol for a gain of 4 yards, putting the ball at the 3. That's when things started to fall apart for the Spartans. First, they were called for having too many men in the huddle, pushing the ball back to the 8-yard line. Then, as Cousins dropped to pass, he got nailed by Alabama linebacker Courtney Upshaw and lost the ball. As players scrambled for the ball, it got kicked all the way back to the 38-yard line where it was recovered by Michigan State center John Stipek. But now it was fourth down, and the Spartans were out of field-goal range and were forced to punt. The drive ended with no points when Michigan State was counting on at least getting three. Coach Classic Handbags "We got down to the 2-yard line on third down and we had miscommunication in the huddle," Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. "We sent in our big people, so we get 12 in the huddle. … Again, it's an accumulation of things. Some of it we can control and some of it we couldn't control, you know, based on the physicality of everything." It turned out to be the last real shot the Spartans had at making it a game. Alabama took advantage of the miscue and put together a seven-play, 80-yard drive that lasted only 2:22 and culminated in a 6-yard touchdown run by Mark Ingram. "It could have been 14-7, instead it went to 14-0 and before you know it, it's 21-0," wide receiver Keith Nichol said. "In college football at this level it's incredibly hard to come back from. Not many teams can do that." Despite the crushing loss and the mistakes on that particular play, Dantonio chose to talk about how his team can learn from it. "The game of football sort of teaches you to get up after you've been knocked down," he said. "You have to get back up on your own two feet and play. That's what this game teaches you. It was a lesson learned today. We'll continue to push forward and improve ourselves and our focus will be to win the next bowl game. We need to continue to try to meet that challenge." Coach handbags 2010