The Indiana Hoosiers gave the #8 Michigan State Spartans a scare Saturday in Bloomington, Indiana, but MSU would ultimately hang on to win by a final score of 56-17.
Indiana led 17-14 with 5:25 remaining in the second quarter after a 9-yard touchdown run by Freshman quarterback Zander Diamont. All the momentum seemed to be in the Hoosiers favor, but the Spartans thought otherwise.
Senior running back Jeremy Langford punched in an 8-yard touchdown run on the ensuing drive to give his Spartans a 21-17 lead. Quarterback Connor Cook then found Macgarret Kings for his second touchdown pass of the day to give MSU a comfortable 28-17 lead with 1:14 remaining until halftime.
The Spartans would not slow down in the second half. They poured 28 points on the Hoosiers while allowing just one first down on their way to a dominant 56-17 win.
Connor Cook finished with 332 passing yards, 3 touchdown passes while completing 24 of 32 pass attempts. Nick Hill ran for 178 yards on 16 carries, while Jeremy Langford added 109 yards on 21 carries. Wide receiver Tony Lippett continues his excellent season as he reeled in 132 yards on 7 receptions. The Spartans finished with 354 rushing yards and 332 passing yards for a total of 686 total yards.
Indiana threw the ball only 16 times and only completed 5 passes for a total of just 11 yards. 211 of their 228 yards came by of the ground. NCAA rushing leader Tevin Coleman ran for 132 yards on 15 carries. The Hoosiers only picked up 7 first downs (6 in the first half) and converted just 1 of 12 third downs.
Michigan State's inexperienced defense was susceptible to the big play again on Saturday. They allowed 65 and 75 yard touchdown runs to Tevin Coleman and Shane Wynn.
The Spartans are now 6-1 (3-0 in Big Ten play) and host their arch rival Michigan Wolverines next Saturday, October 25, at 3:30 PM ET at Spartan Stadium.
The Hoosiers fall to 3-4 (0-3 in Big Ten play) and, after a bye week, will take also take on the Michigan Wolverines on November 1st.