Football season is officially back, and Michigan State is 1-0.
It was a game of ups and downs, as is tradition lately for MSU, but Coach Fitzgerald and his staff kept the team focused as they were able to persevere after surrendering the lead in the third quarter. My anxiety levels rose as we neared the fourth quarter, but luckily, Michigan State took control late to put the game away.
Here were the starters courtesy of the FS1 graphics team:
OFFENSE
QB: Alessio Milivojevic
RB: Cam Edwards
WR: Rodney Bullard Jr
WR: Fredrick Moore
WR: Chrishon McCray
TE: Brennan Parachek
LT: Ben Murawski
LG: Conner Moore
C: Trent Fraley
RG: Nick Sharpe
RT: Rakeem Johnson
DEFENSE
DE: Isaac Smith
DT: Eli Coenen
DT: Ben Roberts
DE: Kenny Soares Jr
LB: Caleb Wheatland
LB: Jordan Hall
CB: Tre Bell
S: Nikai Martinez
NKL: Michael Richard
S: Devin Vaught
CB: Tyran Campbell
The game couldn't have started better for Michigan State. MSU held Toledo to a three-and-out on the Rockets' first drive. The Spartans' first drive of the season featured 13 plays, including eight runs by Cam Edwards, and ended with an Edwards TD on a direct run in the Wildcat formation to take a 7-0 lead.
Alessio Milivojevic just missed Rodney Bullard Jr on a corner route in the end zone on the next drive that would've put the Spartans up two scores. Liam Boyd knocked in two consecutive field goals to give Michigan State a 13-0 lead early in the second quarter, but Toledo responded with a 60-yard bomb from John Alan Richter to Adjatay Dibbs for a touchdown after Charles Brantley bit on the double-move.
With a 13-7 lead halfway through the second quarter, two more Liam Boyd field goals would make it 19-7 heading into halftime. MSU's red zone offense was struggling, but Milivojevic was 14/17 and found four different receivers for three catches each. Edwards added 72 rushing yards and one touchdown.
As MSU's pass defense continued to struggle, Richter was able to find Dabbs for another touchdown to make it a 19-14 Michigan State lead after Boyd's fifth field goal attempt was blocked by the Rockets. The Spartans responded by getting back into field goal range, but failed to convert on a 4th-and-1 with a questionable call of a direct snap to Edwards in the Wildcat. Toledo capitalized with a 71-yard run by Connor Walendzak to give the Rockets a 20-19 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Michigan State's second-half offense finally woke up as Milivojevic responded by finding Bullard in the corner of the end zone on a five-yard pass on 4th-and-goal. Bullard also came down with the two-point conversion to give MSU a 27-20 lead. Toledo tried to keep it close, but their field goal attempt with eight minutes left was pulled way left to hold the Spartan touchdown-sized lead. MSU would eventually push the lead to 10 with Boyd's fifth field goal of the night with less than two minutes to go. Michigan State would hold Toledo on their final drive and go on to win 30-20 in Coach Fitzgerald's first game as head coach.
Alessio Milivojevic, Cam Edwards, Rodney Bullard Jr and Liam Boyd led the way for Michigan State tonight. The passing defense struggled, and the defense as a whole gave up too many big plays. As important as Boyd's kicks were, the Spartans need to find ways to convert those field goals into touchdowns before they get to conference play in a few weeks.
All in all, this was a good win for Michigan State. Toledo is a top-three team in the MAC that gave MSU some trouble, but the Spartans showed up when adversity stood in their face, and they put the game away with confidence. There's a lot to like about this team, and they should continue to improve before Week 2's game against Eastern Michigan next Saturday.
Go Green!
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