Tag: Central Michigan

Brian Lewerke ran for two touchdowns in the first half, and No. 21 Michigan State overcame a slow start and an underwhelming finish to beat Central Michigan 31-20 on Saturday.

Source: Michigan State Official Athletic Site

Job done: MSU uses middle quarters to fend off Central Michigan Impact Sports
It was business as usual for Michigan State for three quarters in their final nonconference game of the regular season, as the Spartans trailed just once against Central Michigan. The final score was 31-20 in favor of MSU, who moved to 3-1 heading into Big Ten play. The optics of the game make for pretty easy reading, but that isn’t to say that it was a faultless day for Michigan State.

‘By no means are we there yet’: MSU holds off CMU Detroit News
Michigan State had a chance to put a team away in the second half again on Saturday, but instead of run away with an easy win, the Spartans made things interesting at the end.

Michigan State scores 31 straight, holds off Central Michigan late MLive.com
Playing at home for the first time in a month, Michigan State closed nonconference play the way it began – with a win. The No. 21 Spartans scored 31 straight points then held off a late push to beat Central Michigan 31-20 on Saturday afternoon in East Lansing.

Michigan State football should be concerned after Central Michigan win Spartan Avenue
It wasn’t pretty. I’m getting used to leading off post-game pieces with that exact phrase, but it continues to be true for Michigan State as the Spartans squandered a comfortable 31-3 second-half lead by allowing Central Michigan to end the game on a 17-0 run.

Couch: 3 quick takes on Michigan State’s 31-20 win over Central Michigan Lansing State Journal
Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch gives his initial thoughts on the Spartans’ performance Saturday at Spartan Stadium.

Michigan State overcomes slow start, topples Central Michigan, 31-20 Detroit Free Press
Michigan State football’s injury-depleted offense started slowly yet again. But the 18th-ranked Spartans recovered after a sluggish and error-filled opening quarter, getting two Brian Lewerke touchdown runs in the second period, and then survived more of their mistakes to a 31-20 victory over Central Michigan on Saturday. Lewerke finished 16 of 25 for 185 yards passing and ran eight times for 39 yards.

Spartans win despite late CMU charge The Only Colors
With a chance to finish off the Central Michigan Chippewas with relative comfort, the Michigan State Spartans found themselves needing a long drive late in the fourth quarter to secure the victory in East Lansing. Despite the late scare, MSU hung on to win 31-20 and improve to 3-1 on the season.

Michigan State-Central Michigan talking points: Defensive letup and Rocky’s debut MLive.com
Here’s what Michigan State fans are talking about after the Spartans’ 31-20 win over Central Michigan on Saturday afternoo

Michigan State defense starting to dominate The Only Colors
Heading into the 2018 season, Michigan State was pegged by many experts to be one of the top defensive teams in the nation. Against Central Michigan, the Spartans showed why. MSU allowed the Chippewas to gain just 245 total yards en route to a 31-20 win.

What went wrong in second half vs. Central Michigan? Spartan Avenue
Building a 31-3 lead, everything seemed right with the world. The Spartans were about to jog to a nice, comfortable win over Central Michigan, but Michigan State allowed 17 straight points to make the game tighter than it needed to be.

Brian Lewerke claims missed penalties as interception numbers climb MLive.com
“The interception was 100 percent pass interference,” Lewerke said after the Spartans’ 31-20 win over Central Michigan. “Felton (Davis) had the guy beat by a yard and he grabbed him and pulled himself through and picked the ball off.”

Michigan State grades: Offense, special teams average in win Detroit Free Press
Chris Solari rates the 18th-ranked Spartans on a scale of 1 to 10 after their 31-20 win over Central Michigan on Saturday.

Jefferson powers through with Scott sidelined Detroit News
La’Darius Jefferson admits this is all fairly surprising. At this time last season, Jefferson was a quarterback at Muskegon High. He was recruited heavily by Michigan State, but it wasn’t to throw the ball. Instead, the Spartans saw him as a runner.

Michigan State questions late focus after CMU scores 17 in fourth quarter MLive.com
Late in the third quarter Saturday afternoon, Rocky Lombardi traded a headset for a helmet. Michigan State had scored 31 straight points to build a four-touchdown lead and it was time for the redshirt freshman to get his first college snaps as the backup quarterback.

 

Mark Dantonio would rather not play a non-conference game once his Spartans have started Big Ten play, like this weekend when Central Michigan visits on the heels of a trip to Indiana. It’s not ideal, but there might not be another team outside the Big Ten that No. 21 MSU knows as well as the Chippewas

Source: Spartan Tailgate

Fresh off of its first Big Ten win of the season, the Michigan State Spartans football program (2-1) takes on the Central Michigan Chippewas (1-3) on Saturday at noon. This will be the first day game of the year for the Spartans, as MSU opened up the season with three straight night kickoffs.

Source: The Only Colors

Evan Petzold of Central Michigan Life, breaks down the Chippewas for The Detroit News heading into Saturday’s Central Michigan-Michigan State game.

Source: Detroit News

Michigan State wraps up the nonconference portion of its schedule against Central Michigan on Saturday, Sept. 29 at noon in Spartan Stadium. The game will be televised on FS1, with Sean Kelley and James Laurinaitis on the call.

Source: Michigan State Official Athletic Site

Facing what Mark Dantonio calls a “rivalry game-type thing” on Saturday afternoon against Central Michigan, Michigan State has a chance to do something it hasn’t really done all season long, and that’s gain momentum.

Source: Spartan Avenue

Alright, welcome back to non-conference play. The Spartans are welcoming in the Chippewas for MSU’s first home game in 127 days (don’t look that up, trust me here). After three games into the season, there’s a lot of stuff we want to see. Even with a lowly CMU team coming to town, there are still key stats. And since I’m writing this, you best believe there’s a gambling pick.

Source: The Only Colors

Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch breaks down the Spartans’ matchup against the Chippewas.

Source: Lansing State Journal

For a better understanding of Michigan State’s final non-conference opponent, Central Michigan, we requested the help of a Chippewa beat writer. Evan Petzold of Central Michigan Life was kind enough to help out.

Source: Spartan Tailgate

Michigan State starting defensive tackles Raequan Williams and Mike Panasiuk are roommates on the road. And with the Spartans playing their last two games at night away from home, they’ve had time to sit in their hotel room and watch games from across the country that ended in upsets.

Source: MLive.com

The Spartans have struggled to run the ball between the tackles this season, even before RB Scott left just after halftime of the Arizona State loss. MSU got just 57 yards on 22 carries between running backs Connor Heyward and La’Darius Jefferson in last week’s 35-21 win at Indiana. QB Brian Lewerke’s rushing yards also are down, in large part due to being sacked eight times this season.

Source: Detroit Free Press

After opening Big Ten play last week with a win at Indiana, the Spartans come back home to finish off their non-conference schedule. A noon home game for the first time this year, MSU will take on in-state opponent Central Michigan. CMU is no stranger to Michigan State fans, as they seem to pop up on the schedule every other year or so. So let’s re-educate ourselves with CMU ahead of Saturday’s matchup.

Source: The Only Colors

Tony Poljan waited for his opportunity to be the Chippewas’ quarterback, however, things did not work out for him thus far. He has been replaced by junior Tommy Lazzaro. He, like Poljan, will tuck and run in the Chips’ offense but both quarterbacks have found it difficult to pass through the air.

Source: Spartan Avenue

After an 0-3 start to the season, Central Michigan recorded its first win. The Chippewas defeated Maine, an FCS program, 17-5 on Saturday, and their next opponent represents a significant step up in competition. Central Michigan (1-3, 0-1 MAC) will head south to East Lansing to play at No. 21 Michigan State (2-1, 1-0 Big Ten) on Saturday (noon, FS1).

Source: MLive.com

In-state battles are always important. No matter the schools or the conferences, there’s always a sense of pride on the line in those matchups. So Saturday’s matchup between Michigan State (2-1) and Central Michigan (1-3) might not catch much national attention, but it certainly means a lot to the players involved. Especially those players who hail from the state of Michigan.

Source: Saturday Tradition

Each week, we’ll take an inside look at Michigan State’s upcoming opponent by gathering all the information and links you need to get to know the opposition. The Spartans take finish non-conference play at noon on Saturday against Central Michigan at Spartan Stadium.

Source: MLive.com