Texas Tech heartache
MSU falls 41-31 to Red Raiders in Alamo Bowl
By Matt Bishop (Last updated: 01/03/10 4:36am)San Antonio — Coming into the Valero Alamo Bowl, few expected the MSU football team to give Texas Tech much of a fight.
Down 14 players due to suspensions, MSU shocked the partisan crowd, holding a 31-27 lead in the fourth quarter. But like the story has been all season, the Spartans ran to the wall but couldn’t break through.
A costly interception, combined with two critical fourth-down conversions late by the Red Raiders, were too much for MSU to overcome, as Texas Tech came back to hand the Spartans a 41-31 loss Saturday night at the Alamodome.
“What I told the team in the locker room after the game is basically to not hang your head,” MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said. “We had opportunities. Nobody likes to lose. 2010 has started, we start now and we move forward. That’s basically what I said.”
The Spartans got off to quite possibly one of the worst starts imaginable. In the week leading up to the game, the team expressed how important ball control would be because of Texas Tech’s quick-strike, high-octane offense.
MSU won the coin toss, chose to receive and looked to have something going on its first drive, but sophomore quarterback Kirk Cousins was intercepted by Texas Tech’s Jamar Wall.
The Red Raiders moved the ball at will after that, going 61 yards in 3:43, capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Baron Batch. The nine-play drive did not feature a single negative play. Quarterback Taylor Potts was 5-for-5 for 46 yards on the drive.
The two teams traded three-and-outs, but MSU made the most of its third drive. Cousins hit senior receiver Blair White for a 19-yard gain on first down and freshman running back Edwin Baker did the rest on the next play, getting a great block from sophomore guard Joel Foreman and going 46 yards up the middle for his first career touchdown.
“The line did a tremendous job,” Baker said. “They opened up a hole so big, I saw it and said, ‘Go.’ I just told myself to go, don’t stop and don’t look back.”
But the revelry was short-lived.
Texas Tech marched back down the field, going 70 yards on 11 plays, but the Spartans were able to hold the Red Raiders, who settled for a 21-yard field goal by Matt Williams.
The Spartans were unable to answer on the following drive, going three-and-out. On the first play of its drive, Texas Tech ran a flea flicker. Potts got the pitch back and found receiver Austin Zouzalik for 50 yards to the 2-yard line.
Two plays later, a Texas Tech coach ran down from the bench area to the 10-yard line looking for a timeout, but didn’t get it. Instead, Potts found receiver Lyle Leong on a quick-hit touchdown, giving the Red Raiders a 17-7 edge.
Things looked bleak for MSU, but on their next drive, Cousins cashed in for the Spartans, avoiding a sack and finding sophomore receiver Keshawn Martin, who broke off his route, for a 48-yard touchdown.
MSU looked to tie the game later in the second quarter, but senior kicker Brett Swenson’s 52-yard field goal was blocked. Texas Tech responded with a 38-yard field goal with 20 seconds left in the half to go into halftime up 20-14.
The beginning of the third quarter saw the Spartans gain hope — and the lead — for the first time.
Texas Tech fumbled the opening kick and MSU took over at the Red Raiders 26-yard line. Out of the Wildcat formation, sophomore quarterback Keith Nichol, who played most of the game at receiver, went up the middle for a 7-yard touchdown. Swenson’s extra point gave MSU its first lead, 21-20, early in the third quarter.
Potts fumbled the snap on fourth-and-one on Texas Tech’s next drive, giving the ball to MSU, but the Spartans weren’t able to capitalize, punting to the Red Raiders 8-yard line.
Texas Tech showed what its offense is could do on the drive, going all 92 yards in nine plays totaling 3:05, capped by a 14-yard touchdown pass from Potts to receiver Jacoby Franks, giving the Red Raiders a 27-21 lead. The big play on the drive was a 49-yard swing pass from Potts to Batch.
Again, MSU’s offense couldn’t respond, going three-and-out. Texas Tech got the ball back and looked to be moving for another touchdown, but a holding penalty, combined with a quarterback hurry and a batted pass, forced Texas Tech to punt.
The next drive was one of the biggest under Dantonio, which started with a 49-yard pass from Cousins to White. The drive appeared to stall, but Dantonio called a fake field goal and it converted on an 18-yard pass from junior punter Aaron Bates to junior tight end Charlie Gantt. On the next play, Martin, out of the Wildcat formation, hit White for a 7-yard score, giving MSU a 28-27 lead.
Texas Tech again looked to be mounting offense, but senior cornerback Ross Weaver intercepted Potts, ending the drive.
MSU made the Red Raiders pay for the turnover, converting it into three points on a 44-yard field goal by Swenson with 8:05 to play in the fourth quarter.
But the Red Raiders came right back with Potts on the bench. Back-up quarterback Steven Sheffield led Texas Tech on an eight play, 77-yard touchdown drive to give his team a 34-31 lead with about five minutes to play.
MSU got the ball back, but Cousins was intercepted at the MSU 35-yard line with 4:19 remaining when he threw off his back foot while eluding a sack.
“It was a play we got exactly what we wanted on, in terms of the coverage,” Cousins said. “It was open, but I had to step up in the pocket a little bit and it threw the timing off on the route and by the time I needed to throw it it was too late. … I didn’t throw a good pass. It wasn’t a good decision.”
On the ensuing drive, receiver Alex Torres dropped a pass on third-and-five, but the Red Raiders decided to go for it on fourth down at the MSU 30. Sheffield went back to Torres and got a 6-yard gain for the first down with about four minutes to play.
MSU again held Texas Tech to a fourth-down situation with 2:42 to play from the 18-yard line, but Sheffield found Lewis for five yards and the first. On the next play, Batch went in from 11 yards out, giving the Red Raiders a 41-31 lead with 2:08 to play.
“You gotta take a swing,” Texas Tech interim head coach Ruffin McNeill said of the two fourth down conversions. “You can’t hit unless you swing.”
Texas Tech finished with 579 yards of total offense, while the Spartans notched 396 yards.
“You can’t miss opportunities against a good football team,” Dantonio said. “We came away with some turnovers, we got back in the game in the second (half). We’re hanging in just like some of our other games, but at the end of the day they make a play and we’ve got to come up with one.”
Potts finished with an Alamo Bowl-record 372 yards on 29-of-43 passing, helping the Red Raiders to a whopping 31 first downs.
Cousins finished 13-of-27 for 220 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
“I thought we played with a tremendous amount of pride and effort,” Cousins said. “We just came up short once again.”
Originally Published: 01/03/10 1:16am
danielle
01/03/10 1:56amThe commentary from ESPN was horrible. I wish I had a penny for every time they discussed the debacle over the weirdos Leach and James. I was so tired of hearing about the fact that the Texas Tech team dropped out of the holy heaven of football players. I thought we played a good game and the freshman played their hearts out and should have been more acknowledged!
JDMSU12
01/03/10 2:13amI agree Danielle – Bob Davie was awful…
We played alot better then I thought, but hopefully we can finally get a better defense next year…
We have alot of young talent, let’s just hope Greg Jones stays to teach some of the new guys how to hussle….
Go Green!
ESPN BLOWS
01/03/10 2:27amI am in the same boat as you both are in. I felt the ESPN broadcast was the Texas Tech Channel. Had I known I was watching the Tech channel, I would have looked for the MSU channel somewhere.
I am half tempted to write a complaint to ESPN and let them know how disappointed I am in the commentators.
They were unprofessional the whole night, and wouldn’t let the poor kids off the hook, and kept asking them how the student-athletes felt about the firing, and if they agreed with the university.
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RedRaider
01/03/10 6:20amYou are right that up until now Tech has been the ESPN homer channel, especially in 2008. Now with the James deal, not so much, although I did wonder why Mich ST didn’t get much attention during the game. I would be hacked off too, as I am over the ESPN coddling of the James Family. You guys played a heck of a game. Next year should be great for you.Good luck.
Ricky
01/03/10 9:06amWhy do they have sports commentators, anyway? Why not just let the game speak for itself?
mark
01/03/10 9:09amAgree the announcing was WAY too much on the Leach affair. Spartans played well, were creative in the 2H, and made it entertaining game. Still sucks to lose yet another game though.
Home Game for Tech
01/03/10 11:00amAll of you wondering why so much was put on tech, look where the game was played, San Antonio, TEXAS. It was basically a home game for Texas Tech.
Besides i didnt want to hear them talk about the 14 suspended.
Blake Miller
01/03/10 11:05amDidn’t you hear that I am going to dental school at Michigan and my teammate last year Javon Ringer was a star wide receiver like me?
DJ
01/03/10 12:10pmI thought the Spartans played their hearts out and I think next year will pay off for them. The MSU coaches and players should all be proud of last night. And, I agree with everyone that the announcers were getting out of hand. The players on the field for both teams deserved a little bit of attention and respect.
KJ Green
01/03/10 12:27pmDisappointing loss, even though we were missing key players. I agree with the prior commentary about tv coverage. The teams (both MSU and TTU) seemed able to deflect the “controversies” leading up to the game — why the heck couldn’t the announcers just call the game?
I’m also wondering when we will be getting a post from little Timmy (see post from attached article: http://www.statenews.com/index.php/article/2010/01/coaches_put_distractions_aside_before_bowl_game)
Tim sucks
01/03/10 1:08pmTimmy is probably crying his eyes out because his basketball team (UM) lost to Indiana. Indiana!
(With all due respect to Tom Crean, they are still rebuilding after Sampson.)
OK,IWasn'tWrong
01/03/10 5:18pmI’m an Indiana U football fan (yeah, weird – I know) who settled in to watch what I hoped would be another Big 10 bowl win. I had to turn the game off at halftime because I couldn’t stand to hear the announcers drool about Texas Tech one more minute. I stopped in here to see if the feelings were shared with the MSU faithful.
Good game. Too bad the 4-letter didn’t notice there were two teams on the field.
And just an opinion based on no facts whatsoever — I have a feeling the James kid did or said something that was deserving of getting locked in a shed.
Jack - Class of 84
01/04/10 7:25amThere’s a bigger problem here than commentators. It’s the decades long second lass, or worse, status of State’s football program. I graduated in 84 and in the, almost, 30 years since, I’ve watched inconsistent play, recruiting, and some HORRIBLE coaching. In a school that’s twice the size of UM and that can afford a program to rival the best in the Big Ten and the country, we’re always the red haired step child. I’d never heard of Texas Tech until Saturday…yet another loss that shouldn’t have happened.
defense
01/04/10 8:31amhow many starters did we lose on defense? one?
but we give up 600 yards???
the defense has sucked all year. FIRE NARDUZZI
Tim
01/04/10 9:42amOK, Tim was wrong about the score.
Takeaways from the game:
MSU kids played better than expected.
TT had 350 yds. after the catch and over 600 yds total O. Can’t win many when you give up that’s much ground and are minus in the turn-over margin.
MSU played into TT hands by once again not using clock management, short passes, time-eating drives.
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Jason
01/04/10 11:12amGood game, Spartans. Definitely some holes in defense that need to be plugged, and the D coordinator has to go. No real creativity on offense either, none of the aerial magic that other teams consistently use on us in the fourth quarter.
Players, you should be proud of yourselves. Coaches, you should be blaming yourselves. Get it together before next season, please! It’s embarassing when Spartan nation knows what’s wrong and you apparently do not.
Tim
01/04/10 11:35amRight on, Jason!!!
We are perpetually waiting for “next year.” In 2008 we said, we’ll get ‘em next year.” In 2007 we said, we’ll get ‘em next year.” Wake up…next year will never come as long as we all accept mediocrity. MD is a mediocre coach. A good assistant as long as he’s in a good program. Narduzzi: pleeeeze…what a joke.
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md
01/04/10 1:13pmNarduzzi def needs to go.
treadwell is doing ok. a solid pass game and a so so running game with a couple of freshmen.
dantonio is a solid coach. look at the foundation he set up at cin. dantonio is a coach that make msu a contender.
meh
01/04/10 6:39pmwe played okay. Our offense is good, I liked Treadwell’s offense this year. Last year it never lived up to potential because Treadwell tried to run it up the middle every play. Someone needed to inform him that eventually the opposing defense will catch on and block the middle. This year Treadwell was forced out of his comfort zone because of the lack of running backs and actually had to pass the ball.
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Bill
01/05/10 7:52amMSU needs to stop playing down too opponents and begin winning as they should. Michigan is a dead horse that will never revive itself in the near future and MSU has to start building there season on other moral victories other than that college of dog ugly women.
Anon
01/05/10 8:58amTT still covered the spread, therefore we played worse than expected.
Until we beat OSU and somehow pull a Rose Bowl invite, the team is not where it needs to be.
Ray
01/07/10 12:24amI am a Tech grad and attended the game last Saturday night. The MSU fans, coaches and players were the most showed as much class and sportsmanship I have witnessed at well over a hundred college games. The MSU band, one of the best in the country, deserves extra credit for playing the Raider fight song. Also, enough cannot be said about the great job of coaching and the desire of the players; especially considering the majority of Tech fans present and the player distraction for MSU. My sister told me of the horrible ESPN broadcast.
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George
01/14/10 10:55amHey, MSU fans, and this is from a Red Raider alum and supporter: I agree 100%. I got sick and tired of hearing about Leach and James, etc., etc., etc. I think it was a super bowl game, and I’m glad TT won, but MSU was fantastic, and frankly, I think it came down to the team that was ahead at the end of regulation.