The No. 21 MSU football team (3-1) avoided a scare, coming from behind to knock off Eastern Michigan (0-4) 23-7, thanks to fourth quarter heroics from Dion Sims and Le’Veon Bell.
The duo each tallied fourth quarter touchdowns that extended MSU’s lead to double figures and put the game out of reach.
It was a rocky first half for the Spartans, who struggled to move the ball against EMU’s defense, and headed to the locker room at halftime to a chorus of boos, trailing 7-3.
A fumble by junior receiver Bennie Fowler at the MSU 23-yard line set up an Eastern Michigan touchdown pass to junior receiver Donald Scott on the ensuing play and gave EMU the halftime lead.
But the Spartans responded in the second half, using a pair of field goals from senior kicker Dan Conroy to take a 9-7 lead into the fourth quarter.
From there, Sims and Bell were able to do the rest, combining for 365 of MSU’s 428 yards of total offense.
Bell finished the game with 36 carries for a career-high 253 rushing yards, and Sims added six catches for a career-high 112 yards.
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
