If Drew Brees is a leading Heisman Trophy candidate, somebody forgot to tell MSU’s defense.
The Spartan defense intercepted Brees three times, and held him to one touchdown pass. Several dropped passes contributed to Brees’ woes, but the star quarterback wasn’t in sync all game.
With tough running by sophomore running back T.J. Duckett and solid quarterbacking play from freshman Jeff Smoker, MSU finally mustered enough offense to supplement the great defense the team has displayed all season.
Duckett ran for 174 yards on 32 attempts, keeping Brees off the field for much of the game.
Combining great coverage with Brees’ inaccuracy, MSU held the quarterback to 106 yards passing and no touchdowns in the first half.
Offensively, MSU put together three solid drives in the opening half, culminating in 15 points.
With their bowl hopes hanging in the balance, the Spartans went into halftime with a 15-3 lead.
Duckett ran 13 times for 88 yards in the first half. MSU’s scores were a 2-yard touchdown run by Smoker, an 18-yard touchdown reception by junior tight end Chris Baker and a 32-yard field goal by junior kicker David Schaefer.
With 7:30 left in the third quarter, Brees finally connected for a big play when he found wide receiver Vinny Sutherland for a 68-yard bomb, cutting the Spartans’ lead to 15-10.
Defensive backs senior Renaldo Hill and sophomore Thomas Wright were both burned on the play, which turned out to be a one-play drive.
With Purdue driving for another touchdown late in the third, Hill jumped in front of Boilermaker wide receiver Donald Winston for an interception. Hill picked off the pass at the MSU 31-yard line and returned it to the Spartans’ 38.
Following the turnover, MSU capitalized on its next drive when Duckett controversially stretched the ball across the right pylon for a 1-yard touchdown run.
The touchdown capped a 62-yard drive for MSU. Two big passing plays led to the score, a 30-yard catch by sophomore Marcus Waters and a 25-yard reception by Baker, which put MSU at Purdue’s 3-yard line.
MSU didn’t stop there.
After forcing Purdue into a punt, the Spartans took over at their own 14. Junior running back Little John Flowers ran up the middle, lost one of his shoes, and 48 yards later MSU led the ninth-ranked Boilermakers 30-10.
