Ann Arbor - Drew Stanton was one of the first Spartans to walk off the field Saturday. He still had his helmet on as he headed into the tunnel, but it would've been hard to miss the blank look on his face.
He wasn't alone. The rest of the MSU team followed, most with their mouths shut and eyes locked forward. Their emotionless faces told the story of the game.
It wasn't a heartbreaking loss like last year, nor was it a triple-overtime thriller like in 2004. It wasn't even that the team played with no effort like last week against Illinois. But Michigan grabbed control of the game early and never relinquished it on its way to a methodical 31-13 win over MSU on Saturday at Michigan Stadium.
"When you go up against teams like that, no matter how hard you prepare, you have to be able to show up and play on Saturday," Stanton said. "They were just the better football team."
U-M (6-0 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) scored on its first possession with a 13-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Chad Henne to wide receiver Adrian Arrington in the back of the end zone. The officials called it a touchdown, but replays showed Arrington might have landed out of bounds without getting his foot down. MSU head coach John L. Smith yelled to the officials for it to be reviewed, but he didn't use the one challenge allotted to him.
"The official told me he had a foot in bounds, and I guess as I look back I should've challenged that," Smith said.
Penalties maligned MSU (3-3, 0-2) throughout the game — the Spartans committed 11 penalties for 87 yards, including several that kept U-M drives alive.
"We made just too many mistakes," Smith said. "Mentally, we were into practice and we practiced hard. ... (We) practiced with enthusiasm and effort, and that's all you can ask."
When the Spartans weren't shooting themselves in the foot with penalties or defensive breakdowns, they were failing to capitalize on the opportunities they had.
Freshman wide receiver T.J. Williams got behind the defense in the second quarter but dropped a pass at the 2-yard line that would have been a touchdown. Two plays later, true freshman kicker Brett Swenson missed a 33-yard field goal to keep the game at 14-0.
"They weren't superior, in my opinion, in any way," senior center Kyle Cook said. "If we would've made a play or two here and there, we could've turned it around."
U-M opened the second half with a 76-yard drive, capped by wide receiver Mario Manningham's second touchdown catch of the day. Senior cornerback Demond Williams deflected that pass, but it landed directly in Manningham's arms.
"I thought I had perfect coverage on the guy," Williams said. "Seeing the ball was underthrown, I came and tried to make a play. Evidently, that didn't happen."
Down 24-0, MSU responded with a 13-play, 77-yard drive that ended with a one-yard touchdown run from junior running back Jehuu Caulcrick. It was the first rushing touchdown U-M has given up all season.
But the Wolverines took any chance of an MSU comeback and ran it into the ground on their next possession. U-M ran the ball on six straight plays, the last being a 40-yard touchdown by Brandon Minor that gave U-M a 31-7 lead.
Even when the Spartans knew the run was coming, they were unable to stop it. The Wolverines ran 19 times for 113 yards after halftime, and Henne attempted only five passes in the second half.
"They're going to out-execute you, and that's kind of what they live and die with," Smith said. "Everybody knows what they're going to do. "They're going to turn around, hand the ball off to that guy, put those big guys in your face and run you off the line of scrimmage."
Stanton tacked on a two-yard run in the fourth quarter to make it 31-13, but he was intercepted on MSU's next possession. The senior quarterback, who is now winless in three career starts against U-M, finished 20-of-35 passing for 252 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
MSU's next game is against No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday at Spartan Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
