Senior running back Jehuu Caulcrick rushes for eight yards to the Indiana 33 yard line in the third quarter. Caulcrick scored three touchdowns and rushed 94 yards.
MSU gave its alumni and fans a show in its 52-27 homecoming victory over Indiana, snapping a two-game losing streak.
Junior running back Javon Ringer rushed for 203 yards – 160 of which came in the first half – and two touchdowns to lead the Spartans offense, which put up 558 yards of offense. It was Ringer’s fourth straight 100-yard rushing game and the Spartans’ third straight game posting over 500 yards of offense.
Although Ringer had the leading role Saturday, he also had a strong supporting cast. Junior quarterback Brian Hoyer completed 20 of 23 passes for 190 yards and a touchdown, junior wide receiver Devin Thomas had a touchdown and 148 receiving yards on 14 catches and senior running back Jehuu Caulcrick had three touchdowns and 94 rushing yards.
‘The kids were certainly well prepared and wanted to come out there on a mission,” MSU offensive coordinator Don Treadwell said. “On the offensive side of the ball, we really wanted to establish the run.”
By establishing the run, the Spartans also controlled the clock. MSU had 90 offensive plays and held the ball for 41:05 minutes, whereas the Hoosiers ran 36 plays and had the ball for 18:55 minutes.
The Spartans scored on their first drive – a 1-yard Caulcrick touchdown run that was set up by freshman punter Aaron Bates’ 14-yard run on a fake field goal – and developed a taste for the end zone throughout the game en route to the 52-point output.
After Indiana quarterback Kellen Lewis scampered for a 59-yard touchdown on the first play following MSU’s first score, Ringer reached the end zone on another drive kept alive by one of the Spartans’ four fourth down conversions.
Ringer broke the game open with a 64-yard touchdown, putting MSU ahead 24-10 in the second quarter.
Thomas added to the MSU lead when he caught a 34-yard jump ball for a touchdown, making the score 31-13 in the third quarter.
“I just saw the ball floating in the air and I knew I had to come back a little bit to get it,” Thomas said. “I just went up and got it.
“They call that mossing somebody. Sometimes you just have to do that as a receiver.”
The defense also contributed to the offensive performance. Senior defensive end Ervin Baldwin scooped up a fumble forced by senior defensive end Jonal Saint-Dic and ran it 12 yards into the end zone, putting MSU ahead 45-13 in the third quarter.
“I just saw that and my eyes got really big,” Baldwin said. “I thought, ‘I can’t fall on that … I have to scoop and score.’”
MSU resumes play Saturday in Columbus, Ohio against Ohio State.
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