U-M running back Mike Hart is brought down by junior cornerback Kendall Davis-Clark in the second quarter of Saturday’s game at Spartan Stadium. Hart’s drive put the Wolverines in scoring position for their next touchdown, increasing U-M’s lead to 14-3.
When Michigan quarterback Chad Henne limped off the field Saturday with around seven minutes remaining in the game, Spartans fans thought they caught a break.
When quarterback Ryan Mallett replaced Henne and fumbled on his first and only play, the MSU crowd shrieked with joy, jumping up and down, watching the ball dance away from both teams.
Then the crowd shrieked in a different way when U-M running back Mike Hart collected the football and ran 19 yards for a first down. The crowd fell silent for a moment.
In just a few more plays, the Wolverines scored a touchdown, cutting the MSU lead to 24-21 in a 79-yard drive that took 48 seconds. The crowd fell silent for the rest of the game, as Michigan came back from behind 10 points to win 28-24.
“I don’t know if it was a turning point, but it could have been a conclusion, I guess,” MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said. “I don’t know if that’s the right word. I mean, if we come up with the fumble right there and get it in and we’re up by 17 points, I’m feeling a little better.”
The Spartans didn’t feel too good after their loss to rival U-M, but with some luck, they feel the outcome might have been different.
“They got more breaks,” senior running back Jehuu Caulcrick said. “I mean, you get a fumble and it just bounces in someone’s hands and they run 20 yards. I mean, give me a break there. Why can’t the ball fall our way?”
Defensive shift
While the MSU offense has been the life support of this year’s team, it was the defense that kept the game close in the first half — but the offense couldn’t produce to take advantage of the defense’s play.
In the second quarter, MSU forced three three-and-outs and intercepted a pass on fourth down late in the half. The only time the Wolverines managed to earn a first down was on its 42-yard touchdown drive off Michigan safety Jamar Adams’ interception.
The defense’s play helped the Spartans maintain an average starting field position of their own 40-yard line in the second quarter. Two of those drives began in Wolverines territory — one at the U-M 44 and another at the U-M 49.
Despite the field position, MSU couldn’t create points. The Spartans were held to 13 yards of offense in the second quarter — 22 of which came on a pass to freshman wide receiver Mark Dell.
“When you play a team like those guys, you got to take advantage of every opportunity and I’m sure there are a bunch of opportunities we could have gone back and had and changed the outcome of the game,” junior quarterback Brian Hoyer said.
“It’s tough because you look back and wonder what you could have done differently.”
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