Trailing 6-0 in the third quarter on first-and-goal from two yards out, junior quarterback Andrew Maxwell faked a handoff to junior running back Le’Veon Bell, and the Michigan defense bit hard, leaving Lang wide open in the end zone.

Maxwell lofted an easy pass right to Lang’s waiting hands, and the Spartans took their first lead of the game.

However, the Pittsburgh native said while he was excited for his first score as a Spartan, it had a bittersweet taste to it.

“It was awesome,” Lang said. “It was surreal to score in the Big House, but at that point, we had to put it behind us and try to get the victory, and unfortunately, we didn’t.”

Quick kicker
One of the biggest highlights for the Spartans came when head coach Mark Dantonio took a gamble and ran a fake punt in the fourth quarter.

Facing fourth-and-nine from MSU’s own 23, sophomore punter Mike Sadler took the snap and rushed to the right side for a 26-yard gain to keep an MSU drive alive that eventually resulted in a field goal.

Sadler said the Spartans identified the Michigan punt return team was lining up inside MSU’s blockers, and knew the play would be there when the opportunity presented itself, but was surprised it was called so close to MSU’s own end zone.

“We just needed a big play to get us going, whether it was offense, defense or special teams,” he said. “And the opportunity was right, so we had to take advantage.”

Sadler added it was the first time at any level he’d tried a fake punt in a game situation, and he’s been timed in the 40-yard dash between 4.6 and 4.7 seconds.

“It’s fast enough, apparently,” he said.

The thin green line
MSU’s offensive line ranks appear to be thinning rapidly, as yet another offensive lineman was sidelined against the Wolverines on Saturday.

Having already lost senior tackle Fou Fonoti for extended time with a foot injury and sophomore center Travis Jackson for the rest of the season with a torn medial collateral ligament, or MCL, they also lost junior tackle Dan France to a concussion for the Michigan game.

Redshirt freshman Donavon Clark got the nod at tackle for the Spartans in place of France, and despite an early false start penalty, played well in his first career start.

“The next person has to be ready to go,” senior guard Chris McDonald said. “If one person goes down, the next person comes up. And I think all year we’ve had injuries but the next guy who’s coming up is responding very well, so that’s positive for us.”