South Bend, Ind. — It was the biggest play yet of freshman wide receiver Donnie Corley’s collegiate career, and perhaps the biggest play in then-No. 12 MSU’s 36-28 victory over then-No. 18 Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium.
“It was amazing,” Corley said. “It was exciting to see the crowd and catch the ball near our stands ... especially in a big game like this.”
The play was a 38-yard touchdown pass that Corely leaped into the air to grab. He out-muscled Fighting Irish cornerback Cole Luke to put the Spartans on the board after Notre Dame scored first with a touchdown during the first quarter.
Corley’s touchdown was shortly followed by a successful two-point conversion secured by fifth-year senior tight end Josiah Price, giving MSU an 8-7 lead. The Spartans would use that touchdown to jumpstart the offense for the rest of the second and third quarters.
Corley’s touchdown reception was the first-ever collegiate touchdown for the six-foot-two Detroit native, and his longest-ever completion as well. Corley finished the game with three more receptions for 88 total yards and his performance headlined among the Spartans’ receiving rotation, including a fourth-quarter 28-yard reception that extended and eventually secured MSU’s game-winning drive.
Corley’s performance against Notre Dame was a step in the right direction, and was built from his two-reception, 17-yard performance against Furman in week one. Head coach Mark Dantonio said the true freshman’s playmaking ability could land him a chance to become a part of MSU’s starting lineup.
“(Corley is) a great football player,” Dantonio said during the postgame press conference following Saturday’s win. “He’s worked himself into basically a starting role, I would say, starting role, semi-starting role. Big catch in the end zone, pulled it away from a guy, and big catch at the end of the game where he’s got to adjust to an underthrown ball.”
In addition to putting MSU on the board, Corley’s touchdown served as a catalyst for MSU’s offense that would go on to barrage Notre Dame with four-straight touchdowns, including an explosive 73-yard run from junior running back Gerald Holmes.
“Having (Corley) go out there and playing like that, it had me hyped and it had the team hyped,” Holmes said.
The big game for Corley could have been foreseen by teammates though. Senior wide receiver R.J. Shelton said it was only a matter of time before Corley had a big game.
“It just gives us another element on our offense,” Shelton said. “We have a lot of guys who are so explosive on our side of the ball ... it just adds another dimension to our offense.”
Corley’s night, however, was only one piece of the offensive puzzle, that was also highlighted by fifth-year senior Tyler O’Connor — who completed 19-of-26 pass attempts for 241 yards and two touchdowns. Holmes and fellow running back, sophomore LJ Scott, completed the Spartan offensive by combining for 198 rushing yards and three touchdowns in 25 attempts.
O’Connor also noted that a big game was in the future for Corley, after seeing the freshman’s progress in practice.
“We had seen that in practice a number of times,” O’Connor said. “It was just a question of, ‘when is it going to happen in a game?’ It was coach (Dantonio’s) call to take some deep shots ... and it ended up being Donnie (Corley’s) ball the whole way.”
MSU will use the likes of Corley and other young talent in the weeks to come, starting with Wisconsin. The Spartans will kick off the Big Ten schedule by hosting the Badgers on Sept. 24.
