Friday, April 11, 2025

Take a peek behind the curtain and test drive the NEW StateNews.com today!

Sports | Football

FOOTBALL

Spartan offense sputters, turnovers fuel Iowa win

Iowa City, Iowa - Under rolling gray skies, the Spartans couldn’t weather the Iowa storm on a dreary Saturday in Hawkeye country. Five turnovers coupled with MSU’s worst offensive performance - 249 total yards - the Spartans (3-3 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) extended their losing streak at Kinnick Stadium to 14 years with a 44-16 loss to a talented Iowa squad (6-1, 3-0). “It’s really very, very hard to play over the number of turnovers we had and give up big plays like we did,” MSU head coach Bobby Williams said. And unless the Spartans begin to execute like the team expected to come out of the preseason, the forecast for the rest of the season is dismal, as MSU still has to play top-ranked programs Michigan and Penn State. “Obviously, they have an up field battle,” ESPN analyst Bob Davie said.

FOOTBALL

Hype heading into season not being backed up

Say it ain’t so, say it ain’t so. Just six games into a much anticipated season, many are wondering how good is the MSU football team - or how bad? The facts say the Spartans (3-3 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) are average.

FOOTBALL

Leaders lull

Eric Mckinney
October 14, 2002

Iowa City, Iowa - Saturday’s 44-16 beating at the hands of Iowa provided more than just embarrassment for the Spartans (3-3 overall, 1-1 Big Ten), it also opened the door for a possible quarterback controversy. The door was unlocked roughly three minutes into the third quarter when MSU head coach Bobby Williams sent sophomore quarterback Damon Dowdell into the game. On the Spartans’ previous possession, junior quarterback Jeff Smoker fumbled after a 3-yard scramble.

FOOTBALL

Defense looks to stop run

Eric Mckinney
October 8, 2002

With the bye week in their rear-view mirror the Spartans have their sights set on the Iowa Hawkeyes.And with the Big Ten’s leading rusher, Fred Russell, lining up in Iowa’s backfield, MSU’s run defense will again be put to the test.“I think with these two weeks we have a good opportunity to prepare for Iowa,” junior linebacker Mike Labinjo said.

FOOTBALL

Return secures victory

Eric Mckinney
October 1, 2002

The biggest play of Saturday’s game came from the most unlikely of places, the Spartans’ special teams.With a little more than a minute to play in the third quarter and MSU leading by a score of 20-17, junior wide receiver Ziehl Kavanaght broke the game open with a 88-yard punt return for a touchdown.“When Ziehl ran that ball back the game was close,” junior quarterback Jeff Smoker said.

FOOTBALL

Rogers aids win, breaks records

Eric Mckinney
September 30, 2002

MSU got back on the winning track Saturday with its 39-24 win against Northwestern. But once again, it was junior wide receiver Charles Rogers who stole the show. The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder only pulled down three receptions for 53 yards - by far his worst outing of the season - but his 21-yard touchdown with 6:10 to play in the first half made history. The tally marked Rogers’ 14th-straight game with a touchdown, breaking the Big Ten record he shared with Michigan’s Desmond Howard (1990-91). It also marked his 13th-straight regular-season game with a touchdown, breaking the NCAA record he shared with Marshall’s Randy Moss (1997), Pacific’s Aaron Turner (1990-91) and Howard. “Just to be among these guys is a great accomplishment for me,” Rogers said.

FOOTBALL

Cats take the bait

Andrew Fifer
September 30, 2002

Statistically, junior wide receiver Charles Rogers had his least productive game of the season. But his presence created openings for teammates in both the running and passing attacks in the Spartans’ 39-24 victory over the Wildcats on Saturday at Spartan Stadium. Head coach Bobby Williams said studying film revealed there would be chances for other players to make plays against Northwestern (2-3 overall, 0-1 Big Ten). “We looked at the last two ball games and people have been really overplaying Charles,” he said.

FOOTBALL

SPORTS UPDATE: Rogers breaks NCAA touchdown record

Spartan junior wide receiver Charles Rogers set the NCAA and Big Ten records with 13 consecutive regular-season games with a touchdown catch today as MSU (3-2 overall, 1-0 Big Ten) toppled Northwestern (2-3, 0-1), 39-24.The 6-4, 205-pounder caught a 21-yard pass from junior quarterback Jeff Smoker with 6:10 left in the second quarter to break the record previously shared by Marshall’s Randy Moss, Michigan’s Desmond Howard and Pacific’s Aaron Turner.On the day, Rogers was held to a mere three catches for 53 yards, ending his MSU-record streak of eight 100-yard games.For more information about this report, see Monday’s edition of The State News.

FOOTBALL

Rogers expects to play Saturday

Eric Mckinney
September 25, 2002

Despite suffering bruised ribs in MSU’s loss to No. 10 Notre Dame, Charles Rogers plans to play against Northwestern on Saturday. “Even if I’m not 100 percent, I’m still able to go out there and be a decoy,” Rogers said.

FOOTBALL

Offensive failure

Andrew Fifer
September 23, 2002

For the second game in as many weeks the MSU football team faced a double-digit half-time deficit. It has been a re-occurring theme this season.

FOOTBALL

SPORTS UPDATE: Irish lucky, or just good?

The luck of the Irish was too much for the Spartans to overcome as Notre Dame’s last-minute heroics polished off MSU, 21-17.Today’s game inside Spartan Stadium was the fourth-consecutive contest, the Spartans (2-2) and Fighting Irish (4-0) put on a show - MSU had won the last five matchups.This time, however, it was Notre Dame that came up with the last big play - a 60-yard completion to Irish wide receiver Arnaz Battle from backup quarterback Pat Dillingham with less than two minutes to play, giving Notre Dame an improbable 21-17 victory.“It was unfortunate we couldn’t sustain what we got going,” MSU head coach Bobby Williams said.

FOOTBALL

Red zone turnovers cause Spartans demise to Bears

Andrew Fifer
September 16, 2002

The MSU football team faltered early and often Saturday at Spartan Stadium. The Spartans turned the ball over five times, but none were more noticeable than the two first quarter turnovers inside California’s 5-yard line. MSU had its chances to take control of the game before allowing 18 second-quarter points en route to a humiliating 46-22 defeat. Trailing 7-0, the Spartans failed to score on two consecutive drives.

FOOTBALL

Turnovers, poor play sink now-unranked Spartans

In their first national television appearance of the season, the Spartans showed they might not be worthy of a high national ranking.Thanks to the 46-22 rout at the hands of an unranked California (3-0) squad on ESPN2, everyone knows how the former No.