Cook, the game’s MVP, methodically moved the Spartans in a drive that consumed almost the final 91/2 minutes. The Blue Raiders are led by a pair of freshmen in QB Brent Stockstill and receiver Richie James.
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Michigan State – Geiger 47-yard FG. Our football team I thought played with great effort, unbelievable guts and courage out there, and continued to exhibit just stellar teamwork.
Alabama opened this season with a 35-17 victory over Big Ten team Wisconsin at AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys and the Cotton Bowl since the 2009 season.
The matchup is just the second between the teams.
On Saban’s staff in East Lansing as a defensive backs coach was Mark Dantonio, now the Michigan State coach, trying to bring the Spartans their first national title since it finished first in the coaches’ poll in 1965. The only real debate was the order. The committee has to sleep and then come up with decisions by the next afternoon.
Perhaps the biggest debate was Michigan State finishing ahead of Oklahoma.
The Big Ten Championship Game served as a play-in game for the College Football Playoff with the number five ranked Michigan State Spartans earning their way in with a win over the fourth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes. “They’ve just been absolutely fantastic to work with from day one”. The Spartans’ offensive line struggled all game – until it mattered, cutting down Iowa’s defense with a knockout blow at the end following an onslaught of body shots during the final drive.
Only this time, the stakes will be a bit higher.
At best, MSU seemed stuck in neutral, perhaps a good team at times and contending, but never much of a long-term threat. The Tigers and Sooners (11-1) met in Russell Athletic Bowl last season. Iowa finally got to the Michigan State defense with a 85-yard touchdown pass to Tevaun Smith early in the fourth quarter, but on the night the Spartans allowed only 268 yards of offense and forced three turnovers. The second annual playoff consists of December 31 semifinals at the Orange and Cotton bowls, and January 11 national title game in Glendale, Ariz.
No team in the playoff stared down defeat as frequently as the Spartans, and no situation was as dire as the one MI faced at the Big House in mid-October.
The final CFP rankings will be announced at 2 p.m. on ESPN.
Michigan State’s LJ Scott (3) runs for a 1-yard touchdown during the second half of the Big Ten Conference championship NCAA college football game against Iowa, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Indianapolis.
Oklahoma slips one spot to No. 4. “This is still goal No. 1 for us”. Iowa is in line for a New Year’s Six bowl – Rose, Sugar, Peach and Fiesta. The four teams that should fill those spots are Notre Dame, Florida State, Houston and either Ohio State or Iowa. MSU possessed the ball for nine minutes and:22 seconds for the go-ahead TD drive, with a pounding run game and clutch passes to claim the conference championship.
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Most expected the Big Ten champion to come out of the November showdown between Michigan State and defending national champion Ohio State in Columbus.
