L.J. Scott’s 1-yard touchdown plunge with 27 seconds remaining Saturday night lifted No. 5 Michigan State to a 16-13 victory over No. 4 Iowa in the Big Ten championship game.
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LJ Scott’s late lunge did more than put the ball across the goal line – it all but certainly put No. 5 Michigan State into the College Football Playoff. Both teams were pretty even, but it was Michigan State beating Iowa, 16-13.
“We wanted to come back and win a championship”, Cook said. The teams had not met since October 5, 2013, a game the Spartans won, 26-14….
While Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday was perhaps 70 percent Iowa fans, Hollis pointed out that the Hawkeyes had an extra week to make plans to travel to Indianapolis, since they clinched the Big Ten west division a game before the Spartans clinched the East division.
Michigan State heads into the postseason with lots of confidence after winning four straight, with two coming against top 10 teams. The Crimson Tide should win this old-school slugfest against Saban’s old employer, but only if his players have their mind on their business when it’s time to get back to work.
Coach Mark Dantonio turned the Spartans into the national power that has won 11 games in five of the last six seasons, beaten seven top-10 teams in eight tries and has finished in the top five in the nation two consecutive years.
When I brought this up on Twitter, someone offered Iowa’s 30-point win over Northwestern (No. 12 in the final poll) in defense of the Hawkeyes. This season the Spartans were not playing like a typical Dantonio coached defense for the first nine games.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban walks off the field after the second half of the Southeastern Conference championship NCAA college football game against Florida, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Atlanta. Points do, and they don’t come easily against the Spartans. What this means is that the Spartans have developed so much talent at the quarterback position and sent it through to the NFL that not many other schools in college football can match that. The Bulldogs are led by former Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel, who transferred during the offseason and has thrown for 3,575 yards and 24 touchdowns.
No. 3 Michigan State will play No. 2 Alabama in the Cotton Bowl/first-round playoffs on December 31. Stanford will likely play in the Rose Bowl. Alabama opened this season with a 35-17 victory over the Badgers.
Follow KWQC for updates on the Hawkeyes throughout the rest of the weekend and season. Alabama beat Michigan State 49-7 in the 2011 Capital One Bowl.
After the semifinal matchups were announced, ESPN had CFP committee chairman Jeff Long on to try to explain how MSU jumped idle Oklahoma in the final rankings.
MSU-M.Geiger 23 yard field goal, 11:11. The senior walk-on long-snapper was an unsung hero, recovering a muffed punt in the third quarter that triggered a 21-0 run by the Buckeyes.
The Bulldogs hired Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart on Sunday, hoping he can accomplish what has been routine for the Crimson Tide but eluded Mark Richt during his 15 years between the hedges: Win a national title.
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MSU and ACC champ Clemson, SEC champ Alabama and Big 12 champ Oklahoma are the four teams that are expected to get invitations, with many projecting MSU to meet Alabama in the Cotton Bowl.
