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MSU quarterback Drew Stanton flips the ball to Javon Ringer, who gained 37 yards on 12 carrMSU is Hart-broken
U-M back gains 218; Rivas' OT FG wins it
His teammates congratulate Mike Hart on the fourth-quarter touchdown he scored that put Michigan ahead. Hart finished with 218 yards.
Why U-M won
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MSU's Drew Stanton fumbled in the third quarter after being tackled by U-M's Pierre Woods. U-M recovered.
Michigan State kicker John Goss hangs his head after missing a field goal in overtime, his second miss.
Michigan's Brandent Englemon thumps MSU's Jerramy Scott, but Scott hangs onto the ball for a 32-yard-gain in the first quarter.
EAST LANSING -- For Michigan State, it was all a little too good to be true in the end.
For Michigan, it was a test of its championship mettle, and the Wolverines responded.
Two programs that seemed all week to be headed in opposite directions from the norm -- No. 11 MSU gaining national recognition, unranked U-M reeling and on the verge of falling out of the Big Ten race -- returned to their more familiar ground Saturday.
The Wolverines fought back into contention, perhaps saving their season to a degree, with 34-31 overtime victory at Spartan Stadium. Garrett Rivas, who missed a 27-yard field-goal attempt late in regulation, redeemed himself with a 35-yarder to win it.
Michigan State is still in position to have a better season than most anticipated, but this was a crushing loss. The Spartans' fans really believed this was their year to move past the hated Wolverines. Expectations were soaring.
The result was the same: A fourth straight loss to Michigan, the second straight in overtime.
"We're Michigan," said running back Mike Hart. "When Michigan State is ranked ahead of you and you're Michigan, it's not good. There's pressure there. We're 2-2 (entering Saturday), that's .500, that's pressure in itself. We don't lose three games a year. We knew this was a must-win. We knew we had to come here to win and we did it."
Just like that, the Wolverines have possibly turned their season. They play four of their final six games at home, including next Saturday against Minnesota. A third straight Big Ten title suddenly isn't out of the question, after all.
"A win like this for our team ... we needed a win because we've had two tough losses that were one play here, one play there," said U-M coach Lloyd Carr, whose team improved to 3-2, 1-1 in the Big Ten. "I don't think there's any question it's going to be a big boost to our morale.
"Confidence, we have to see, but I know the morale is awful important, and we have some now."
The Spartans (4-1, 1-1) keep getting close to a major breakthrough, but they just can't finish the job at times. John Goss, a junior-college transfer, missed a 23-yard field goal in the fourth quarter with the score tied, and then a 37-yarder in overtime.
"They made more plays than we did, they made more kicks than we did," MSU coach John L. Smith said of Michigan.
Smith's team has an extra week to prepare for its next game, Oct. 15 at Ohio State.
"I hope it hurts real bad," he said of his players' reaction to the loss. "I'm not worried about that. I don't know the best way to react to it. I don't react very well to it. I hope they don't react well to it. I hope they hate it and I hope they're hurt, real hurt, because we all are. If you love the game and you're a competitor, you should hurt. And then you'll bounce back. We have to pick up the pieces."
Hart returned from a hamstring injury to rush for 218 yards and one touchdown on 36 carries. His presence helped the Wolverines control the ball, especially in the fourth quarter, and keep quarterback Drew Stanton and the Spartans' offense off the field.
"He made a big difference," Smith said of Hart. "He's the real deal."
U-M quarterback Chad Henne bounced back from a rough start to his sophomore year, completing 26-of-35 for 256 yards and three touchdowns. He and Jason Avant (10 catches for 96 yards and one score) took advantage of soft coverage by the Spartans' secondary.
Stanton had a solid game, passing for 282 yards and one touchdown, but he needed to do even more. The Spartans' only touchdown in the second half came on defensive tackle Domata Peko's 74-yard return of a fumble recovery.
Otherwise, MSU's high-scoring offense was held to three points in two quarters plus overtime.
"I made some decisions that were poor," Stanton said. "Unfortunately, that happens against defenses that are as athletic as that. You don't have much room for error."
The Wolverines were leading 31-24 and in field-goal range when Henne got sacked by end Clifton Ryan and fumbled. The ball was scooped up at MSU's 26 by Peko, a 6-foot-2, 320-pound tackle who rumbled for the tying touchdown with 6:43 remaining.
Michigan came back with another long drive, in the process running 22 consecutive offensive plays. However, Rivas missed a 27-yard attempt, wide right, which would have broken the tie with 48 seconds left in regulation.
MSU got the ball first in overtime. Stanton was nearly intercepted on both second and third down, forcing the Spartans to attempt a 37-yard field goal, which was wide right. The Wolverines ran two plays, and then decided to call on Rivas to hit the third winning field goal of his career.
After a wild first half with both teams seemingly scoring at will (U-M led 24-21 and the teams combined for 610 offensive yards), the Wolverines' offense bogged down badly in the third quarter, going three-and-out three straight times.
The Spartans then drove from their 4 to the Michigan 6.
But freshman running back Javon Ringer was stopped for no gain on a surprisingly conservative third-and-4 call early in the fourth quarter.
The game took a turn at that point as Goss missed a 23-yarder, wide left, with 13:38 remaining.
On the next play, Hart ran 64 yards to the MSU 16, setting up his 1-yard touchdown run for a 31-24 lead with 11:29 left.
When the Spartans got the big break with Peko's fumble return, it looked as if it might be their day, their season. But, once again, U-M found a way to get the last laugh.
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