Michigan State football's health a big question as Michigan looms

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Looking back at what happened in Michigan State football’s 21-17 win at Penn State and looking ahead to next Saturday’s rivalry renewal with No. 6 Michigan.

Three things we learned

Davis dominates

A hip injury suffered during MSU’s final drive couldn’t keep Felton Davis III off the field. The senior returned after missing one play when yet another receiver (Laress Nelson) got hurt. He caught QB Brian Lewerke’s throw and slipped through the arms of Penn State’s Amare Oruwariye for the winning touchdown with 19 seconds left. The 6-foot-4 Davis caught half of his eight passes in the fourth quarter, and finished with his first 100-yard receiving game this season and fourth of his career.

Offense responds

After failing to generate points in the fourth quarter a week earlier in a loss to Northwestern, the Spartans moved the ball against Penn State. Lewerke threw for 113 yards in the fourth quarter, including two throws to Nelson on the final drive, and La’Darius Jefferson’s 27-yard run on a drive that ended in a fake field goal was the longest by an MSU running back this season. The Spartans finished with 418 total yards.

Defense sets it up

MSU nearly allowed the Nittany Lions as many rushing yards in the first half as the defense had given up total through five games. However, the Spartans solved their alignment and tackling issues at halftime and allowed just 39 more yards on the ground and 159 total yards in the second half. No play was more critical than CB Justin Layne’s tackle of Penn State QB Trace McSorley as he escaped the pocket and tried to run for a first down with 1:30 remaining. The stop forced the Nittany Lions to punt after three plays, and MSU didn’t need to use its final timeout because Layne forced McSorley out of bounds to stop the clock.

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Next up: Michigan Wolverines

Matchup: No. 24 Michigan State (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) vs. No. 6 Michigan (6-1, 4-0).

When: Noon, Saturday.

Where: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing.

TV/radio: Fox, WJR-AM (760).

More:Michigan an early 6½-point favorite vs. Michigan State

Know your foe

Since losing their opener at Notre Dame, the Wolverines have improved each week. Michigan has topped 400 yards of total offense in five of its past six games since gaining 307 in its loss to Notre Dame. The only other team to hold the Wolverines under 400 was Northwestern (376), which gave them a test on the road. Michigan is No. 1 in pass defense (121.9 yards per game), No. 2 in total yards allowed per game (236) and ninth in scoring defense (15.4 points). New QB Shea Patterson is throwing for a meager 187.3 yards per game, but the Wolverines have done much of their damage this season on the ground, with RB Karan Higdon third in the Big Ten averaging 144.5 yards per game. They average 217 rushing yards per game as a team.

Three things to watch

Medical charts

It is close to the point where it may be easier to list which Spartans are healthy instead of hurt each week. A number of regulars did not make the trip to Penn State — RB LJ Scott, LG David Beedle, RG Kevin Jarvis, WRs Darrell Stewart Jr., Cody White and Jalen Nailor, and P Jake Hartbarger. Then during the game, that receiving corps suffered more injuries, as Davis, Nelson and Brandon Sowards all left at one point. Sowards did not return and Nelson got hurt on MSU’s final drive.

Pressure points

DE Kenny Willekes collected his team-leading fifth sack Saturday and the Spartans’ 14th of the season, but their primary focus with McSorley was containment in the run game. There is less need to worry about that with Shea Patterson, who has been sacked 11 times this season. However, the Michigan QB is averaging a bit over 6 yards per carry on his other 23 rushing attempts. Lewerke has been dropped 14 times this season, and the Wolverines’ defense has 20 sacks, led by 3½ from LB Devin Bush.

More:Michigan unsure if Rashan Gary will play at Michigan State

In the trenches

It was the Spartans’ sixth different starting offensive line in six games, but they stuck with one group for almost the entirety of Saturday’s game. MSU also changed to more of a zone blocking scheme against Penn State, and it produced more balance in the run and pass game (123 yards on the ground and 295 yards through the air) and better holes for running backs between the tackles than the Spartans had the past few weeks. The Spartans outgained the Wolverines on the ground 158-102 last year, and the team which has had the most rushing yardage has won the Paul Bunyan Trophy in 43 of the past 48 meetings.

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. 

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