NCAA Football 2010 Simulation: U of M vs. MSU

Michigan won the toss and chose to kick.  Zoltan Mesko’s kickoff was touched back to begin the game in East Lansing.  Keith Nichol started off the game for the Spartans with an incomplete pass to Carlton Ray on a flare route.  Ray scampered for 8 & 6 yards on the next two plays for a first down.  To begin the second set of downs from the MSU 34, Nichols hit Dion Sims for a 5 yard gain.  After an incomplete pass to Mark Dell, Ray failed to convert the first down.  Aaron Bates 49 yard punt to the U of M 15 was fair caught by Greg Mathews.  Tate Forcier started out the game very shaky with two straight in-completions and a one yard scramble.  Mesko’s 49 yard punt was returned 5 yards by Keshawn Martin to the MSU 40.

On two carries Larry Caper pushed the Spartans past midfield to gain a first down.  Kirk Cousins then dropped back and hit Blair White for a 22 yard gain to the U of M 28.  After a three yard pass to Garrett Celek, Cousins scrambled and was hit by Mike Martin from behind and fumbled the ball away.  Jonas Mouton recovered the ball for the Wolverines at the U of M 20.

Forcier hit Mathews for a 8 yard gain, then threw away a pass on second down.  Brandon Minor charged ahead to the MSU 35 for the first down.  Minor and Forcier each had a 4 yard gain on the next set of downs to make it 3rd and 2.  Minor got stuffed to force a punt.  Mesko’s punt was fair caught at the MSU 11. Ray broke a 14 yard run for the Spartans on the first play from scrimmage.  After a 4 yard run by Ray, Cousins was sacked by Martin to force a 3rd and 9.  Cousins converted in the pressure situation on a wheel route to Ray for a 17 yard gain to the MSU 42.  Michigan State converted another first down as Fred Smith caught a 8 yard pass followed by a 3 yard Ray run.  Larry Caper then had a carry to the U of M 23.  MSU then shot themselves in the foot with a false start penalty.  After three straight incompletions, Brett Swenson made a 45 yard FG.

3

0

3:59 1Q

Martavious Odoms returned the kick to the MSU 16.  After an incomplete pass to Greg Mathews, Forcier was intercepted at the MSU 29 by Danny Fortener.  After a 3 yard scamper by Cousins and two 3 yard gains by Caper Mark Dantonio decided to go for it on 4th and 1.  Caper was denied on a two yard loss by Obi Ezeh. 

Forcier took the field for the Wolverines.  On first down of the ensuing drive he hit Mark Moundros on a play-action pass for an 18 yard gain to the U of M 42.  After an incomplete pass to Mathews, Minor gained 6 yards on first down.  On third down Forcier threw another incompletion to force 4th down.  An offsides penalty on 4th and 4 gave the Wolverines the first down at the MSU 48.  Minor quickly picked up another first down with a 10 yard gain on a draw play.  Forcier then threw three consecutive incompletions to turn the ball back over to the Spartans.

Blair White returned the Mesko punt to the MSU 38.  A false start on first down set Michigan State back.  An incompletion and two completions covering 2 and 11 yards failed to convert a first down.  Bates punt was fair caught by Mathews at the U of M 20.  Carlos Brown and Denard Robinson entered the game for the Wolverines.  After Robinson ran a draw for 3, Brown took a toss play for 8 yards.  Brown gained 6 yards on his next two carries before a Robinson incompletion killed the drive at the U of M 36.  Mesko’s punt was fair caught at the MSU 28.

Cousins came out firing as he hit Dell for 18 yards and White for 9 on the first two plays of the drive to move the ball inside Michigan territory at the 46.  Larry Caper fumbled and Ryan Van Bergen recovered it at the U of M 43 on the next play.  Rich Rodriguez sent out Robinson and Brown to start the drive.  Brown took an option toss for 4 yards to the U of M 47.  Forcier entered the game and on his first play carried the ball 5 yards to the MSU 48.  One 3rd and 1, Odoms dropped a pass that would have converted the first down.  On 4th and 1, Rich Rodriguez decided to go for it.  Forcier converted with a 5 yard run to the right side.  Back-to-back negative carries by Odoms and Minor forced a 3rd and 14.  A failed screen pass to Kevin Koger ended the drive.  Mesko punted it for a touchback.

Cousins began the drive with a 17 yard strike to Dell to the MSU 37.  After a holding penalty, three more incompletions led to a punt.  Mathews fair caught the punt at the U of M 31.  Forcier took the field and quickly threw two more incompletions.  Minor kept the drive alive with a 12 yard 3rd down run.  Minor picked up the next first down after two more carries.  After Forcier hit Stonum on a hook route for 7 yards to the MSU 36, Minor again picked up the first down on a dive play to the MSU 29.  Three straight Forcier carries led to another first down at the MSU 17.  The drive stalled here as Forcier was sacked by Jerel Worthy and missed a wide-open Junior Hemingway in the endzone.  Scott Schrimscher nailed the 38 yard FG to knot it up.

3

3

4:44 2Q

The following kickoff was touched back.  After an incomplete pass to White, Cousins forced a pass to Dell that was intercepted by Mike Williams at the MSU 32.  After Forcier threw one away, he hit Mathews for a 12 yard gain to he MSU 20.  Minor took the ball on the next two plays to the MSU 4 for a first and goal.  Forcier then faked a handoff to Moundros, rolled out and hit Mathews in the corner of the endzone on the play-action pass for the go ahead score.

10

3

2:25 2Q

Dana Dixon returned the following kickoff to the MSU 23.  Keith Nichol re-entered the game for the Spartans.  After Caper gained a first down on the ground, Nichol hit B.J. Cunningham for a 12 yard gain to the MSU 45 (1:10) He then hit Sims for 8 yards (:52) After Caper ran for 7 yards, Nichol spiked the ball to stop the clock (:35) After two incomplete passes, Dantonio decided to attempt the 51 yard FG.  Swenson missed it.  Forcier came in and kneed the ball to end the half

Stonum returned the kickoff to open the second half 25 yards to the U of M 30.  Robinson dropped back and hit Odoms on a slant over the middle for 15 yards on the first play from scrimmage.  Three straight incompletions killed the drive from here and led to a Mesko punt that was downed at the 4 yard line.  Kirk Cousins re-entered the game for Michigan State.  After a Ray rush for 4 yards, two more incomplete passes killed another drive as MSU couldn’t get a drive started.

Mathews returned the Bates punt 10 yards into MSU territory at the 44.  After a 5 yard carry by Minor, Forcier twice had passes deflected.  On 4th and 5 from the MSU 39, Forcier hit Stonum on a out route for 6 yards and the first down.  After Minor took a counter for 6 yards, Forcier hit a wide open Odoms on a post route for the 27 yard TD.

17

3

11:18 3Q

Martin returned the following kickoff to the MSU 30.  A quick pass to Ray gained a yard, after a Ray dive was stopped for no gain, another Cousins incomplete pass led to another punt.  Mathews returned the punt 10 yards to the U of M 44.  Forcier would convert three consecutive first downs on third down, the first one through the air to Odoms, the last two with his feet.  The drive stalled at the MSU 25 and Schrimscher nailed a 42 yard FG.

20

3

3:38 3Q

Mesko’s kick was touched back.  After Ray ran up the middle for a loss of two, back to back incompletions led to another punt for the Spartans.  Neither Nichol or Cousins could get the offense jump-started for Michigan State.  Mathews returned the punt to the MSU 48.  Minor and Forcier each then carried the ball twice each as U of M picked up consecutive first downs.  With the ball at the MSU 22, Forcier hit Mathews on a pass to the MSU 5.  On the next play, he rolled out and hit Roundtree for the score.

27

3

14:52 4Q

Keith Nichol re-entered the game at QB for Michigan State and promptly hit Hawken and White for consecutive first downs to the MSU 47.  Three consecutive Ray runs killed the drive here as Bates was called into punt.  Mathews fair caught the punt at the U of M 21.  Denard Robinson entered the game for Michigan.  After a short completion to Stonum, Minor carried it twice to convert a first down.  Robinson then went on a torrent as he completed 4 consecutive passes to Mathews, Hemingway, Roundtree & Koger to move the ball to the MSU 14.  After a holding penalty on Schilling, Robinson ran it twice and Mathews to force a 4th and 1.  Rich Rodriguez decided to kick it this time.  Schrimscher missed the 22 yard FG.

Yet again, MSU failed to gain a first down.  The more uninspiring part was they ran it three times between Nichol, Ray and Caper and failed to gain more then 2 yards.  Mathews fair caught the punt at the U of M 45.  On the second play from scrimmage, Robinson fumbled, Colin Neely picked it up and rumbled 48 yards for the Spartan TD.

27

10

6:24 4Q

MSU tried a onside kick but U of M recovered.  After a Brown carry for a yard and two incomplete Robinson passes, Mesko punted it to Martin at the MSU 10.  Over the first four plays of the drive Michigan State gained two first downs, one by Ray on the ground, the next to White through the air.  Nichol then hit Ray for another first down on a 13 yard pass to the U of M 49.  Ray promptly took a draw play to the U of M 37 as the Spartans were clicking on all cylinders for the first time today.  On the next play, Nichol again hit White for a first down, this time to the U of M 24.  After a Caper and Ray run forced a 3rd and 4, Nichol rolled out and hit Sims for a 3 yard gain.  Dantonio decided to go for it here and Caper was stuffed to turn the ball over to the Wolverines with 1:46 remaining.  Michigan ran out the clock to end the game.

27

10

FINAL

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