Indiana blanks Michigan State, 24-0
EAST LANSING » Michael Penix Jr. threw for 320 yards and hit Ty Fryfogle for two touchdown passes as No. 10 Indiana remained unbeaten with an easy 24- 0 victory over Michigan State on Saturday.
The Hoosiers (4- 0, 4- 0) set up a showdown next weekend at Ohio State, the only other unbeaten team in the Big Ten East.
Penix threw two interceptions in the first half, but that didn’t matter much. The Spartans (1-3, 1-3) were just as sloppy — to the point where quarterback Rocky Lombardi was pulled in the second quarter.
Fryfogle had 11 catches for 200 yards — both career highs. e did most of that in the first two quarters, when all the game’s scoring occurred.
Indiana has won its first four Big Ten games for the first time since 1987, and the Hoosiers beat Michigan State for the Old Brass Spittoon for only the second time in the last 12 meetings.
“We sat down at the beginning of the year with our leadership council, come up with our goals,” Indiana coach Tom Allen said.
“One of the major things that guys wanted was, win our trophy games.”
Since beating rival Michigan on Oct. 31, the Spartans have lost their last two games by a combined 73-7.
Michigan State and Indiana combined for five turnovers in the first 18:15, but only the Hoosiers showed any ability to take advantage. They went 50 yards in seven plays after Lombardi’s first interception, taking a 7- 0 lead on an 8-yard run by Stevie Scott. Then came a messy sequence of plays for the Spartans that put Indiana in control.
A penalty on the kickoff forced Michigan State to start on its own 14, and on the second play of the drive, Anthony Williams fumbled, giving Indiana the ball at the 16. Penix threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Fryfogle.
Shakur Brown intercepted Penix in the second quarter around the goal line, but Lombardi was picked off on the very next play, setting up an Indiana field goal.
Payton Thorne replaced Lombardi at quarterback and broke free for a 38yard run on his first play,
but that drive stalled, and Indiana went up 24- 0 when Penix found Fryfogle up the right sideline for a 65-yard TD.
The takeaway
• Indiana: The Hoosiers didn’t have a letdown after a big win over Michigan last weekend. They took advantage of Michigan State’s early mistakes and led comfortably for the entire second half.
• Michigan State: The Spartans have been hurt by turnovers in all three of their losses, and this was no exception. Lombardi isn’t the only one to blame, but it was time for Michigan State to try an
other option at quarterback. Thorne went 10 of 20 for 110 yards with an interception.
“We thought it was some decision-making early in the game,” Michigan State coach Mel Tucker said. “Payton was the next man up and so we gave him an opportunity. It was as simple as that. We’ll look at the film and we’ll evaluate it more and see what we need to do moving forward.”
Poll implications
Indiana came in with its highest ranking since 1969, and this decisive victory should do little to call that into question.