Michigan State football breaks through with sacks, holds on late in 24-17 win over Purdue

Posted by Admin November 23, 2024 Football

EAST LANSING — For 30 minutes, with the wind blowing and the rain falling and the stands far from full, Michigan State football put everything together.

The offense clicked and scored 24 straight points. The defense got stops, generating sacks and turnovers.

Then came the second half shutdown, bringing on survival mode. And, eventually, escape at home against one of the nation’s worst teams.

Jonathan Smith’s team now must find a way to grind out 60 more minutes of winning football to extend their season.

Aidan Chiles went 15-for-31 for 159 yards and two touchdowns while running for 26 more, Nate Carter scored rushing and receiving TDs, and Jordan Turner delivered a diving fourth-quarter interception as the Spartans staved off lowly Purdue, 24-17, on Friday night at Spartan Stadium.

Ultimately, it came down to a fourth-down Chiles sneak after the sophomore ran out of bounds just shy of a game-clinching first down. He picked it up one play later by the length of a football, and the Spartans ran out the clock.

MSU (4-6, 2-5 Big Ten) closes the regular season next Saturday when it hosts Rutgers, needing one more win in Smith’s first season to become bowl-eligible for the first time since 2021. Kickoff is 3:30 p.m. (FS1).

Quarterback Hudson Card was 26-for-47 for 342 yards, a touchdown and an interception for Purdue (1-10, 0-8), which has lost 10 straight since its season-opening win over Indiana State of the Football Championship Subdivision. The Boilermakers gave the Spartans fits by going 5-for-13 on third downs and 2-for-3 on fourth downs.

30 strong minutes for Spartans

It wasn’t perfect by any measure. But MSU opened a 24-3 halftime lead with one of its most productive 30 minutes of the season.

The Boilers moved the ball quickly and efficiently on the opening drive, but the Spartans finally registered their first sack in seven games when Angelo Grose dropped Card on third-and-8. That forced a 40-yard Ben Freehill field goal after a 5:23 Purdue possession that put MSU in a brief hole.

Tight end Jack Velling was knocked out of the game on the Spartans’ ensuing drive, taken to a local hospital for evaluation after being driven off on a backboard and cart. That came after Chiles hit his fellow Oregon State transfer for an 11-yard completion on third-and-9 to keep the chains moving.

Following a long delay, Chiles used his legs to convert another third down, then hit backup tight end Ademola Faleye for 14 yards to the Purdue 7. On the next play, Chiles zipped a dart to Montorie Foster Jr. in the front right corner of the end zone for a 7-yard TD pass with 4:24 left in the opening quarter.

The Spartans tacked on a 43-yard Jonathan Kim field goal after a three-and-out by their defense. The offense quickly got the ball back two plays into the Boilersmakers’ next drive, with Quindarius Dunningan stripping the ball from Devin Mockobee and Maverick Hansen pouncing on it at Purdue’s 33. It was MSU’s second fumble recovery of the season and first since Sept. 21 at Boston College, the Spartans’ first turnover forced in the past four games.

Chiles nearly gave it right back when Purdue’s Dillon Thieneman — who delivered the hit on Velling — picked off a seemingly errant pass and ran it back into MSU territory. But Foster drew a pass interference flag on Tarrion Grant to instead move the Spartans 15 yards closer to the end zone. Six plays later, on third-and-goal, Carter pecked his way down the line of scrimmage and hit the pylon on his dive for a 2-yard touchdown with 7:45 left.

MSU got another sack of Card, then Freehill’s 30-yard field goal attempt his his teammate in the back of the helmet with 2:36 before halftime. Chiles marched the Spartans 84 yards in 10 plays, using his legs for another third-down conversion with an 18-yard gain before making two NFL throws to close the drive. The first was a 33-yard deep fade to Foster, the final 20 coming on a laser to Carter on a running back wheel route that sent MSU into the locker room with its first halftime lead since it beat Iowa on Oct. 19.

Chiles was 10-for-19 for 120 yards and two TDs passing and 23 yards on three rushing attempts. Kay’ron Lynch-Adams had 54 yards as the Spartans ran for 100 yards on 20 attempts. Their defense held Purdue to minus-7 yards on the ground in the first two quarters to offset Card’s 141 passing yards.

Where’d the mojo go?

As the second half began and the off-and-on rain turned into a steady drizzle, many of the fans 57,000-plus fans who braved the cold, a large majority of them students, left Spartan Stadium.

And with them went MSU’s mojo and momentum.

The Spartans’ opening possession of the third quarter resulted in just 9 yards even though a Chiles sneak gave them a fourth-down conversion. Purdue needed 10 plays to move 73 yards, with Card hitting Shamar Rigby for a 17-yard gain on fourth-and-5 before Mockobee raced around the left side for a 2-yard touchdown run to cut into MSU’s lead while gnawing another 5:24 off the clock.

Card and the Boilermakers continued to take advantage of the extra chances and injury-depleted MSU secondary. Grose was flagged for pass interference on a third-and-8 that kept the drive alive. Then Card, facing third-and-21 after a timeout thanks to the Spartans’ persistent pressure, raced away from Ken Talley and delivered a 38-yard comeback strike to receiver Jaron Tibbs in front of cornerbacks Ade Willie and Ed Woods. Card found tight end Max Klare for a 7-yard score on the next play.

MSU’s offensive quagmire continued with a quick three-and-out, and Purdue got the ball with a chance to tie and 9:44 left. But Card’s pass to Klare bounced off his hands, Grose tipped it and Turner made a diving interception not even a minute later.

Purdue got the ball back again, though, as MSU could not capitalize. Card’s deep shot to a wide-open Jahmal Edrine well behind the Spartans’ defenders hit his receiver in-stride and slid through his hands. Tibbs dropped a third-down pass, and Turner and Khris Bogle forced Card into a fourth-down incompletion with 3:18 left. That set up Chiles to get the final first down, though his initial 4-yard run came up just short in front of the Purdue bench.

MSU managed just 73 of its 293 yards in the second half, including 17 on the final drive, while Chiles was just 5-for-12 for 39 yards after halftime.

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

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