Indiana Falls on the Road to No. 25 Michigan State, 40-31

Saturday, September 28

East Lansing, Mich.

3:30 p.m.

Indiana University

3-2 , 0-2

Michigan State

4-1 , 2-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Indiana

Michigan State

Indiana Falls on the Road to No. 25 Michigan State, 40-31

9/28/2019 7:24:00 PM | Football

By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com

EAST LANSING, Mich. - It was all there -- opportunity, a spectacular offensive game plan, the passion, the return of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. at a record-setting level.

Indiana had No. 25 Michigan State and its offense-destroying defense on the brink Saturday afternoon in East Lansing. It had a three-point fourth quarter lead and all the momentum you could want.

And then …

IU (3-2) took that fourth-quarter lead, and then forged a late tying touchdown, but it wasn't enough. It lost 40-31.

"A lot of tears in that locker room," head coach Tom Allen said in his post-game press conference, "and there should be.

"It hurts. To come on the road against a Top-25 team in this environment, we had our chances. We've got to find a way to make one more play."

He paused.

"I'm proud of this team."

The game came down to a few, gut-wrenching moments.

Defensive back Bryant Fitzgerald dropped an almost certain pick-6 interception. Penix overthrew a wide-open Whop Philyor by two inches for another almost certain TD. A fourth-quarter Philyor 50-yard punt return was wiped out by penalty. A sack and fumble recovery were negated by defensive holding in a drive that ended with a Spartan score. Allowing a 26-yard touchdown pass to end the first half, and then nine straight points to end the game.

That's how close the Hoosiers were to a potential program-changing victory.

"It's tough for our guys to swallow," Allen told "Voice of the Hoosiers" Don Fischer on his post-game radio show.

"I'm proud of our team. They fought their tails off. We needed just one more play. One more stop."

Penix's return from injury after missing the previous two games was the stuff of legend. He shredded a powerhouse defense for 286 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for a TD.

"He didn't practice all week," Allen told Fischer. "You can see why we picked him as the starter. Peyton Ramsey did some amazing things when he was in there (against Ohio State and Connecticut). We have two quarterbacks we believe in.

"But Michael is special."

At one point the Spartans were reeling from 20 straight Penix completions (2 off the Big Ten record). In fact, it could have been 21 straight, but Ty Fryfogle's catch was just out of bounds.

"For a freshman to do that against one of the top defenses in the country," Allen said before trailing off.

Seven receivers caught at least one pass as offensive coordinator Kalen DeBoer devised a game plan to maximize IU strengths and attack Spartan weaknesses.

Philyor was once again a Spartan killer. He had a career-high 14 catches for 142 yards and a career-high two touchdowns. Last year against Michigan State, he had 13 for 148.

Donavan Hale had seven catches for 99 yards and a TD.

The Hoosiers didn't abandon the run. Stevie Scott totaled 66 yards against a defense that came in allowing just 52.

Still, IU couldn't run to victory against Michigan State (4-1), and with Penix, it didn't have to. It went with short, quick passes to the outside to get Penix in early rhythm and keep the Michigan State defense off balance and running.

"We had a great game plan," Allen said. "Coach DeBoer wanted to spread the ball around and make them play in space. Michael did a great job of executing it."

Penix opened 7-for-10 for 65 yards and a touchdown in the first quarter. By halftime, he was 15-for-19 for 142 yards -- Philyor caught seven of those passes for 55 yards -- and a touchdown. Penix also ran one yard for another score.

One big early reason -- the offensive line, with true freshman Matthew Bedford making his first career start in replacing the injured Coy Cronk -- began clicking. It opened holes that Scott exploited for 26 yards on four carries in the first quarter.

"Matt did an awesome job," Allen said.

Freshman cornerback Tiawan Mullen broke up four passes, and had two tackles, but the secondary allowed Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke to throw for 300 yards and three touchdowns. Darrell Stewart, the Big Ten's leading receiver, caught five passes for 117 yards.

IU won the time-of-possession battle by nearly nine minutes. It had a 26-23 edge in first downs. It had multiple fourth-quarter chances to win at Michigan State for the first time since 2001 and take the Old Brass Spittoon, which symbolizes this annual rivalry.

"In those moments, you've got to rise up and make a play," Allen told Fischer.

And then, a few minutes later in his press conference, "There were a lot of positives. I love that team."

IU just missed scoring on Michigan State's first possession of the game. Fitzgerald dropped what would have almost certainly been a pick-6. Still, the Hoosiers held the Spartans scoreless when they missed a 43-yard field goal.

Michigan State scored a TD on its second possession, then appeared to generate more momentum by stopping IU on a fourth-and-one run. The Hoosiers responded by stopping the Spartans on their fourth-and-one rushing attempt, then drove for the tying score behind Penix, Scott and Philyor.

It was 7-7 after the first quarter.

Michigan State went ahead 14-7. Penix then went 6-for-6 – including a 28-yard pass to Hale – before running one yard for a touchdown to tie the score.

The Spartans got a 26-yard touchdown pass just before halftime to take a 21-14 lead.

An animated Allen wanted more from the defense. The halftime message – finish.

The Hoosiers opened the third quarter with more short, quick passing, especially to Philyor. They drove from their own 11-yard line to inside the Michigan State 10-yard line before settling for a Logan Justus field goal.

Hale's one-handed, 12-yard touchdown catch early in the fourth quarter put IU ahead 24-21.

The Hoosiers forced a Michigan State punt, and had a chance to, perhaps, put the game out of reach, but Philyor's 50-yard punt return was wiped out by a penalty, then Penix's almost-certain TD pass to Philyor was two inches too far.

The Hoosiers had to punt, and Michigan State came back with a quick touchdown to take a 28-24 lead with 12 minutes left.

A Spartan field goal made it a seven-point lead with 3:33 left.

The Hoosiers went to work. Hale drew a couple of pass interference penalties, then caught a key pass. Penix hit Philyor with an 11-yard touchdown pass to forge a 31-31 tie with two minutes left.

Michigan State drove to the 1-yard line and got the game-winning field goal. It added a touchdown as the clock expired on a botched IU trick play.

The Hoosiers – who don't play again until hosting Rutgers on Oct. 12 -- were left to consider what might have been.

"We have a bye week to get healthy, get better," Allen told Fischer. "We've got a ton of football ahead of us. I'm proud of this team. You can see what we can become. It's a matter of getting better."