It wasn’t pretty, and at times it was outright frustrating to watch, but Michigan State football still found a way to beat Pittsburgh in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl. The Spartans escaped with a 31-21 victory.
While he may have finished with 354 yards and 3 touchdowns, this was one of Payton Thorne’s worst games of the season. He threw a bad interception and lost a fumble, putting the Spartans in a bad position. However, he was able to turn things around when it mattered, with a lot of help from his talented receiving unit.
Jalen Nailor led the way in yards with 108, but it was Jayden Reed who was able to pull down two touchdown receptions. Connor Heyward also added a touchdown.
The running game really struggled without Kenneth Walker III, which definitely didn’t help Payton Thorne. Jordon Simmons rushed for 23 yards and Collins added 15 in a pretty pitiful day on the ground.
Matt Coghlin also continued his struggles, missing a costly field goal in the first half.
For Pitt, with Kenny Pickett absent, the game started with Nick Patti under center for the Panthers. However, he was injured in the first half, so sophomore quarterback Davis Beville took over. For a third stringer, Beville played well, and was heavily assisted by his star wide receiver Jordan Addison who finished with 114 yards receiving.
Nevertheless, it was Beville who sealed the victory for MSU when he threw an interception to Cal Haladay, who returned it for a touchdown to clinch the win.
Haladay was named the defensive MVP of the game and Jayden Reed was named the offensive MVP. Mel Tucker gets his first bowl victory as a head coach.
