Like many Michigan State games this season, it wasn’t always pretty but the Spartans found a way to pick up the win.
Michigan State remained perfect at home this year with a 40-21 victory over Maryland on Saturday. The win moved Michigan State to 9-1 and 6-1 in Big Ten play on the year.
The Spartans never trailed against Maryland, but this by no means was an easy going victory for Michigan State. The Spartans needed multiple defensive stops in their own end in the second half to help keep a comfortable lead throughout.
Michigan State jumped out to an early 13-0 lead over the Terps and led by as many as 20 points in the first half. The Spartans ended the opening frame with a 27-13 advantage over Maryland.
The Spartans were able to add to their lead early in the second half but the Terrapins responded right away to get the deficit back to only 13 points. From there, it was a back-and-forth sequence of defensive stops before Michigan State finally pushed their lead to 19 points on Kenneth Walker’s second touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter. That ended up being the final score of the game.
The Spartans were led offensively by the three-headed monster of quarterback Payton Thorne, Walker and wide receiver Jayden Reed. Thorne finished the game with 287 passing yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Walker had 172 total yards and two touchdowns, and Reed had 114 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
With the win, Michigan State sets up a major matchup with Ohio State next week. The Buckeyes easily beat Purdue on Saturday, and both teams will now enter this game with the winner taking the top spot in the Big Ten East Division with one week to go in the season.
Kickoff from Columbus, Ohio next week is scheduled for 12 p.m. EST. The game will be televised nationally on ABC.
