Spartan Football Withstands Nebraska Comeback

The No. 19 Nebraska Cornhuskers nearly made a miraculous comeback to upset the No. 10 Michigan State Spartans, eventually falling short 27-22.

The Spartan defense was nearly perfect in the first half, but nearly gave up the Spartans’ big lead in the fourth quarter.

Connor Cook led the offense, finishing with 234 yards on 11 completions with one touchdown.  Jeremy Langford ran for 29 carries and 111 yards.

Michael Geiger, on his 20th birthday, added two field goals to help secure the Spartan victory, one from 28 yards and one from 27 yards. A 37-yard attempt with 1:07 remaining in the game that would have put the game out of reach hit the left upright.

Tony Lippett carried in a 39-yard run untouched on a double reverse.  Lippett had a 55-yard touchdown catch in the first half as well, which were the first points of the game to give the Spartans a 6-0 lead in the first quarter.

After the Spartans were unable to hold possession, a Mike Sadler punt was returned for a 62-yard touchdown by De’Mornay Pierson-EL to make it 27-22, after another failed two-point conversion attempt.

After Geiger’s missed field goal, Nebraska drove into Michigan State territory in the final minute. Trae Waynes came up with his second interception to seal the victory for the Spartans in the Big Ten opener.


Bradley Allen is a multimedia journalist for Impact Sports

Photo: David Devefer/Impact Sports