After first quarter, Pitt fizzles in loss to Michigan State
PITTSBURGH – Even though the Panthers won their first two games this year, there was still a question regarding their return to national prominence. After Saturday’s 38-23 loss to Michigan State in front of 47,956 at Heinz Field, it looks like the Panthers still have a way to go.
“We had an opportunity to take another step forward today, but it didn’t happen,” Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We came out ready to play and believing we could win, but we played like we expected somebody else to win the game for us because we didn’t make a play, not a catch, not a block, not a sack, not anything.”
The first quarter belonged to the Panthers. They held the ball for almost 10 minutes and outgained the Spartans 123 yards to 28 while taking a 10-0 lead.
The Panthers could not keep up the torrid pace and hit a wall, consisting mostly of huge Michigan State linemen who averaged over 300 pounds and opened up gaping holes for quarterback Drew Stanton.
“I think their size wore us down as the game went on,” linebacker Clint Session said. “We knew their quarterback was shifty but we didn’t help ourselves with poor tackling we had today.”
Stanton directed the option like a master, gaining 105 yards and a touchdown on option-keepers. The few times Stanton had to pitch to his running backs, they picked up the slack. Javon Ringer gained 156 yards, and Jehuu Caulcrick gained 63 yards and scored a touchdown.
“Their quarterback is a heckuva good player, but I think we’re better than we showed today,” Wannstedt said. “We made mistakes on the pitch where our defenders should have read the quarterback better and we got faked and didn’t deal with the option well at all.”
Michigan State (3-0) is not known as an option team, but they looked like Oklahoma of the 1970s and ’80s, which surprised Wannstedt.
“Up until today, they mostly used the option in the red zone, but when they saw we weren’t handling it well, they kept coming at us with it,” Wannstedt said. “It surprised me how much option they ran today.”
Michigan State coach John L. Smith credited the success of his running game to his offensive line.
“We didn’t start off the way we like, but our front was able to control the game, particularly in the second half,” Smith said. “We practiced all week long with the thought of being physical and I thought we were able to wear them down.”
The Panthers had some chances to match the Spartans in the first half, but their inability to capitalize on some chances contributed to their demise.
On their first drive, a LaRod Stephens-Howling 17-yard screen pass for a touchdown was negated by an illegal shift penalty and the Panthers had to settle for a 32-yard Conor Lee field goal and a 3-0 lead three minutes into the game.
Stephens-Howling’s next touchdown, an 8-yard run with 25 seconds left in the first quarter, did count, and put the Panthers ahead 10-0. It was his first career touchdown. He led the Panthers in rushing with 37 yards.
Pitt (2-1) did little else on offense or defense for the remainder of the game.
Early in the second quarter, Adam Gunn recovered a surprise onside kick after the Panthers went ahead 10-0, but they failed to get a first down on the drive and punted ball away. The Spartans drove for a field goal to close the score 10-3.
After Michigan State put together an 83-yard drive capped by a Stanton 2-yard pass to Kellen Davis, the Spartans tied the score 10-10 with less than 50 seconds left in the half. On the ensuing kickoff, Pitt’s T.J. Porter looked like he had a touchdown return, but Ryan Allison made an ankle tackle at midfield to save the touchdown and preserve the tie at the half.
The Spartans continued to roll after halftime. Including the 10 points they scored in the first half, they ran off 38 unanswered points and put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter before Pitt scored two late Tyler Palko touchdowns, a 10-yard pass to Steve Buches and a 49-yard pass to Derek Kinder on the last play of the game.
Palko finished the game with 28 completions on 47 attempts for 277 yards and two touchdowns.
“We expected a four-quarter game, but we squandered some opportunities in the first half and I think that deflated us,” Palko said. “Never in a million years did I think the game would end up like this, but football is a hard game and 3-0 is a lot harder to be than 2-0, so now we see what we’re really made of by the way we rebound.”