Michigan State defeats Washington State in Holiday Bowl: 3 takeaways
By Jake Ellis
The Michigan State Spartans defeated the Washington State Cougars 42-17 in the 2017 Holiday Bowl. Here are three takeaways from the win.
Before the 2017 Holiday Bowl started, this was expected to be a battle between Luke Falk and the Washington State Cougars’ air raid offense against the hard-nosed Michigan State Spartans defense. Instead, the Pac-12’s leading passer in yards and touchdowns was ruled out of the game before kickoff. So, Tyler Hilinski was in charge of that offense now, and early in the game, his inexperience definitely showed.
Michigan State’s offense is led by quarterback Brian Lewerke and running back LJ Scott, and they were leaning on Scott to push that offense down the field. After the field goal in the first quarter for the Cougars, it was an onslaught from there on by the Spartans, with them leading 21-3 at the half. When halftime was over, the Spartans kept the pedal to the metal, as they outscored the Cougars again in the third quarter. Without Luke Falk, the Washington State air raid offense really could never get off the ground. With Michigan State taking the 42-17 win in the 2017 Holiday Bowl, here are three takeaways from the game.
1. The Spartans offense could not be stopped
After the Cougars scored the first points of the game with a field goal in the first quarter, it was all Spartans from that point on. Michigan State outscored the Cougars 21-0 in the second quarter to go into the half with a 21-3 lead. After halftime, quarterback Brian Lewerke just took over, throwing for two more touchdowns in the third quarter. After three quarters, Michigan State was in front 35-10. This came from an offense that is not known for putting a lot of points on the board. They are known for an offense that runs the ball, and takes a lot of time off the clock. Tonight, a different Sparty showed up.
2. No Falk= Big problem for Wazzu
When Luke Falk was ruled out of the game with a hand injury, it was as if the Cougars offense never came out of the locker room. With Falk out, the Cougars not only lost the leader of their offense, but also the Pac-12’s leader in yards passed for and touchdowns. Replacement Tyler Hilinski just could never get his offense going as the hole they found themselves in just kept getting deeper and deeper as Lewerke repeatedly drove the ball downfield all night against the Washington State defense. Even as Hilinski was able to steadily move the offense down the field, the one thing they needed him to do to get back into this game was to put points on the board, as he was unable to put up much of a fight against the Michigan State defense.
3. Even Hercules couldn’t save that defense tonight
Without a doubt, Washington State’s best defender all year has been Hercules Mata’afa, and because of a targeting penalty he had in the Apple Cup against Washington, he was not on the field in the first half. In the first quarter, the Cougars’ defense did a really good job of keeping the Spartans’ offense in check. When the second quarter started, it was like a different Michigan State offense showed up. From the second quarter on, they outscored Washington State 35-7. Even when their best defender returned, it did not matter. Michigan State just kept pouring it on, with Lewerke throwing another touchdown and backup Damion Terry running in for a score as well. Hercules is known as one as one of the premier defensive linemen in the entire country, but even when he returned, even he could not slow down this Spartans’ offense.