Running Game Picks Up Steam Against Boilermakers
10/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Steve Grinczel, MSUSpartans.com Online Columnist | @GrinzOnGreen
Michigan State put the power back into its high-powered offense and that made the Saturday's 45-31 victory at Purdue feel right to running back Jeremy Langford, regardless of a second consecutive topsy turvy second half.
"I think this is a big development for us because we need to be able to run the ball to be a championship team, and that's what we did today," Langford said. "We continue to throw the ball good as well and when we do both, we have a dynamic offense."
Although the Boilermakers hung around until the end, just as Nebraska did a week earlier against MSU, the Spartans pounded them relentlessly with a crushing ground game.
With his 10th 100-yard game in a row against Big Ten competition, Langford finished with 104 yards on 13 carries. He averaged 8 yards per carry as did Nick Hill, who picked up 72 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. And, 6-foot-1, 228-pound power back Delton Williams punished Purdue with 44 yards on four carries.
All three set up scores with explosive plays.
Langford's 31-yard sprint to the 3-yard line in the second quarter led to quarterback Connor Cook's 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Josiah Price, for a 21-3 lead. A few minutes later, Williams rumbled for a 30-yard run which Michael Geiger converted into a 42-yard field goal and a 24-10 advantage.
Langford broke loose for a 28-yarder just before halftime, but Geiger's attempt from 44 was wide left.
On the first possession of the second half, Langford contributed a 15-yard run to a scoring drive that ended on Cook's 13-yard acrobatic catch in the back of the end zone for a 31-17 bulge. And late in the third quarter, Hill's 37-yard burst to the 10-yard line set up his 4-yard scoring jaunt that made the score 38-17 and proved to be the game-winner.
With some of the fancy, new-fangled wide-receiver sweeps by the likes of Burbridge and R.J. Shelton, and a handful of keepers by Cook, MSU amassed 294 rushing yards on 43 carries.
Langford said the avalanche, in chunks of nearly 7 yards per carry, began with the offensive line, which was openly disappointed with the way it produced just 4.3 yards per carry against Nebraska and couldn't grind out first downs with the outcome still teetering in the balance.
"The offensive line was just really aggressive and determined to get at least 200 yards rushing," Langford said. "They're our leaders and we followed them for four quarters. They did a great job blocking, so we were able to run through some big holes."
Langford raised his season total to 555 yards, which means he's on pace to reach 1,000 for the second straight season, but he said he didn't bring a new approach into the game.
"I was the same old Jeremy," he said. "To win games you've got to run the ball and that's what my mindset was - to get the 4 yards to set up the second-and-shorts. If they're trusting me to carry the ball, I've got to do something to make plays.
"The offensive linemen did a great job of getting me to the next level (of the defense), and once I'm there it's between me and the man in front of me. I need to make him miss and make the play, and that's what we did today. All three of us did a great job of running hard and taking care of the ball."
Although Cook and the aerial attack contributed 238 yards, on 19-for-37 passing, to 532 yards of total offense - the Boilermakers countered with 340 - co-offensive coordinator Dave Warner sensed the ground game picked up the passing game.
 | "I think any time you're able to run the ball, it provides momentum for the offense and it opens everything up for you." -MSU co-offensive coordinator/running backs coach Dave Warner |
"If you just look at the production, yards per play (6.8 per run to 6.4 per pass) and so forth, I thought we established the run much more than we established the pass," Warner said.
The offensive line, in particular, was ornery all week about how it performed against the Cornhuskers.
"We thought it was important coming into the game to re-establish the running game," Warner said. "We ran OK last week, but certainly in the second half when it got to be crunch time we weren't able to produce. I think we feel like we failed by not being able to run the football when we had to and anytime you go through something like that, you re-examine yourself.
"We knew we needed to pick it up, and I think we did a fairly decent job of that. I would have liked to put it away a little better than we did at the end, but I'm happy with what we did. I think we did a better job up front and created some holes."
Just like the Nebraska game, things got dicier for MSU just when it looked like a blowout was about to erupt. After cornerback Trae Waynes, who sealed the victory against Nebraska with an interception, recovered a fumble by Purdue quarterback Austin Appleby near midfield early in the fourth quarter, Cook began the drive with an 11-yard pass to wideout Tony Lippett.
Three straight rushes produced a second first down and the Spartans were about to go for the kill, but Cook threw an interception to safety Frankie Williams. Four plays later, Michigan State's lead was cut to 14 points. The Spartans' next drive turned into a four-and-out that ended with an unsuccessful fake punt. The Boilermakers took advantage of a short field to score the touchdown that made it a one-possession game.
However, MSU was able to hold on thanks to a cushion built largely on the strength of the rushing attack.
"I think any time you're able to run the ball, it provides momentum for the offense and it opens everything up for you," Warner said. "On the other side, I think it frustrates the defense. That's something we're always trying to do - run the football like we did today.
"Now, when it comes down to crunch time at the end, we really have to get the run game going, stay on the field and frustrate the defense even more."
The Spartans hope they get a chance to improve in that area next Saturday at Indiana, possibly with an evolving three-head monster. Hill has been the second component in a one-two punch with Langford since the beginning of the season, but Williams, who didn't play against Nebraska, continues to make a case for more carries.
"It's a little bit tough sometimes rotating three guys through there," said Warner, who also coaches the running backs, "but they're all very capable and I think you saw that today. I think at the end of the day, if Jeremy's getting 15-20 carries a game that's going to help him at the end of the season.
"Nick and Delton are playing sparingly, which means they should be able to remain fresh and provide a boost when they get in."
Langford doesn't mind sharing the load, but at the same time, he knows that if he stays hot, he'll keep getting his fair share of carries.
"The most important part is coming out with the win, so it felt good," Langford said. "It just pushes me even more to get those carries and make this an even better unit."
