Michigan State University
6-5 , 4-4
Nebraska
4-7 , 3-5
Michigan State Nipped By Nebraska, 9-6
11/17/2018 4:06:00 PM | Football
AP College Football Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- Barrett Pickering kicked three field goals in the fourth quarter, the last one a 47-yarder with 5:13 left, as Nebraska came from behind to beat Michigan State 9-6 on Saturday.
The Spartans (6-5, 4-4 Big Ten) got field goals of 34 and 26 yards from Matt Coghlin but was unable to sustain offense against a Nebraska defense that has struggled most of the season.
Nebraska (4-7, 3-5), which had put up some of the best offensive numbers in the nation the past six weeks, tied it at 6-all on Pickering field goals of 36 and 20 yards.
The Huskers got the ball back when Antonio Reed and Dedrick Young knocked the ball out of MSU tight end Matt Dotson's hands for an incomplete pass to force a punt. Nebraska ran six plays before Pickering connected for the winning field goal with a strong north wind at his back.
Nebraska, which had gone over 450 total yards in seven straight games, generated just 248. Devine Ozigbo ran 18 times for 74 yards to become the first Nebraska player since 2014 to go over 1,000 for the season.
Adrian Martinez threw for 145 yards, and Stanley Morgan caught four balls for 67 yards to become the school's career leader in receptions with 182.
MSU's Rocky Lombardi completed 15 of 41 passes for 146 yards. Connor Heyward rushed 21 times for 80 yards and caught five passes for 78.
''We had too many drops,'' Spartans coach Mark Dantonio said. ''If you've got to point to one thing in the football game, it would be the dropped passes. I thought Lombardi played pretty well. At the end of the day, you've got to put the ball in the end zone in the red zone.''
It was a classic mid-November Big Ten football setting. A gray sky was followed by intermittent flurries and, by the fourth quarter, light snow that began covering the Memorial Stadium turf. A 21-mph north wind made for a feel-like temperature of 15 degrees.
Each team entered the game missing key injured players. Michigan State started Lombardi for the second time in four games in place of Brian Lewerke. Nebraska was without leading receiver JD Spielman.
UP NEXT
Michigan State hosts Rutgers on Saturday.
Nebraska visits Iowa on Friday.
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Team Stats
MSU 3, NEB 0
MSU - Coghlin, Matt 34 yd field goal 10 plays, 50 yards, TOP 4:45
MSU 6, NEB 0
MSU - Coghlin, Matt 26 yd field goal 11 plays, 66 yards, TOP 6:14
MSU 6, NEB 3
NEB - B. Pickering 36 yd field goal 5 plays, 36 yards, TOP 1:00
MSU 6, NEB 6
NEB - B. Pickering 20 yd field goal 7 plays, 17 yards, TOP 2:02
MSU 6, NEB 9
NEB - B. Pickering 47 yd field goal 6 plays, 23 yards, TOP 1:59
