BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – In their final road game of the season, the Spartans picked up their first victory away from East Lansing.
Michigan State (4-7, 2-6 Big Ten) rallied late for a 24-21 win at Indiana (3-8, 1-7) on Saturday at Memorial Stadium to claim the Old Brass Spittoon.
Here are notable quotes from interim coach Harlon Barnett and players after the victory:
“A great win by our guys. They finished, they kept competing and they applied what we’ve been talking about of finish, finish, finish.”
– Barnett on Michigan State’s second win in three weeks after losing six straight.
“I thought it was just going to be a catch and tackle. I don’t know how I stayed up either. I couldn’t tell you.”
– Tight end Maliq Carr on his game-winning 36-yard touchdown catch with 1:19 left in the fourth quarter. He absorbed a big hit from safety Louis Moore and then pushed through a pair of defenders to cross the goal line.
“He’s a big man with awesome hands and we saw that out there on display today.”
– Barnett on Carr, who posted career highs with nine receptions for 100 yards and two touchdowns.
“It was a big moment in the game. I went up to our guys and I basically just said just give me everything you’ve got and I’ll give you everything I’ve got and that’s what they did.”
– Quarterback Katin Houser on the game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter. The redshirt freshman finished 26-for-41 passing for career highs with 245 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
“It was a gritty game. I’m so proud of how our guys fought and how they continue to fight all season.”
– Running back Jaren Mangham on the victory.
“He’s doing better. We still are getting him evaluated but we didn’t want to put him back in the game because of that.”
– Barnett on starting running back Nathan Carter, who left the game in the third quarter and didn’t return. Carter was tackled after a 4-yard catch and got up to his feet before collapsing to the turf, being looked at by trainers and then walking to the sideline.
“We had an NFL team out there today. You didn’t know that, huh? That’s what we were doing – 45 guys on scholarship that were available to play.”
– Barnett on being very shorthanded with more than 20 walk-ons who made the travel roster, which is capped at 74 players.
“He’s a big body – big, tall, strong. That definitely creates some matchup problems, as y’all saw today.”
– Safety Jaden Mangham on how challenging it is to defend Carr.
“Complete shock, complete shock.”
– Houser on his reaction to receiver Montorie Foster making a spectacular one-handed catch and then fighting through contact for a 29-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
“I saw him maturing with all the experience he’s gotten in this season. Now he’s using his legs, taking off, running, which I thought was an element he needed to add to his game more and he did that.”
– Barnett on Houser, who made his sixth career start on Saturday.
“Yeah, I had to get my spit in.”
– Jaden Mangham on if he spit in the Old Brass Spittoon.
“Whenever we play Indiana, we know that’s what we have to do … because they’re elite at doing that. Some people become elite by other measures.”
– Barnett on saying the Hoosiers are good at in-game sign stealing, which led to Houser frequently coming to the sideline to get play calls. That’s a practice which is allowed by NCAA rules that have been in the spotlight amid allegations of improper sign stealing by Michigan.
“It was just kind of waiting for my moment.”
– Jaren Mangham on dealing with multiple injuries that forced him to miss the first six games of the season. He’s now healthy and posted 13 carries for 23 yards along with five receptions for 47 yards against the Hoosiers.
