Spartans ‘undisciplined’ in loss at Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)—With Eric Decker down, Adam Weber and the rest of Minnesota’s sputtering offense took a big step up.

Weber passed for 416 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Gophers hurdle a school-record 17 penalties and hang on to beat Michigan State 42-34 on Saturday night.

Playing without Decker, his star wide receiver, for the first time, Weber came through with his best performance in two years.

“Confidence breeds confidence,” said Weber, who totaled five interceptions and only 287 yards without a score over the previous three weeks. “The more you build it and are moving the ball, other guys are making plays.”

Completing 19 of 31 passes for the career high in yardage behind sound protection, Weber had his first five-touchdown game since his freshman year. Except for a wide-open drop of a sure touchdown by Troy Stoudermire in the second quarter, the young Gophers receivers honored Decker and supported Weber with an array of fine catches in tight coverage.

“He never shied away,” running back Duane Bennett said. “He really was our leader. Nobody on our offense lost faith.”

Bennett caught two scores for Minnesota (5-4, 3-3 Big Ten), including an incredible recreation of the famous Immaculate Reception by Franco Harris for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1972 to stretch the lead to eight with 6:04 left.

Tight end Nick Tow-Arnett, who had a career-high eight catches for 81 yards and two scores, caught a third-and-17 pass from Weber near the Michigan State 35 and landed on his back after a jarring hit. The ball never touched the ground and ricocheted right into the hands of Bennett, who ran the rest of the way for the 59-yard touchdown.

The Spartans felt Tow-Arnett was down.

“Maybe it’s Halloween. I don’t know,” coach Mark Dantonio said. “There were some scary things that happened out there, that’s for sure.”

The fans were fed up with the refs, who flagged the Gophers for 157 yards in penalties - also the most in their history. The calls evened out in the end, though.

Right before Bennett’s score off the bobbled ball, Tow-Arnett lost a fumble that was recovered by the Spartans. It was overturned by replay review, which ruled an incomplete pass.

On the following possession, the Spartans were whistled for four of their nine penalties. They reached the 39, but Kirk Cousins overthrew his receiver on fourth down. They stopped the Gophers on third-and-1, but punter Blake Haudan drew a roughing call and Minnesota was able to run out the clock.

“An amazingly resilient effort,” Gophers coach Tim Brewster said.

The Spartans (4-5, 3-3) were fortunate to be in the game in the second half, given all the self-inflicted problems by the Gophers. This was a familiar tough loss, though; all of Michigan State’s defeats this year have come by eight points or less.

“We did some good things, but we didn’t play disciplined,” Cousins said.

He dropped a snap and threw an interception in the first half, but neither turnover led to points for Minnesota. He finished 21 for 35 for 236 yards and two touchdowns, both of them impressive throws. His 11-yard toss to tight end Dion Sims gave the Spartans their first lead, 31-28 heading into the final quarter.

The third quarter actually belonged to Keshawn Martin, who took the kickoff back 82 yards for a score and then raced 84 yards for a touchdown on an end around to put the Spartans in position for the wild finish.

“It was pretty disappointing,” wide receiver B.J. Cunningham said. “We didn’t come out ready in the beginning, but we’ve got to get it out of our heads and not worry about it.”

Weber’s struggles have been glaring at times this month, and without Decker it was natural to assume the worst. On the first play from scrimmage, though, Weber used a textbook play-action fake to find Bennett open along the sideline for a 62-yard catch and tiptoe streak along the sideline.

After a Spartans fumble and another quick score, Weber found Decker on crutches on the sideline and hugged him. In the locker room afterward, the Gophers chanted Decker’s name and gladly gave him the game ball.

“To just see the joy that he had knowing that we were playing for him tonight really feels special,” linebacker Lee Campbell said, “and hopefully it’s something he can carry for the rest of his life.”