NCAA Game Summary - Michigan State at Michigan;(Saturday, October 9th)

Published Oct. 10, 2010 10:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Final Score: (17) Michigan State 34, (18) Michigan 17

Edwin Baker, Le'Veon Bell, and Larry Caper
recorded one rushing touchdown apiece, as the 17th-ranked Michigan State
Spartans handled the 18th-ranked Michigan Wolverines, 34-17, in a battle
between these two Big Ten rivals at Michigan Stadium.

Baker carried the ball 22 times for 147 yards for the Spartans (6-0, 2-0 Big
Ten), who have won three straight games against Michigan for the first
time since 1965-67. Bell rushed for 78 yards on seven carries.

Kirk Cousins completed 18-of-25 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown in the
annual battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. Mark Dell hauled in three passes for
93 yards and a score.

Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio returned to the team after missing the
previous two games. A mild heart attack and a blood clot in his leg led to
multiple trips to the hospital for Dantonio, who coached from the press box on
Saturday.

"I have great respect for Michigan and outstanding respect for coach [Rich]
Rodriguez and the job that they do," Dantonio said. "You embrace rivalries;
that's the way I've coached wherever I've been. It's good for college
football, and it's good for fans."

Heisman Trophy candidate Denard Robinson connected on 17-of-29 passes for 215
yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions for the Wolverines (5-1, 1-1),
who own a 67-31-5 edge in the all-time series despite the loss. Robinson also
carried the ball 21 times for 86 yards and a score.

"We hurt ourselves with a couple of interceptions, and there were definitely
some points down there," Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez said. "It's the
same old thing: you ought to be able to stop them running when you know
they're going to run. We can't do that right now, and we've got to figure it
out and get better for next week."

The Wolverines moved the ball to the MSU 10-yard line on the opening
possession of the game. Robinson, though, was picked off in the end zone on
third down.

Michigan State failed to take advantage of the turnover and punted the ball
back to Michigan. Seth Broekhuizen capped a 13-play, 73-yard drive with a 34-
yard field goal to make it 3-0 with 1:25 remaining in the first.

The Spartans scored a touchdown early in the second quarter to take the lead.
Baker followed an eight-yard run with a 61-yard scamper for a TD to make it
7-3 with about 11 1/2 minutes to go until half.

Michigan State held its four-point lead following Martell Webb's 12-yard
touchdown catch and Bell's 41-yard TD run.

The Spartans were able to put three more points on the board prior to the
half. Faced with a 4th-and-3 from the Michigan 39, B.J. Cunningham caught a
10-yard pass. Dan Conroy made a 38-yard field goal a few plays later to give
Michigan State a 17-10 margin.

A 51-yard pass from Robinson to Martavious Odoms had the Wolverines in field
goal position with three seconds left. However, Michigan State blocked the
field goal attempt.

The Spartans struck quickly in the second half. On the fifth play, Dell
beat his man down the left sideline and hauled in a 41-yard TD pass for a
24-10 lead.

Michigan moved the ball to the MSU 12-yard line on its ensuing possession.
Robinson, though, was intercepted by Johnny Adams. Michigan State used power
football to essentially put the game away. Caper ended a 10-play drive
with an eight-yard touchdown run to make it a 31-10 contest with 4:55
remaining in the third.

Robinson's four-yard rushing touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter
cut Michigan's deficit to 31-17. However, Robinson made another huge mistake
on the Wolverines next possession as Chris Rucker recorded the third
interception of the game for the Spartans.

Conroy's 28-yard field goal with 7:14 to go accounted for the final margin.

Game Notes

Michigan is 34-22-2 in the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy...Five of the
last seven games in the series had been decided by eight points or less,
including three overtime games (2004, 2005 and 2009)...The Spartans had 249
yards rushing, compared to 162 for the Wolverines...Robinson had just one
interception coming into Saturday's game.