Michigan State Football: 5 takeaways from win over Michigan

Oct 17, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans quarterback Connor Cook (18) looks to make a pass in the first quarter against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

1. Cook is a big-game master

Connor Cook seems to thrive in big games. Over his career as the starter for Michigan State, he has put together some masterful performances against quality opponents. Against Michigan during his career, Cook has passed for 807 yards, three touchdowns and just one interception. His best game was this year against the Wolverines, despite him not reaching 50 percent completions.

You may look at his completion rate — 18-of-39 — in this one and just call it a poor performance accuracy-wise, but there were a lot of factors that went into all those incompletions. He was blitzed more often than not, so rather than take a bunch of sacks, he tossed the ball away. Also, his receivers dropped a couple of easy ones.

Cook faced the top passing defense in the Big Ten and came away with 300-plus yards and a touchdown with no turnovers. That’s impressive.

Some of his other big-game performances over his career include Ohio State in the Big Ten title game (304 yards, three TDs), Stanford in the Rose Bowl (332 yards, two TDs), at Oregon in 2014 (343 yards, two TDs), Ohio State at home in 2014 (358 yards, two TDs) and against Baylor in the Cotton Bowl (314 yards, two TDs).

This senior has a knack for playing well under pressure.

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