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Michigan State Football: What worked and what didn’t against Indiana

By Thomas Nikundiwe

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Oct 24, 2015; East Lansing, MI, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Nate Sudfeld (7) is sacked by Michigan State Spartans defensive lineman Joel Heath (92) during the 2nd half of a game at Spartan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports

Defensive line

Overall, this was probably the weakest performance of the year for the MSU defensive line. After a forgettable first half, the D-line stepped up and looked it’s usual self in the second half.

The defensive line ended up with two sacks (Joel Heath and Shilique Calhoun), three quarterback hurries (two for Calhoun, one for Lawrence Thomas) and one pass batted down (Lawrence). MSU will need 60 minutes from its D-Line when it faces Nebraska and Ohio State.

What worked: Second half

According to MSU beat writer Joe Rexrode, “Senior defensive end Shilique Calhoun had some strong halftime words.”

Those strong words must have had an impact on his linemates because in the second half, the defense held strong led by the defensive line. After giving up 20 points in the first half, the defense gave up just six points in the second — and those six were given up on IU’s very first drive of the second half).

On the drive following Indiana’s successful drive to start the second half, Joel Heath sacked the Hoosiers’ Nate Sudfeld leading to an eventual punt. The very next defensive series, Calhoun sacked Sudfeld again leading to a punt. Indiana would not score again for the rest of the game.

What didn’t: First half

I’ve been arguing in this space that the defensive line has to be dominant in order for this particular MSU defense to work. The first half of the game we got to see what happens when the d-line isn’t dominant. The secondary gets exposed time and again when the quarterback has a clean pocket to throw.

It looked like Indiana was going to drop 40 on MSU with the way the defensive line played in the first half. There was no push and no penetration. The one sack they were able to get was negated by a penalty.

Next: Linebackers

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