Michigan State Football: Report card for win over Michigan in Week 6
B+. . ST. Michigan State. SPECIAL TEAMS
This had to be one of the most underrated position groups from Saturday’s game. Everyone was talking about the defense and the offensive line, for good reason, but the special teams unit was fantastic.
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Jake Hartbarger had some good punts but he also was forced to kick from deep in his own territory a couple of times. The line let a couple of Wolverines rush the punt and he got out low line drives. What those low kicks did, however, was prevent a big return from Donovan Peoples-Jones.
In fact, the punts, along with the impressive coverage, held the dangerous freshman returner to just six yards on three returns. That’s something everyone seemed to be worried about before the game, but the punt coverage was fantastic. Hartbarger punted 11 times for 430 yards.
As for the punt return game, though, Laress Nelson had a forgettable performance. His shaky play was the reason this group got a B+ instead of an A- this week. The golden rule of returning punts is that if it’s over your head, don’t run backwards and try to catch it over your shoulder. Let it bounce. Nelson struggled with that and nearly gave Michigan a free touchdown.
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Matt Coghlin was 2-for-2 on extra points but didn’t get a chance to attempt a field goal — that may have been different if Trishton Jackson didn’t drop a sure first down right before half.