50 defining moments from the 2021 Michigan State football season: No. 23

Today marks the four-week mark of this Michigan State football series, and 23 days until the Spartans kick off their season. Why not another Nailor play?

Welcome back to the 28th article in my Michigan State football series. Today is moment No. 23, and one of the last couple of plays against Rutgers in this series. I promised that all three Jalen Nailor touchdowns from the game would be mentioned in this list, and I will make good on that promise today.

For those of you who missed yesterday’s article, please click here. If you would like to look at previous articles of this series, feel free to scroll through my writing profile.

No. 23: Jalen Nailor’s 63-yard TD reception vs. Rutgers

This play was in the second quarter of the game, and Nailor’s second of the ball game.

Why No. 23?

As mentioned in previous articles, the Scarlet Knights seemed very upset-minded against the Spartans to begin the game. After Michigan State gave the ball away seven times in 2020, a fourth down stop enabled Rutgers to score a quick touchdown. Michigan State responded with a Nailor touchdown in a few plays. Rutgers then got a field goal, making it seem as if this game would be a slugfest. This all led up to this defining moment in the campaign.

On this play, Payton Thorne drops back and instantly looks over to Nailor, who beat Rutgers corner Tre Avery. Nailor catches it in stride and decelerates, letting Avery and the Rutgers safety over pursue. Already on the right sideline, Nailor plants his foot in the ground and cuts to the center of the field.

At this point, all Nailor needed to do was run and not get cocky and celebrate early. He does exactly that, showing excellent field awareness, and winds up in the endzone, just out of reach of a desperation diving tackle attempt.

Thorne threw an excellent ball, but this play is all Nailor. The now-Minnesota Viking had some of the best displays of field awareness and an attitude to not give up. How many other receivers have we seen, Spartan or others, that will catch this ball and run out of bounds with the sideline right there?

Nailor bet on himself, his speed, and his ability and was rewarded with six points. In terms of a “wow” factor, this is Nailor’s top play of 2021, even beating out his Pitt one-handed catch. Nailor’s speed and vision will be sorely missed by the Spartans on Saturdays this fall, but hopefully watching him on Sundays can make up for it.

From this moment, the Spartans will never trail again. Rutgers will go on to get a field goal a few drives later and then be shut out. As a result of this play, all momentum shifted to the Spartans and they capitalized with multiple touchdowns of 60-plus yards after this.

Statistically, this was Nailor’s second of three touchdowns on the day. It was his second 63-yard touchdown catch as well, ironically enough. This contributed to his previously mentioned record-setting day at SHI Stadium. For Thorne, this aided in his campaign that resulted in the school record for touchdown passes. I feel bad for not appreciating Thorne more in this article, but Nailor made this play.

This play was amazing and deserves much more recognition, but it cannot slot higher due to the end result of this game. It is not even the most well-known play due to a certain Kenneth Walker play, one that will have an article soon. On top of that, Nailor had such an amazing game that people just lump this as part of his day without giving this play the recognition it deserves. I hope that I can help rectify this by recognizing it in this article. The “wow” factor, momentum shift, and greatness are all there on this play, but this is part of an 18-point Spartan victory.

Tomorrow will be the first time the near disaster of a game against Nebraska will be mentioned in this series.