Michigan State Hosts Youngstown State in Home Opener Saturday in Spartan Stadium

Game 2: Michigan State (1-0) vs. Youngstown State (1-0)

Date: Saturday, Sept. 11
Kickoff: 12:01 p.m. EDT
Location: East Lansing, Mich.
Stadium: Spartan Stadium (74,866)
Surface: Natural Grass
Tickets: msuspartans.com
Live Stats: msuspartans.com | Live Stats

TV: Big Ten Network
Announcers: Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Anthony Herron (analyst), Coley Harvey (sidelines)

Radio: Spartan Media Network | Affiliate Listings
Play-by-Play: George Blaha
Analyst: Jason Strayhorn
Sidelines: Steve Courtney
Broadcast Host: Will Tieman
Website/Mobile: msuspartans.com/MSU Spartans app/Tune In radio
Flagship Stations: Lansing: WMMQ (94.9 FM)/WJIM (1240 AM); Detroit: WJR (760 AM); Grand Rapids: WBFX (101.3 FM)
Affiliates: 30 affiliates listed at msuspartans.com
Satellite: Sirius (Ch. 83), XM (Ch. 83), SiriusXM app (Ch. 83)
Pre-game Show: Begins at 10:30 a.m.

All-Time Series: MSU leads, 2-0
Series in East Lansing: MSU leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: MSU 55, YSU 17 (2013)
Current Series Streak: 2 by MSU (2011-)

COACHES:
MSU Head Coach: Mel Tucker
MSU Record: 3-5 (second year)
Overall Record: 8-12 (third year)
Record vs. YSU: 0-0

Youngstown State Head Coach: Doug Phillips
YSU Record: 2-6 (second year)
Overall Record: 2-6 (second year)
Record vs. MSU: 0-0

FIRST-AND-10 –
• Fresh off a 38-21 season-opening win at Northwestern last Friday, Michigan State hosts Youngstown State in the 2021 home opener on Saturday, Sept. 11 at noon in Spartan Stadium. YSU also won its season opener with a 44-41 overtime victory against Incarnate Word. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network, with Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Anthony Herron (analyst) and Coley Harvey (sidelines) on the call.

• Michigan State and Youngstown State will meet for the third time in series history on Saturday. The Spartans won the previous two meetings in East Lansing (28-6 on Sept. 2, 2011, and 55-17 on Sept. 14, 2013).

• Saturday marks the first time since the 2019 regular-season finale vs. Maryland (Nov. 30, 2019) that fans will be in attendance at Spartan Stadium. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a limited number of family and staff members attended the first two home games of the 2020 season in East Lansing, but the final two games did not have anyone in the stands in Spartan Stadium.

• After a record-setting debut as a Spartan, junior running back Kenneth Walker III was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week by the conference office on Monday. A transfer from Wake Forest, Walker rushed for a career-high 264 yards – the seventh-highest total in school history – and scored a career-high four touchdowns to lead the Spartans past Northwestern. It marked the most rushing yards by a Spartan in a debut wearing the Green and White.

• Walker is just the second Spartan to record more than 250 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the same game (Eric Allen, school-record 350 yards and four TDs vs. Purdue on Oct. 30, 1971). Walker is also the first Big Ten running back with 250-plus rushing yards and four rushing TDs in a single game since Melvin Gordon (Wisconsin) in 2014.

• Walker's 264 rushing yards are the most ever by a Spartan running back in an MSU season opener. He also posted the first 200-yard rushing game for a Spartan since Le'Veon Bell in 2012 (266 yards at Minnesota on Nov. 24) and the four rushing TDs are the most since Edwin Baker had four vs. Minnesota in 2010.

• Walker currently leads the nation in rushing and is tied for first in rushing touchdowns. He scored 17 rushing TDs in his first two seasons at Wake Forest and now has 21 overall in his career.

• Michigan State rushed for 326 yards against Northwestern, marking the first time the Spartans gained more than 300 yards on the ground since Oct. 18, 2014, at Indiana (330 yards). MSU enters the second week of the season ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten and eighth in the FBS in rushing.

• Saturday's game marks just the seventh time in school history that MSU has played an opponent from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The Spartans defeated Montana State, 44-3, in the 2009 season opener; Northern Colorado, 45-7, in Week 4 of the 2010 campaign; Youngstown State, 28-6, in the 2011 season opener; Youngstown State, 55-17 in Week 3 of the 2013 season; Jacksonville State, 45-7 in the 2014 season opener; and Furman, 28-13, in the 2016 season opener. Michigan State has outscored its FCS opponents, 245-53 (average score of 41-9), in the six previous meetings.

• Michigan State's streak of 21 straight wins in its home opener was snapped in 2020. The Spartans are 102-22 (.823) all-time in home openers, including victories in 23 of the past 25 years.

STAT LEADERS–
Michigan State:
Rushing – Jr. Kenneth Walker III (23 carries for 264 yards, 11.5 avg., 4 TDs)
Passing – R-So. Payton Thorne (15-of-25, .600, 185 yards, 1 TD, 0 INTs)
Receiving – R-Jr. Jayden Reed (5 catches for 64 yards, 12.8 avg., 0 TDs)
Tackles – Sr. S Xavier Henderson (9 tackles, 2 TFLs, 1 sack) and So. S Angelo Grose (9 tackles, 1 PBU)

Youngstown State:
Rushing – Sr. Jaleel McLaughlin (29 carries for 242 yards, 8.3 avg., 2 TDs)
Passing – R-Fr. Demeatric Crenshaw (9-of-12, .750, 112 yards, 1 TD, 0 INTs)
Receiving – Sr. Jaleel McLaughlin (2 receptions for 46 yards, 23.0 avg., 0 TDs)
Tackles – So. DB D'Marco Augustin (7 tackles, 0.5 TFL) and So. DB Jordan White (7 tackles, 1 PBU)

MSU/YOUNGSTOWN STATE SERIES NOTES –
• Michigan State and Youngstown State will meet for the third time in series history on Saturday. The Spartans won the previous two meetings in East Lansing (28-6 on Sept. 2, 2011, and 55-17 on Sept. 14, 2013).

• MSU produced 547 total yards (277 rushing and 270 passing) in the 55-17 win over the Penguins in 2013. Connor Cook was 15-of-22 passing for 202 yards and four touchdowns in the victory.

• Kirk Cousins completed 18-of-22 throws for 222 yards and one TD in the 28-6 victory against Youngstown State in the 2011 season opener. On MSU's first offensive play of the game, senior captain Joel Foreman, who had started 22 consecutive games at left guard, volunteered his starting position for cancer survivor Arthur Ray Jr.

A QUICK GLANCE AT YOUNGSTOWN STATE (1-0) –
• The Penguins tote a 1-0 ledger into Spartan Stadium for Saturday's matchup with Michigan State. Saturday marks YSU's first trip to East Lansing since 2013 and the Penguins' first game against a Big Ten foe since playing at Illinois in 2014.

• Youngstown State is coming off a thrilling 44-41 overtime win over Incarnate Word on Sept. 2. YSU rallied late, as the Penguins got the ball with 39 seconds left down 41-38, and faced a third-and-3 from their own 32-yard line, but a pass from redshirt freshman quarterback Demeatric Crenshaw to senior running back Jaleel McLaughlin for a 45-yard gain moved the ball to the UIW 23 with just two seconds left. Senior placekicker Colt McFadden connected on a 41-yard field goal as time expired to send the game to overtime, then hit a 27-yard field goal for the game-winner.

• McLaughlin rushed for a career-high 242 yards on 29 carries with two TDs, adding two receptions for 46 yards, and was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference co-Offensive Player of the Week, as his 242 rushing yards and 288 all-purpose yards were both the most in the FCS in the opening weekend.

• Crenshaw was 9-for-12 passing for 112 yards with one TD, and rushed 20 times for 81 yards and two rushing scores, but he was also sacked three times by the UIW defense.

• McFadden earned Missouri Valley Football Conference Special Teams Player of the Week accolades for his three-field goal outing in the UIW win. In addition to his game-tying and game-winning field goals, McFadden also made a 27-yard field goal in the second quarter. McFadden is the first YSU kicker to earn the weekly honor since October 2016.

• The sophomore defensive back duo of Jordan White and D'Marco Augustin led the Penguin defense with seven tackles apiece. White added one pass break-up and a QB hurry, while Augustin had 0.5 tackle for loss and a forced fumble. Junior defensive lineman Vinny Gentile added two TFLs with the lone sack for the YSU defense.

• The Penguins had 463 yards of total offense in the win over UIW, with 351 rushing with four TDs on the ground, and 112 passing, with one score through the air. The YSU defense yielded 490 yards of total offense to UIW, with 138 rushing and 352 passing.

• Doug Phillips is in his second season leading the Penguin program, posting a 2-6 record. As FCS moved football to the spring of 2021 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, Phillips led YSU to a 1-6 record last season, making his head coach debut against top-ranked and defending FCS National Champion North Dakota State.

LAST TIME OUT: MICHIGAN STATE 38, NORTHWESTERN 21 –
• Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker improved to 2-0 against Northwestern, leading the Spartans to victory over the Wildcats for second straight season, after last year's 29-20 victory for MSU over then-No. 8 ranked Northwestern.

• Michigan State has won seven of the last eight games at Northwestern. MSU now leads the all-time series, 40-20, including a three-game winning streak over the Wildcats.

• MSU ran for 326 yards, marking the first time that the Spartans rushed for 300 yards in a game since 2014 at Indiana (330 yards).

• Last Friday marked the first time MSU won a conference road game to start the season since 1972 (24-0 at Illinois on Sept. 16, 1972).

• Junior transfer Kenneth Walker III rushed for a career-high 264 yards – the seventh-highest total in school history – and scored a career-high four touchdowns to lead the Spartans. It marked the most rushing yards by a Spartan in a debut wearing the Green and White.

• On MSU's first play from scrimmage, Walker raced 75 yards to the end zone, giving the Spartans a lead they wouldn't relinquish all game. He added touchdown runs of 3 yards (midway through first quarter), 5 yards (third quarter) and 6 yards (fourth quarter), in addition to explosive runs of 50, 30 and 23 yards.

• Walker is just the second Spartan to record more than 250 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the same game (Eric Allen, school-record 350 yards and four TDs vs. Purdue on Oct. 30, 1971). Walker is also the first Big Ten running back with 250-plus rushing yards and four rushing TDs in a single game since Melvin Gordon (Wisconsin) in 2014.

• Walker's 264 rushing yards are the most ever by a Spartan running back in an MSU season opener. He also posted the first 200-yard rushing game for a Spartan since Le'Veon Bell in 2012 (266 yards at Minnesota on Nov. 24) and the four rushing TDs are the most since Edwin Baker had four vs. Minnesota in 2010.

• Walker is the first Spartan to score four TDs in a single game since Jeremy Langford (2013 vs. Indiana, three rushing and one receiving). True freshman Sedrick Irvin also scored four TDs in his Spartan debut vs. Purdue in 1996 (three rushing, one receiving).

• Walker currently leads the nation in rushing and is tied for first in rushing touchdowns. He scored 17 rushing TDs in his first two seasons at Wake Forest and now has 21 overall in his career.

• Sophomore running back Jordon Simmons scored his first career TD with a 14-yard screen pass reception in the second quarter.

• Redshirt sophomore quarterback Payton Thorne made his second career start, throwing for 185 yards on 15-of-25 passing with one TD, to earn his first win as the Spartans' starting QB . . . Thorne also rushed for 28 yards on five carries . . . Thorne now has four career TD passes, on 63-of-110 passing for 767 yards in his two years as a Spartan signal-caller.

• Redshirt junior wide receiver Jayden Reed led MSU's receiving corps with five receptions for 64 yards . . . sophomore wide receiver Tre Mosley added four catches for 59 yards.

• Senior safety Xavier Henderson shared the team-lead with nine tackles, including a career-high two tackles for loss and the first sack of his MSU career.

• Sophomore safety Angelo Grose matched Henderson with nine tackles, logging a new career-high, topping previous career-best of six stops done twice in his career, last doing so vs. Ohio State (12/5/20) and also added one pass-break-up, tying career-best for the third time in his career.

• Redshirt junior cornerback Kalon Gervin also notched a career-high with eight tackles, topping previous career-high of four stops, previously done four times, last vs. Penn State (12/12/20).

• Senior placekicker Matt Coghlin was 1-for-2 on field goals, missing a 60-yard attempt as time expired in the first half, before splitting the uprights from 37-yards out in the fourth quarter . . . Coghlin is now 65-of-87 for his career on field goals, currently No. 2 on MSU's career field goals list, closing gap on school record of 71 by Brett Swenson (2006-09) . . . the .747 career field goal percentage is No. 4 on the Spartan career list . . . Coghlin also made all five of his PATs Friday, and is now 112-of-112 for his career, holding the No. 8 spot on MSU's career PAT list . . . now with 313 career points, Coghlin moves up to No. 4 on the MSU career scoring list, passing John Langeloh (308 points, 1987-90).

Michigan State Hosts Youngstown State in Home Opener Saturday in Spartan Stadium

Game 2: Michigan State (1-0) vs. Youngstown State (1-0)

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Players Mentioned

Matt Coghlin

Kalon Gervin

Angelo Grose

Xavier Henderson

Tre Mosley

Jayden Reed

Jordon Simmons

Payton Thorne

Kenneth Walker III