2008 Week 7

It may be very boring, but it certainly is working. The Spartans smashmouth style is similar to a high school football team that's afraid to throw, but in the end great running and a tremendous defense is all you need to win games. The #23 Spartans beat the Iowa Hawkeyes 17-7 in Iowa today to move to 5-0 and 2-0 in Big Ten play.

Allowing just 216 yards of total offense, the Michigan State Spartans defense forced four turnovers and controlled the game from the get go.

The Spartans have given up no more than 264 yards in a game this season, and their ball control offense is leading the way. This time, Michigan State held on to the ball for over 18 minutes, while the Hawkeyes saw it for just nine.

HB Javon Ringer ran for 120 yards and a score on 30 carries, while new impact HB A.J. Jimmerson ran for 39 yards and a score on 9 carries.

QB Brian Hoyer threw for just 97 yards, but a 10 for 14 performance allowed the offense to keep moving the chains and keep causing fits for the Hawkeye defense.

Coming into the season, the first half of games were looked at as must wins, if the Spartans wanted to compete with a very tough second half of the season. At 5-0, the Spartans have done more than compete, they've set the tone and controlled every game.

It will be interesting to see if Dr. P sticks with the gameplan when high quality ranked opponents come into the picture.