Trends&Schemes: 3 key plays which helped Michigan State preserve its shutout against Prairie View

EAST LANSING, Mich. - It remains to be seen how Michigan State’s defense stacks up against the top offensive teams coming on the schedule, including next week’s tough tilt at much-improved Boston College, but the Spartans have succeeded in one important aspect through three games: They have made their opponent one-dimensional. For a third straight game, Michigan State stopped the run in posting a 40-0 victory over Prairie View, Saturday at Spartan Stadium.  But the Spartans did more than merely stop the run in this game. Michigan State stifled the ground game, as should be expected against an out-gunned FCS opponent. Michigan State held Prairie View to 1.0 yards per carry (27 rushing yards on 27 attempts).  Take three Spartan sacks out of the equation, and the Pathers’ designed ball carriers netted 39 yards on 24 carries (1.6 per attempt). This comes after Michigan State held Maryland to 2.8 yards per carry last week, causing Terps head coach Mike Locksley to cite his team’s “inability to run” as a main cause of their defeat, if not the main cause.  A week earlier, Michigan State held Florida Atlantic to 2.8 yards per carry. (More).