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    • Michigan State football holds on late in its 24-17 win over Purdue
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    Michigan State football holds on late in its 24-17 win over Purdue

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    EAST LANSING – For 30 minutes, with the wind blowing and the rain falling and the stands nowhere near full, Michigan State Football put it all together.

    The offense clicked and scored 24 straight points. The defense got stops and generated sacks and turnovers.

    Then came the conclusion of the second half, which brought on survival mode. And ultimately escaping at home against one of the worst teams in the country.

    Jonathan Smith’s team must now find a way to get another 60 minutes of winning football to extend the season.

    Aidan Chiles went 15-for-31 for 159 yards and two touchdowns while running for 26 more yards, Nate Carter scored in a hurry and received TDs, and Jordan Turner delivered a diving interception in the fourth quarter as the Spartans turned away lowly Purdue, 24- 17. on Friday night at Spartan Stadium.

    Ultimately, it came down to a fourth-down Chiles sneak after the sophomore ran out of bounds just before a game-clinching first down. He picked it up a play later by a football’s length, and the Spartans ran out of clock.

    MSU (4-6, 2-5 Big Ten) closes the regular season next Saturday when it hosts Rutgers, needing one more win in Smith’s first season to earn bowl eligibility for the first time since 2021 . Kick-off is at 3:30 PM (FS1).

    INJURY VIEW: Michigan State’s Jack Velling was eliminated from the Purdue game on a big hit

    Quarterback Hudson Card went 26-for-47 for 342 yards, a touchdown and an interception for Purdue (1-10, 0-8), which has lost 10 straight since its season-opening victory over Indiana State of the Football Championship Subdivision. The Boilermakers gave the Spartans fits by going 5-for-13 on third downs and 2-for-3 on fourth downs.

    30 strong minutes for Spartans

    It wasn’t perfect by any means. But MSU opened a 24-3 halftime lead with one of the most productive 30 minutes of the season.

    The Boilers moved the ball quickly and efficiently on the opening drive, but the Spartans ultimately recorded their first sack in seven games when Angelo Grose dropped Card on third-and-8. That forced a Ben Freehill 40-yard field goal after a 5:23 Purdue possession that put MSU in a short hole.

    Tight end Jack Velling was knocked out of the game on the Spartans’ ensuing drive and taken to a local hospital for evaluation after being dislodged onto a backboard and cart. That came after Chiles reached his fellow Oregon State transfer for an 11-yard completion on third-and-9 to keep the chains moving.

    After a long delay, Chiles used his legs to convert another third down, then hit Ademola Faleye for 14 yards to the Purdue 7. On the next play, Chiles zipped a dart to Montorie Foster Jr. the end zone for a 7-yard TD pass with 4:24 left in the opening quarter.

    The Spartans scored a 43-yard Jonathan Kim field goal on a three-and-out by their defense. The offense quickly got the ball back two plays on the Boilersmakers’ next drive, with Quindarius Dunningan taking the ball away from Devin Mockobee and Maverick Hansen pounced on it at Purdue’s 33. It was MSU’s second fumble of the season and first since September 21 . Boston College forced the Spartans’ first turnover in the past four games.

    Chiles almost immediately gave the ball back when Purdue’s Dillon Thieneman – who delivered the goal to Velling – picked off an apparently errant pass and deflected it back into MSU territory. But Foster drew a pass interference flag on Tarrion Grant to move the Spartans 15 yards closer to the end zone instead. Six plays later, on third-and-goal, Carter picked his way along the line of scrimmage and hit the pylon on his dive for a 2-yard touchdown with 7:45 remaining.

    MSU got another sack of Card, then Freehill’s 30-yard field goal attempt put his teammate in the back of the helmet with 2:36 before halftime. Chiles marched 84 yards against the Spartans in 10 plays, using his legs for another third-down conversion with an 18-yard gain before making two NFL throws to close the drive. The first was a 33-yard fade to Foster, the last 20 came on a laser to Carter on a running back-wheel route that sent MSU into the locker room with its first halftime lead since beating Iowa on Oct. 19.

    Chiles went 10-for-19 for 120 yards and two touchdowns passing and 23 yards on three rushing attempts. Kay’ron Lynch-Adams had 54 yards as the Spartans rushed for 100 yards on 20 attempts. Their defense held Purdue to minus-7 yards on the ground in the first two quarters to offset Card’s 141 passing yards.

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    Where has the mojo gone?

    As the second half began and the intermittent rain turned to a steady drizzle, many of the fans, more than 57,000 fans who braved the cold, a large majority of them students, left Spartan Stadium.

    And with them went MSU’s mojo and momentum.

    The Spartans’ opening possession of the third quarter resulted in just 9 yards, even though a Chiles sneak gave them a fourth-down conversion. It took Purdue 10 plays to move 73 yards, with Card hitting Shamar Rigby for a 17-yard gain on fourth-and-5 before Mockobee raced down the left sideline for a 2-yard touchdown run to cut MSU’s lead while still once 5 gnawed: 24 hours a day.

    Card and the Boilermakers continued to take advantage of the extra opportunities and the injury-depleted MSU secondary. Grose was flagged for pass interference on a third-and-8 that kept the drive alive. Then Card, facing third-and-21 after a timeout thanks to the Spartans’ continued pressure, raced away from Ken Talley and delivered a 38-yard comeback strike to receiver Jaron Tibbs for cornerbacks Ade Willie and Ed Woods. Map found tight end Max Klare for a 7-yard score on the next play.

    MSU’s offensive quagmire continued with a quick three-and-out, and Purdue got the ball with a chance to tie the game and 9:44 left. But Card’s pass to Klare bounced off his hands, Grose tapped it and Turner made a diving interception less than a minute later.

    However, Purdue got the ball back as MSU was unable to capitalize. Card’s deep shot to a wide-open Jahmal Edrine, well behind the Spartans’ defenders, hit his receiver in stride and slipped through his hands. Tibbs dropped a third-down pass, and Turner and Khris Bogle forced Card into a fourth-down incompletion with 3:18 to go. That gave Chiles the final first down, although his first four-yard run fell just short of the Purdue bench.

    MSU managed just 73 of 293 yards in the second half, including 17 on the final drive, while Chiles went just 5-for-12 for 39 yards after halftime.

    Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.

    Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes every week Apple podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And check out all our podcasts and daily voting briefing at freep.com/podcasts.

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