2012 Football Guide
2011 REVIEW
Transitional Season Concludes With Big Strides Road Weary The football Bears opened the 2011 season with a monumental task ahead of them: play four straight road games to begin the year, including games at perennial FBS powerhouses Arkansas and Oregon. The tough September start made MSU the only team in college football -- at any level -- to play two FBS Top 15 teams as part of its non-conference slate. Opening with four straight road games for the first time in school history was even more challenging with the season opener at No. 15 Arkansas on Sept. 3. The Bears used true freshman quarterback Kierra Harris in lieu of suspended starter Trevor Wooden to engineer their offense in Fayetteville. The largest crowd (70,607) in MSU history saw the Razorbacks jump out to a 30-0 lead in the first half and outgain the visitors by a 466-163 margin in a 51-7 loss. Harris, for his part, finished 8-for-14 for 70 yards with the only bright spot being a 33-yard touchdown strike to Jermaine Saffold late in the third quarter to break up the shutout and make it a 44-7 game at the time. Sophomore Nick Canavan set up the scoring drive with a pivotal fumble recovery at the Arkansas 33-yard line. Harris and Saffold connected on the very next play, setting the stage for a season full of quick-strike plays for Saffold. The Bears had four freshman starters on the defensive side ball against the Razorbacks, including safety Mike Crutcher who tallied a team-high 10 tackles. The following week, MSU took its road act to Richmond, Ky., to battle Ohio Valley Conference power Eastern Kentucky. The eventual FCS playoff qualifier shut the Bears out in the first half and took a 14-0 lead into the third quarter. The Bears then turned the tides and outgained the Colonels 1324 in the third quarter, ending the period knocking on the door of a potential game-tying score. On third-and-goal, Chris Douglas was
Freshman quarterback Kierra Harris started the season opener at Arkansas and got in on a pair of series at Oregon two weeks later. He was 10-for-16 through the air with a touchdown against the FBS foes. (MSU Photo Services).
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When the Bears took the opening drive of the game 84 yards to paydirt, the scoreboard at sold out Autzen Stadium showed the Bears on top of the hometown Ducks early. (photo by Steve Menke).
cut down at the one-yard line, and MSU elected to call on Austin Witmer to convert an easy 18-yard field to make it 14-10 just 48 seconds into the final period. However, just as it looked like the momentum was changing for good, EKU brought the home crowd back into the game with an 88yard kickoff return for a touchdown to retake an 11-point lead with 14:11 left. MSU bounced off the canvas with a quick strike of its own on the next series. Julian Burton returned the ensuing kickoff to the Bears’ 29, setting up a 71-yard TD strike from Wooden to Saffold on the very next play to make it 21-17. Later, when the Colonels took over at their own 41 with 8:41 to go, EKU put together a 59-yard touchdown drive to seal the win. The 13-play drive was capped with a 12-yard scamper by Jeremiah Williams to end the nearly-five-minute drive and made it 28-17 with just under four minutes remaining in the contest. MSU rallied again on its next series, staying in the game with a 60-yard scoring drive that culminated in a nine-yard pass from Wooden to Saffold to make it 28-24 with 1:54 to go. However, EKU recovered the ensuing sky kick at its own 33 and ultimately ran out the clock to survive a mad comeback by the Bears. In his first career start, Wooden finished 22-for-32 for 262 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also had a team-high 71 rushing yards with a score to finish with 333 total yards and break an MSU record for passing yards in a debut performance. Saffold had six receptions for 126 yards and a pair of scores to continue his earlyseason heroics. Week 3 took the Bears to historic Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., to battle the No. 12 Oregon Ducks. The impressive gameday atmosphere and boisterous crowd of 58,847 didn’t seem to phase the Bears in the early going as the Maroons took charge from the opening kickoff. Wooden engineered an 84-yard touchdown drive to start the game and put the visitors ahead 7-0. The nine-play drive silenced the crowd for the moment and helped boost the hopes of the Bears against one of the nation’s top programs. Douglas capped the rally with a 3-yard touchdown carry to seal the 4-minute, 38-second drive. A pair of key completions to tight end Matt Thayer were also pivotal on the drive.
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