Ringing in the rain: Senior runs for 282 as defense pitches shutout

EAST LANSING - The rain battered the field, the players, the band, the cheerleaders and the 50,000 or so fans who actually showed up at Spartan Stadium to be marinated Saturday.

It was hard on everyone. Just think of Michigan State equipment coordinator Bob Knickerbocker.

"I think I went through 20 quarterback towels," MSU senior quarterback Brian Hoyer said. "I think I drove Mr. Knickerbocker crazy."

Three hours of wind-whipped precipitation made passing more like "shot putting," Hoyer said, and it was hard on the writers tucked away safely in the dry press box, too. No clean judgments could be made after MSU's 17-0 win over Florida Atlantic, except the obvious: Javon Ringer is good at football.

Ringer went to work like never before, piling up career highs with 43 carries and 282 yards. He scored both of MSU's touchdowns, finished with the fourth-best single-game rushing total in MSU history and left Florida Atlantic coach Howard Schnellenberger thinking Discovery Channel.

"When they all come off at one time they look like a herd of water buffalo stampeding at you," Schnellenberger said of MSU's offensive line, "and there's a gazelle somewhere in behind them."

The buffalo and the gazelle had their second straight overpowering game, while the MSU defense got the program's first shutout since 1999 against Northwestern. But this was a nervous afternoon for the Spartans (2-1) until Ringer's second touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

The ball was slipping all over the place - Hoyer and Joel Nitchman had four bad center exchanges in the first half, while a drop from punter Aaron Bates led to a 1-yard punt - and the Owls (1-2) trailed just 7-0 at halftime.

Neither team could muster anything through the air, but this was a broken play or two from becoming a real problem for MSU. This was a game that saw the teams combine for six fumbles and five third-down conversions.

"The longer you hang," MSU coach Mark Dantonio said of underdogs in such a situation, "the better chance you have to win games like that."

The Spartans survived with Ringer, defense and some luck. FAU's second play was a 74-yard touchdown run for Charles Pierre, but it was called back for holding. The Owls' third possession reached inside MSU's 10, but a botched hold killed a potential field goal.

FAU had drives that started at the MSU 30 after a fumble recovery, the MSU 40 after a Hoyer interception and the MSU 37 after the 1-yard punt. And the Owls couldn't get points.

That ability to handle the "sudden-change" adversity of turnovers and bad field position is what most impressed MSU defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi.

"The shutout and all that is great, it's special," Narduzzi said, "but we've still got a long way to go."

The Owls had some running success in the first half, but heralded quarterback Rusty Smith had a horrendous day in the deluge. He completed just 8 of 34 passes for 143 yards, 71 of which came on a bomb in the fourth quarter.

But Smith then lost a snap at MSU's 4-yard line, squandering another chance to score.

Smith was the victim, unofficially, of 10 dropped passes. Of course, MSU safety Otis Wiley also dropped a pair of picks, leaving him with four pass break-ups on the day.

"I probably threw four spirals all day," said Smith, who downplayed the impact the elements obviously had.

Hoyer did the same, but in addition to the center-exchange issues, he had a ball slip out of his hand for a fumble, and he completed just 5 of 15 passes for 88 yards, the lowest total at MSU since 1995.

The Spartans worked with wet balls all week in practice, but that couldn't prepare them for Saturday's conditions.

"I'm glad it's over," said Hoyer, who did have a key 47-yard launch to Mark Dell to set up MSU's third score.

"It was a mudder," Dantonio said, and he had the uncatchable gazelle on his side, slicing through the mud.

Ringer also had a 51-yard touchdown reception called back for holding.

Ringer's most impressive statistic, Dantonio said, was zero - his number of fumbles. And he said that's why MSU kept Ringer carrying the ball late, to ensure there'd be no more footballs squirting about.

Ringer didn't mind.

"I didn't ask (to stay in)," Ringer said. "But I definitely didn't say, 'Take me out.' "