Connor Cook leaves Maryland game with apparent injury

MI State got its ninth win of the season Saturday, but it’s the status of quarterback Connor Cook that earned the day’s biggest headlines in East Lansing.

Cook says he landed on it amusing and could have played the second half but he was kept out as a precaution and should be ready to go by next weekend. Cook was clearly limited by the injury during the quarter and was on the sidelines wearing a headset after halftime.

“I felt like I could have (played)”, Cook said.

You’ll need to watch one, tape the other to flip-flop between channels Saturday as USC and UCLA play important games at the same time in OR and Utah, respectively. Asked how confident he was on a scale of one to 10 that Cook would be healthy against Ohio State, Spartans coach Mark Dantonio said, “I’m like a 9.5”.

Although Connor Cook seemed to be uninjured after taking a couple hits on the previous drive, MI State opted to put in backup quarterback Tyler O’Connor. “I thought Holmes ran well”.

Let’s dive in and take a look at grading the Spartans performance by position group.

After the game O’Connor said that he felt good about getting into the game when it was still in doubt.

With Cook injured, and then out of the game, the drop-off in offensive production for MI State was noticeable.

Yesterday, we answered a few questions about BC hockey for The Only Colors, SB Nation’s outstanding MI State Spartans blog. BTN will televise at least 66 games, ESPN networks will carry 11 con-tests and CBS networks will broadcast three matchups, with all remaining conference games streaming live on BTN Plus. All 17 of MI State’s first half points came off Maryland turnovers.

Bullough’s 44-yard interception return for a touchdown after Hills telegraphed a pass to the left sideline gave the Spartans a 14-7 lead with 2:07 left in the first half.

The Spartans are known for their aggressiveness on defense, with defensive backs often left in man-to-man coverage. The Terps now have 35 turnovers on the year and have thrown 28 interceptions.

Mark Dantonio echoed the sentiments of his middle linebacker.

“I think what I’m focused on is what everyone else is focused on, ” Meyer said.

Again Maryland’s offense could not do much besides a single first down conversion and after a 29 yard punt from Shrader, MI State again had their drive start in plus territory. On the ground, Gerald Homes rushed for 117 yards and one touchdown in 22 attempts.

After going from presumably healthy and out of the game, Connor Cook came back in just to come out. That was answered on the next drive, when Maryland got an apparent scoring play from Will Likely, who took a screen pass into the end zone.

Mike Locksely, interim head coach: Locksley has a tough job here as coach of a team that just keeps on losing.

Talented players have returned to their team for the 2015-16 season. After three straight 100-yard rushing days in October, Hills was held in check for the second consecutive week.

Saturday afternoon was no different as the Terrapins fell to MI State 24-7. This was a big improvement from a group that was giving up nearly 14 yards per return coming into the game.

JD: Mason Appleton is a freshman from the USHL who has seven points on the season, including his first two career goals last weekend, and has been playing on the top line with Ferrantino and MacEachern. Stanford was hoping next week’s rivalry game against California would be the next step toward a trip to the four-team playoff.