MSU S David Dowell Post Loss to Penn State
Spartan Stadium
East Lansing, MI
S David Dowell spoke after the game. You can watch that video above or read the partial transcript here:
On what he's seen after playing the tough teams…
Just little plays here and there, especially in the red zone. Not only us as a defense but us as a defensive backfield having better eyes and having our eyes in the right place. Not getting them in the backfield. Like I said just little plays here and there that if we don't, can resolve in a touchdown, but if we do, they can result in turnovers. Those are the things we gotta focus on.
On the fourth quarter…
My mentality is when I'm on the field, I never want to play to the scoreboard. Whether we're up 21 or down 21. That's the mindset that I take when I'm going to the field and I think that a lot of guys take going to the field. We just gotta keep playing. I think we were down what 21-0 at the half but it's like you still got an hour and a half of football to play, you can't just stop playing. Every time you go out there you gotta be able to make plays, regardless of the scoreboard.
On his interception…
Just keep competing. One thing we always talk about on defense is when you make a good play, celebrate. Not just move on to the next play. We celebrated. It was a little bit of a momentum changer for us, getting some enthusiasm back on the sideline. That was my whole mentality.
On the mental mistakes…
We can't beat ourselves on defense. The only thing we can do on defense is to continue to work on those things.
Going into its three-game stretch against Ohio State, Wisconsin and Penn State, Michigan State considered it to be a measuring stick to see where the program matched up against the Big Ten’s and the country’s best.
But instead, that three-game stretch turned into a wakeup call, a humbling and a nightmare.
Coming off of a bye week, the Spartans played host to No. 6 ranked Penn State and were outclassed in all phases as Penn State jumped out to a 21-0 halftime lead on its way to a 28-7 win.
Lewerke finished the game 16-of-34 passing for 165 yards and an interception and was eventually replaced by backups Rocky Lombardi and Theo Day.
While the weather was a factor, the Spartan offense looked anemic for a third consecutive contest on Saturday afternoon, totaling just 259 total yards of offense in another display that left plenty to be desired from the coaching staff.
Michigan State now heads into another bye week next week before the Spartans welcome in Illinois to Spartan Stadium on November 9th.
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