ATLANTA – No. 10 Michigan State completed the biggest turnaround in school history with a thrilling 31-21 comeback win over No. 12 Pittsburgh in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Thursday night in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Trailing 21-10 midway through the fourth quarter, the Spartans (11-2) outscored the Panthers, 21-0, down the stretch to win their 11th game in a season for just the sixth time in school history. MSU improved by a school-record nine games from 2020 (two wins) to 2021 (11 wins).
"It was a great victory for us," said MSU head coach Mel Tucker, who won his first bowl game as a head coach. "I want to thank the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl for just an incredible experience for our football team, our entire organization. We're forever grateful for the opportunity.
"Our guys played extremely hard, like they always do. They never flinched. They continued to just keep chopping wood and keep believing. And we were able to hit our stride there in the second half and play complementary football – offense, defense, special teams working together. And we were able to take it deep down into the fourth quarter and we got stronger and stronger as the game went. And we went down into the deep water and were able to find a way to get it done."
Payton Thorne threw for a career-high 354 yards on 29-of-50 passing for the second-most passing yards ever by a Spartan quarterback in a bowl game. He also had three touchdown passes to set the single-season record for most TDs with 27, surpassing Kirk Cousins, who had 25 in 2011.
Thorne was 14-of-19 for 144 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter alone to spark MSU's rally. Offensive MVP Jayden Reed, who had six catches for 80 yards and two TDs, caught the go-ahead touchdown from 22 yards out with just 2:51 on the clock to put MSU ahead, 22-21. The Spartans added a 2-point conversion as Thorne found Nailor in the end zone to make it 24-21.
With Pitt (11-3) driving late, Defensive MVP Cal Haladay picked off Davis Beville's pass and ran it back 78 yards for the touchdown to seal the victory for MSU with 22 seconds remaining in the game.
MSU's comeback started with a 13-play, 70-yard drive in the fourth quarter, capped by a diving 15-yard touchdown catch by Connor Heyward that trimmed Pitt's lead to 21-16. The Spartans failed to convert the two-point conversion.
But a swarming MSU defense, which did not allow any points in the second half, got the ball back for the Spartan offense, and they responded with a clutch 11-play, 71-yard drive that culminated with Thorne finding Reed in the end zone.
"I love 50/50 balls because I believe they're 100 percent balls coming towards my way," remarked Reed on his game-winning touchdown catch. "And Payton Thorne threw a great ball. He gave me opportunity to put it somewhere where I could make a play. And that's how it happened."
The Spartans opened the game with a three-and-out and after a 16-yard punt return by Reed, starting with great field position at the Pitt 29-yard line. On third-and-9, Thorne found Reed in the end zone for a 28-yard touchdown to put MSU on top early, 7-0. Matt Coghlin's PAT made him the school's all-time leader scorer, surpassing Brett Swenson.
Pitt answered with a seven-play, 75-yard touchdown drive on its next series, capped by a Nick Patti 16-yard TD run on third down to tie the game at 7 with 7:57 left in the first quarter. But Patti was injured on the touchdown run, giving way to Beville the rest of the way.
MSU reclaimed the lead, 10-7, on Coghlin's 36-yard field goal at the 2:39 mark in the first.
Thorne found Nailor for a 50-yard pass completion early in the second quarter to give MSU first-and-goal from the 4-yard line, but the Spartans were unable to capitalize on the big play, as Coghlin ended up missing a 33-yard field goal.
The Spartans were driving late in the first half, but Thorne's pass attempt to Maliq Carr was intercepted on the Pitt 29-yard line. Davis Beville connected with Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison on a catch and run for 52 yards to set up Pitt's second TD of the game, a 4-yard Beville pass to Jared Wayne, giving the Panthers a 14-10 lead at halftime.
On MSU's first drive of the second half, Thorne fumbled, and the ball was scooped up by Cam Bright, who ran it in 26 yards for the touchdown.
But the Spartans didn't allow any points from that point and limited Pitt to 93 yards of total offense in the second half.
Michigan State has now won seven of its last nine bowl games.
"Really proud of our guys and our seniors," said Tucker. "Our fans were incredible. They traveled. They were deep. And they really helped pull us through…To get to 11 wins in a New Year's Six bowl is quite an accomplishment for this group."
