DETROIT (AP) — Alessio Milivojevic tossed a career-high four touchdown passes and Alante Brown had a 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown Saturday night to help Michigan State to a 38-28 victory over Maryland and snap the Spartans’ eight-game losing streak.
Milivojevic completed 27 of 39 passes for 292 yards for the Spartans (4-8 overall, 1-8 Big Ten).
“I’ve said it for weeks now, we were gonna fight every single game, every single week, to get a win,” Milivojevic said. “And, you know, we we fought a lot today, and we got that win.”
Embattled Jonathan Smith avoided becoming the first Michigan State coach to go winless in conference play for the first time since Duffy Daugherty’s 1958 team which went 0-5-1.
When asked whether he knows if he will return as coach next season, Smith said has not yet been informed of the decision by Michigan State Athletic Director Jason “J” Batt.
“Really happy and proud of that locker room,” Smith said. "Been through a lot, (it has been a) long season.
“Some downs, some disappointment, definitely frustration, but really proud of them as they continued to battle, went to work, played and practiced with energy. So happy for them to come out with a win like they like they did.”
The Terrapins (4-8, 1-8) closed the season with its first eight-game losing since the 2015 season. Maryland freshman Malik Washington completed 38 of 61 passes for a career-high 459 yards, Jalil Farooq had 10 catches for 110 yards and Shaleak Knotts added 8 receptions for 139 yards.
After Michigan State built a 24-7 halftime lead, Maryland pulled within 24-21 on DeJuan Williams' 5-yard touchdown run and Washington's 25-yard scoring pass to Knotts. Following Brown's 92-yard kickoff return, Washington again cut the margin to three with his 24-yard touchdown pass to Farooq.
Sean O'Haire missed a 27-yard field goal with 7:38 left in the game that would have tied it at 31-all.
The Spartans sealed the win with Milivojevic's 10-yard scoring pass to Omai Kelly on fourth down with 1:56 remaining.
“This year was not good enough,” said Maryland coach Michael Locksley. "We did not meet expectations that any of us set.
“Not good enough. Not coached good enough and not played well enough. That starts with me. It's my job to quality control this season and to make any and every change to get this program back where it needs to be.”
Michigan State scored the first 17 points of the game. Milivojevic threw two touchdown passes – a 1-yarder to Kai Rios and 13-yard toss to Nick Marsh – and Martin Connington nailed a 25-yard field goal.
After Washington connected with Farooq on a 7-yard scoring pass, Milivojevic hit Jack Velling for a 9-yard touchdown just seconds before halftime.
The takeaway
Maryland: The Terrapins have a bright future with Washington as quarterback. He broke the freshman record for passing yards in a season with 2,963 yards. His 459 passing yards against Michigan State were the second-most by a Maryland quarterback in a game, behind only Scott Milanovich's 498 against Virginia Tech in 1993.
Michigan State: The Spartans finally closed out a game after blowing second-half leads against Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota.
Up next
Maryland: Winter workouts and spring practice.
Michigan State: Winter workouts and spring practice.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
