Jacksonville State Gamecocks vs Michigan State Spartans Match Player Stats On Aug 29, 2014

No. 8 Michigan State 45, Jacksonville State 7: Connor Cook passed for 285 yards and three touchdowns in the first half as the Spartans crushed the visiting Gamecocks.

Cook finished 12-of-13 before taking the second half off, and Tony Lippett hauled in four receptions for 167 yards and two of Cook's TD passes. Nick Hill added 42 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries for Michigan State (1-0), which piled up 563 total yards including 393 in the first half.

Jacksonville State quarterback Max Shortell was 10-of-18 for 117 yards and a touchdown in relief of Eli Jenkins, who was 5-for-13 for 82 yards with two interceptions in the first half. The Gamecocks (0-1) were limited to 244 total yards, including 22 on the ground on 25 attempts.

The Spartans' three first-quarter touchdown drives spanned only 10 plays as Cook dissected the Gamecocks' secondary, completing his first nine passes — three for touchdowns. Michigan State put together some sustained drives in the second quarter, as Hill capped an eight-play, 70-yard march with a 17-yard touchdown run and scored on an 8-yard run to finish a 10-play, 90-yard drive.

Trailing 38-0 at halftime, the Gamecocks scored on their opening possession after the break as Shortell hit Markis Merrill for a 9-yard touchdown. Backup quarterback Tyler O'Connor led the Spartans on a nine-play, 81-yard drive later in the third quarter and capped it off with a 3-yard keeper for his first career touchdown.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Michigan State had more passing yards (285), passing touchdowns (3) and rushing touchdowns (2) in the first half than in its first two games last season. … Cook is the first Big Ten player to pass for more than 250 yards on fewer than 15 attempts since Wisconsin's Russell Wilson in 2011. … The Spartans have won 11 consecutive games for the first time since 1956.