FOXBORO, Mass. — Michigan State captured the college football spotlight over the weekend with its wild overtime victory against Notre Dame, and former Spartans quarterback Brian Hoyer was among the masses who was captured by the dramatics.
Michigan State pulled off a fake field goal — with holder Aaron Bates throwing a 29-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Gantt — to pick up a 34-31 win in front of its home crowd in East Lansing, Mich., and Hoyer was watching intently from the Patriots' team hotel in New Jersey.
"I was like, 'Oh, my God. I can't believe they just did that,'" said Hoyer, who is in his second season with the Patriots. "But hey, it worked. I guess you've got to do what you've got to do to win, and that’s what [Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio] felt like he had to do. I thought it was a great call."
Dantonio suffered a heart attack after the game, turning Hoyer's elation into concern. Hoyer sent Dantonio a text wishing him well when he found out.
"It was crazy," Hoyer said of the game. "But the craziest thing was to find out about Coach Dantonio [Sunday], so I was just worried about him. It was a gutsy call, and it paid off. I'm sure it will give those guys a lot of momentum going into the next couple weeks, especially playing for Coach D."
