Le'Veon Bell-led Michigan St. escapes Eastern Michigan

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Le'Veon Bell rushed for a career-high 253 yards and a touchdown but No. 21 Michigan State didn't feel much like celebrating after the Spartans struggled to put away winless Eastern Michigan. Trailing for most of three quarters, Michigan State (3-1) beat the Eagles 23-7 on Saturday -- a less than satisfying tuneup for next week's Big Ten opener against Ohio State. It left coach Mark Dantonio repeating "Next question" at a contentious postgame news conference. "We need to be more consistent in what we're doing and execute better," he said. "And that's basically all around our football team. That's the message that was delivered at halftime." Dan Conroy kicked three field goals for the Spartans, who had failed to score a TD for more than seven quarters before Andrew Maxwell hit tight end Dion Sims on a 10-yard pass with 7:19 left.