HULA BOWL : East Gets a Big Lift From Langeloh in 23-10 Victory

In a game with little drama and few big plays, it wasn’t surprising that the most valuable player in the Hula Bowl was kicker John Langeloh of Michigan State.

Both squads sputtered on offense, but Langeloh kicked three field goals Saturday to give the East a 23-10 victory over the West.

“It’s not too often that a kicker becomes the MVP in college or the pros,” said Langeloh, whose three field goals tied a game record.

Langeloh, who connected from 31, 42 and 22 yards, acknowledged that he benefitted from an agreement that teams wouldn’t rush punts, field goals or extra points.

“I knew they wouldn’t be coming, and that helped,” Langeloh said. “You’ve only got two or three days to work on the hold and snap, and you can’t get them down in that amount of time.”

Michigan’s Jarrod Bunch ran 15 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to give the East a 10-0 lead.

The West got on the board when Colorado’s Michael Pritchard ran 26 yards for a touchdown on a reverse.

Oregon quarterback Bill Musgrave, who moved from the West roster to the East team because of an injury, threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Florida State’s Lawrence Dawsey to make it 17-7 late in the first half.

Musgrave replaced Miami’s Craig Erickson, who sprained his right knee during practice last week.

The West got to within 17-10 on a 25-yard field goal by Robbie Keen of California with 42 seconds remaining in the first half.

Two field goals by Langeloh were the only scoring plays in the second half.

Illinois linebacker Darrick Brownlow, the game’s defensive MVP, intercepted a pass from Hawaii’s Garrett Gabriel and recovered a fumble to stop two West drives in the fourth quarter.

Frank Giannetti of Penn State also recovered a West fumble in the fourth quarter.

“We practiced hard and kept the game in focus,” Brownlow said. “Everybody wanted to play well and boost our stock” in the eyes of dozens of professional scouts watching the game.