Cotton Bowl: Does Michigan State have the firepower to stop Alabama's Derrick Henry?

DALLAS -- It's been three weeks since Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry took the last of his 44 carries in the SEC Championship Game against Florida -- which itself came just a week after toting it 46 times against Auburn. You might assume Henry arrived here well rested for Thursday night's College Football Playoff semifinal game against Michigan State.

But that would assume he needed rest in the first place. Some light running and a little time in the cold tub on Sunday and the 6-foot-3, 242-pound tailback says he's generally good to go again.

"I didn't think I would see that ever -- 90 carries in [eight] days," Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin said at a news conference here Sunday. "And then I think he could have kept going. He was in the locker room afterwards like he just was warming up."

Provided he's recovered from the arduous Heisman-week banquet circuit, Michigan State will see a full-strength Henry at AT&T Stadium. Only one Power 5 opponent, Arkansas, held the junior below 100 yards this season, with Henry popping for at least 189 in five of his last seven contests.

Asked Sunday how they're preparing for Henry's unique combination of speed and brawn, Spartans coaches and players pretty much chalked it up as a lost cause. They've tried everyone from a linebacker to a tight end to the scout team tailback.

"We've never had a Heisman Trophy winner in the entire history of Michigan State," joked co-defensive coordinator Mike Tressel. "How do you simulate that?

But for all of Henry's deserved hyperbole, the 12-1 Spartans got here in large part on the strength of a defensive front that's as well-equipped to defend Henry as any in the country. The Spartans' athletic defensive line boasts two All-Americans in end Shilique Calhoun and tackle Malik McDowell. Linebackers Riley Bullough and Darien Harris swarm to the ball.

Already this season they've slowed down elite, albeit differing style tailbacks in Oregon's Royce Freeman (3.8 yards per carry) and, most notably, Ohio State's Ezekiel Elliott (2.8).

Big back Henry, though, is a whole other challenge.

"We've watched enough film, our guys understand what we're facing," said Michigan State co-defensive coordinator Harlon Barnett. "He's a fall-forward back. He's not getting knocked back too many times. What's a 2-yard gain for some backs in the country is a 4-5 yard gain for him because he's so big and he's always falling forward."

Defensive lineman Joel Heath and Harris both observed that Henry is faster than they expected for a back his size. Defenders who dare take a wrong angle may be on the wrong end of a 60-yard run.

And then there's Henry's penchant for wearing down opponents in the fourth quarter, what with many of those 40-plus carries helping salt away a Crimson Tide lead. What can the Spartans do to reverse that trend?

"What do you have to do to wear out anyone who's [6-3]?" said Heath. "You have to go for his legs, make sure you're tackling him low enough, just being able to plug those holes up so he doesn't have any room to break the big play."

Michigan State under Mark Dantonio is generally accustomed to its own offense winning the ground-and-pound battle. Its 16-13 Big Ten championship victory over Iowa came down to a game-winning 22-play, nine-minute drive in which freshman tailback LJ Scott alone carried 13 times.

Alabama has rarely been in the same position simply because it blew out most of the teams on its schedule (save of course for its early-season loss to Ole Miss). In its one hard-fought SEC win, 19-14 over Tennessee on Oct. 24, Henry ran five times for 29 yards, capped off by a 14-yard touchdown, on the game-winning drive. He finished with 28 carries for 143 yards and two scores.

But Henry's seemingly unassailable durability will be challenged if Thursday's game comes down to the wire. Backup Kenyan Drake's return from injury in the SEC Championship Game may mean he takes some of the load off Henry's shoulders, but Kiffin is known for stubbornly riding his best playmaker. Even if the Spartans clamp down on Henry the first three quarters, he's unlikely to have quarterback Jake Coker start chucking it on every play.

Henry generally downplayed questions Sunday about the wear and tear he's endured.

"You just take care of your body the way you did all season," he said. "Get treatment, just so your body is right."

He particularly scoffed, however, at a question about handling all the hits he takes in games.

"You've just got to deliver the first blow," he said. "In football, you're going to get hit. Don't let someone deliver the hit to you. You've got to deliver the hit to them."

That could be the Cotton Bowl showdown in a nutshell. A Heisman running back accustomed to delivering blows, running over people and falling forward will meet a swarming defense accustomed to dominating up front, plugging holes and turning potential 10-yard gains into 5, 4-yard gains to 2.

And a guy who's essentially owned the fourth quarter all season goes against a Michigan State team that's famously owned the last second.

"It's a test of wills," said Barnett. "So far this season [Henry's] will has won out."

Alabama needs Henry to win out twice more. Michigan State needs him to prove mortal just once.