EAST LANSING, Mich. — Take all of those tendency charts, scouting reports and just-a-feeling hunches on the Michigan State football team, and heave them into the blue recycle bin.

Entering as nearly five-touchdown favorites, the Spartans yesterday did everything they weren't supposed to do to produce a predictable conclusion: a 42-14 rout of visiting Hawai'i before 74,043 in Spartan Stadium.

"We had a whole game plan set on what they were going to run," UH quarterback Colt Brennan said, "and they ran none of it."

In rolling up 499 yards in offense and containing the Warriors' passing attack when the outcome still was in suspense, the Spartans (2-0) avenged last season's come-from-behind loss. The Warriors fell to 0-2.

For the Spartans, the down payment on the payback was made during brain-storming sessions a week ago, when head coach John L. Smith figured his team could not stand pat. He redesigned the blocking schemes and, on defense, issued a call for all-points blitzes.

"We changed up a lot of things, just knowing that maybe a six-shooter is not enough," Smith said. "You've got to have a 12-shooter. You have to have a lot of bullets, and a lot of change-up, and a lot of different things to try and stay in it. We felt we didn't do that well enough (against UH) a year ago. We felt we got a little stagnant, and felt we didn't have enough left in our gun in the second half in Hawai'i. That's the reason we lost."

This time, the Spartans reached deep into the offensive think tank, relying on quarterback Drew Stanton's creativity and freshman running back Javon Ringer's raw talent to build a 28-0 lead. UH never got closer than 35-14 in the second half.

Stanton, throwing mostly on the go, side-stepped the UH blitzes to complete 21 of 26 passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns.

MSU FRESHMAN SHINES

Ringer sprinted for three touchdowns, punctuated by a 15-yarder in which he ran right, U-turned and then sprinted around left end. Stanton, who went into a blocking stance, served as interference.

"I'm glad I didn't make contact," Stanton said. "I tried to get in the guy's way. I kind of went to cut him, because whoever he was, he was a lot bigger than me. I tried to spring Javon a little bit, and it helped."

Ringer earned extended playing time because starting running back Jason Teague was suspended for his role in a fight Friday night. Smith does not allow his freshmen to speak to the media, but Stanton praised Ringer as "the real deal. A lot of people were talking about him being one of the best recruits in this class. He definitely displayed that today, especially against a swarming defense. He made some cuts against a very fast defense."

CHANGING SCHEMES

The Warriors had planned to use multiple blitzes to hurry the Spartans' four-wide offense. But the Spartans countered that by changing their blocking schemes. They ran more scoops — lateral blocks — and fewer criss-crosses. In past games, the tackle would block the perimeter while the tight end cut inside, serving as the lead blocker on interior running plays. In another, they would align two tight ends on the same side, with the wing tight end blocking inside.

"We had Lono (Manners, the strong safety) ready to fire at (the wing tight end), but he never came inside," UH defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville said. "We didn't see any of that. ... I had every film of Michigan State, and they didn't block the plays like they blocked it today."

On one play, UH blitzed one gap, and Ringer, off a draw, raced through another, going 41 yards for a touchdown and a 28-0 MSU lead.

"It was one of those things," Glanville said.

MSU's Stanton said: "Coach Glanville is notorious for throwing things you don't usually see. They were blitzing everywhere. You never know what to expect."

To counter, Stanton kept moving, even laterally, on handoffs.

"That way the defense can't adjust," Stanton said. "They don't know where to blitz. By keeping the quarterback on the run, and not sitting back there throwing passes, it forces the defense to blitz differently and account for me."

The Spartans also turned loose their defense, known usually for dropping back into coverage. These were the orders: Defensive tackle Domata Peko would crush the pass pocket, safety Eric Smith would drop into deep coverage and everybody else would take turns targeting the UH quarterbacks. The Spartans switched from a 3-2 alignment to a four-man front.

"Hawai'i's a hell of an opponent," MSU defensive lineman David Stanton said. "They throw the hell out of the ball. We went out there and tried to get to the quarterback. Wherever the quarterback went, we went. We didn't want to give him any time to set up."

To offset the blitzes, Brennan threw screens and running back Nate Ilaoa ran counter draws against the flow of blockers.

ILAOA SURPRISE STARTER

Ilaoa was a surprise starter — especially at running back — after practicing at that position for only three days. Ilaoa had incurred UH coach June Jones' wrath after reporting to training camp weighing 249 pounds. He suffered a strained hamstring on the second day of training camp. Since then, he lost 19 pounds, prompting his move from slotback.

"I knew what he had," Jones said of Ilaoa. "I've seen it before. He's not back to where he was. In practice this week, I saw him burst, and I saw a different speed. I thought he was healthy."

Ilaoa rushed for 76 yards, including a 41-yarder before being chased down. "The old Nate would have had it," Ilaoa said, smiling.

Ilaoa's running, in truth, was a setup. The Warriors had noticed that the Spartans, even in the adjusted defensive schemes, were vulnerable to deep passes to the post. Lure them to the line of scrimmage with Ilaoa runs, the Warriors figured, and the long routes would open.

"We were watching the tape (of Michigan State's previous game), and I was like, 'Wow, this will be great. I'll have all day to throw because they had no pass rush whatsover,' " Brennan recalled.

FACING MSU BLITZ

But the Spartans blitzed nearly every play, giving Brennan little time in the pocket. UH's two deep passes — one by Brennan, the other by Tyler Graunke — were incomplete. When Brennan threw quickly into the flats, the Spartans made open-field tackles. Forty-seven of the Spartans' 52 tackles were solo stops.

Brennan threw scoring passes to Davone Bess and Ian Sample, but that was not nearly enough. He left in the fourth quarter after aggravating a sprained right shoulder. Brennan said the injury is not serious.

EMOTIONS HIGH

The heated emotions between the teams also are not long-term concerns. There were several personal fouls, including two on one drive against UH nose tackle Reagan Mauia. He was called for a late hit and for kneeing Stanton's helmet while walking back to the huddle. Mauia said he inadvertently hit Stanton's helmet.

On the late hit, he said, "there was no time to pull up. I hit him. Right when I made contact, the whistle blew. It was a fair hit."

But Mauia apologized for the penalties, saying, "You have to be more humble. It's a lesson learned for me. Coach sat me down and said, 'You messed up.' I said, 'I'm sorry. I'll never do it again.' "

Stanton, in turn, received an unsportsmanlike penalty when he raced from the sideline to break up a shoving match.

"It was good to see it didn't get dirtier than I thought," Stanton said. "The majority of the guys played with a lot of class and respect. That was good to see."

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.