Couch: 3 quick takes on Michigan State football's 38-27 loss at Nebraska

1. A trainwreck by MSU in all the ways you wouldn't expect

LINCOLN, Neb. — This was Michigan State football’s version of Bizarro World — where up was down, down was up, MSU’s defense saved the day (for as long as it could), the punting unit (and special teams altogether) was a disaster, and Alessio Milovjevic was the Spartans’ best quarterback.

If MSU’s offense and special teams units hadn’t too often been a trainwreck, the Spartans would have won this game. That’s the shame of it for MSU — the Spartans’ defense actually caused a separate trainwreck. At one point, they stopped Nebraska on five straight possessions, including forcing a third-and-32 and an 18-yard Nebraska punt after MSU’s punt coverage unit gave up 57-yard return. The Spartans sacked Huskers QB Dylan Raiola six times (five officially, not counting a tackle of Raiola who was trying to pass after a fumble). They had six sacks all season before Saturday and none against power-four competition. 

And still lost, 38-27, dropping the Spartans to 3-2.

This was progress on one hand. And a massive step backwards — coming out of a bye week, no less — on the other. 

MSU leaves this game wondering about its quarterback — Aidan Chiles seemed to lose his way and his confidence as the game went on — and its offensive line (the right side in pass protection, especially), and why it looked like this after an extra week of introspection and preparation. 

MSU turned the ball over four times — two bad interceptions, a muffed kick return and a blocked punt, after having to redo a 62-yard punt because the ball was snapped before the referee’s whistle.

Nebraska, for a long while, was just as self-inflicting. Not for long enough. 

2. A bad approach offensively by MSU

The wind Saturday clearly created challenges beyond what was obvious to the naked eye. Still, MSU didn’t do nearly enough to get the ball to its best weapons in space with quick, rhythm throws underneath. That’s the counter to blustery conditions, and the best help you can give to a quarterback struggling with confidence (and an offensive line struggling to protect him). 

The best play MSU ran all day was a slant to Nick Marsh. The Spartans ran it just twice — or threw to it twice — completing it both times, both on a critical 17-play touchdown drive, each time for at least 10 yards. Those completions came on a third-and-7 and then a 2nd-and-goal from the 16-yard-line, Alessio Milivojevic’s first play at quarterback after Aidan Chiles was briefly knocked out of the game. Great calls at the perfect times. MSU needed a lot more of that. The Spartans went to a high-percentage play to Marsh on Milivojevic’s first throw. Like they should. In this setting, given Chiles’ performance, MSU offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren needed to treat Chiles like a young QB, needing to see success. 

Instead, MSU too often threw it deep when Chiles was struggling to measure wind gusts and find his touch. Or ran it fruitlessly on second-and-long. Too often Chiles had to bail them out with his feet, which he sometimes did. On one eight-play, 48-yard drive, he was responsible for 40 yards on the ground on three plays. It looked like backyard football. Meanwhile receivers Marsh, Omari Kelly and Chrishon McCrae were on longer routes or used as decoys or blockers.

Nebraska’s pass defense is legitimately strong. The Huskers were plastered to MSU’s receivers on many of those deep passes that didn’t come close. The counter to that, again, is getting the ball in Marsh and Co.’s hands quickly — one cut and deliver. 

Marsh had six targets and four catches for 41 yards. Kelly had three targets and one catch. That can’t be the approach. You’ve got to feature these guys. They’re your difference-makers. Get them the ball. Not doing so played a role in MSU losing this winnable game.

3. Strong — and needed — showing by Alessio Milivojevic

Given the first two passes of his MSU career, anything that wasn’t a pick-six or interception would have been welcomed. But when redshirt freshman quarterback Alessio Miliviojevic entered the game for an injured Aidan Chiles with 14:38 remaining in the second quarter and MSU facing a second-and-goal from the 16-yard line, there was no time to ease him in. With the game teetering on unraveling, the Spartans needed Miliviojevic to finish a drive and get them in the end zone.

He bobbled the initial snap, but was on point from there, including his first pass — hitting Nick Marsh on a 10-yard slant, then threw in the direction of a pass interference call (well sold by Chrishon McCrae), and then, on second-and-goal from the 2, rolled out and found tight end Jack Velling in the back of the end zone.

A lot happened after that — both teams did their best to give away the game at times (including Chiles, who threw two bad picks late in the first half after returning). But the way things were going — including backwards at the moment, with a 10-yard loss on a collapsing pocket sending Chiles to the injury tent — I think this game might have gotten out of hand if MSU hadn’t come away with seven points there.

Milivojevic delivered, capping a 17-play, 75-yard drive that took 9 minutes and 45 seconds. It was the drive of the season so far. MSU had to have it.

His late drive, after replacing Chiles, was also impressive, completing four more passes on five attempts. He finally showed the rest of us why MSU’s coaches like him so much.

Contract Graham Couch [email protected]. Follow him on X @Graham_Couch and BlueSky @GrahamCouch.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU football trips itself, falls at Nebraska: 3 quick takes