“We should have won that game”

Jonathan Smith climbed the stairs to the short platform and sat down in front of the microphone.

For the first time, the first-year head coach of Michigan State football felt the pain of a loss to rival Michigan. He only needed two words to sum it up.

“Frustrating. Disappointing,” Smith said after his Spartans missed chance after chance Saturday. “A lot to digest in the game.”

And there's a lot to process about where his young program has consistently gone wrong this season. His normally measured but succinct answers became curt and snappy deep inside Michigan Stadium as the real-time assessment progressed in the half hour following MSU's 24-17 loss to the Wolverines.

MSU grades: Growing pains still make the attack unpredictable

What happened at the end of the Spartans' first voyage? A delay of game penalty against quarterback Aidan Chiles as he prepared to take a fourth-and-goal at the UM 2-yard line gave them pause and forced them to attempt a field goal instead – one that After Smith missed, kicker Jonathan Kim didn't call a timeout before taking the 5-yard flag.

“This is my fault,” Smith said. “I think about the first trip. I went down there, saw the clock, it was fourth-and-2, and I thought, 'You know what?' We're just going to get the three (points), and we don't even get that.”

Why did MSU, still leading 7-6 in the final minute of the first half, try to pass with 20 seconds left and at its own 39-yard line, especially when the Chileans were already dodging a number of oncoming defenders were? Pressure? The Wolverines' pass rush again bothered Chiles, who was chased from behind by UM defender Josaiah Stewart, fumbled through the strip sack and then watched as Kenneth Grant pounced on the ball in front of the cheering Wolverines' bench.

“We have time off. We said we were going to run the ball,” Smith explained. “And if we make a run for a first down, we have the ball back and can get going. Aidan looked like he didn't like his first read, so he extended and we gave them the ball.

“That just doesn’t work.”

And that disastrous decision to throw an onside kick?

“We were down by a point,” Smith said. “The way things were going, the clock was moving, which is what we saw on the tape. You have recovered.”

BIG TEN INSIDERS: Michigan football did everything it could to avoid disaster; Michigan State also helped

Those were just three examples of the self-inflicted damage the Spartans (4-4, 2-3 Big Ten) suffered against the Wolverines (5-3, 3-2). Ultimately, it was the series of mistakes – many of which, in some ways, stemmed from the first seven games of the season – that doomed Smith's team, despite continued improvements in attack and defense.

“The group fights,” Smith said. “But actually in all three phases we didn't do some things well enough to get a win tonight. And that’s why it’s frustrating and disappointing.”

But make no mistake: MSU dominated the reigning national champion and three-time Big Ten champion on both lines for much of Saturday night. The Spartans outscored the Wolverines in total yards (352-265), outgained them (163-119) and gained more yards (189-126). They controlled the ball a stunning 37:05, while Michigan scored 22:55.

“Just too many missed opportunities,” said running back Nate Carter, whose 118 yards on 19 carries was nearly triple the combined output of the UM duo Kalel Mullings (18 yards) and Donovan Edwards (24 yards). “When we move the ball like that and get into the red zone, we have to take advantage of those opportunities and end up with points. And unfortunately we didn’t do that.”

The red zone issues that plagued the Spartans against Ohio State and Oregon didn't go away. There were still penalties at inopportune moments. Chiles' turnover woes continued, his fourth lost fumble and 11th giveaway overall. MSU's linebackers continued to struggle in coverage, losing Michigan's only offensive threat – tight end Colston Loveland – for two touchdowns and a 2-point conversion.

It just hurts a little more when it happens against your rival. Especially in a game that felt ripe to tackle.

“We believe we should have won that game. And I think everyone in our locker room knows we probably should have won that game,” said Carter, the only player MSU made available after the loss. “Going into this game there was no doubt in our minds that we shouldn’t have won. And there’s no doubt in our minds that every single game after that is a winnable game.”

That starts with a visit from red-hot Indiana on Saturday (3:30 p.m., Peacock). The 13th-ranked Hoosiers are 8-0 overall and 5-0 in Big Ten play following a 31-17 home win over Washington on Saturday.

MSU then receives its second bye week of the season before traveling to No. 24 Illinois on Nov. 16 and concluding with home games against Purdue on Nov. 22 and Rutgers on Nov. 30. There are still two more wins needed to qualify for the bowl.

“We need to regroup,” Smith said sadly. “We will digest this thoroughly and then move on.”

But that uneasy feeling won't go away anytime soon, considering how close the Spartans came to Smith's decisive win against their biggest rival and how much they still have to learn not to get ahead of themselves.

“It hurts, especially when we have so much success,” Carter said. “And at the end of the day, we often end up shooting ourselves in the foot.”

Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.

Subscribe to the Spartan Speak podcast to receive new episodes weekly Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And check out all our podcasts and daily voice briefings freep.com/podcasts.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply