Meet Your Insider
Hey, Spartans. I'm Shay Kowalczyk, your Michigan State insider at The Cover Window. I caught softball in the East Lansing area for years, and I still frame every defensive call like a pitch sequence. Fastball inside, change-up away, and then you get 'em. I travel and live with this team. I also maintain that Ann Arbor is just a suburb with a stadium. That's not a stat. That's a lifestyle.
Here's my deal. I'm blunt and honest, and every number in this report has a source. If I don't know something, I'll say I'm still waiting on the sign from the dugout. I celebrate our players as people first, I respect every opponent, and I give thanks to God for every chance to compete. Green and white, all day.
The School in 60 Seconds
Michigan State claims six national championships, including two from the major wire services in 1952 and 1965. The Spartans have won eleven conference titles, nine of them in the Big Ten. Home is Spartan Stadium on the main campus, regularly among the top 25 in NCAA attendance. CFBD lists it at 75,005 seats.
The last five seasons: a great 11-2 in 2021, then 5-7, 4-8, 5-7 and 4-8. We're in a slump at the plate. Every great hitter has one. What matters is the next at-bat.
The Coach and the Scheme
Pat Fitzgerald is in his first season as head coach. CFBD lists his hire date as Dec. 1, 2025. He was head coach at Northwestern from 2006 to 2023. He took that job at 31, the youngest head coach in the Big Ten and FBS at the time. As a Northwestern linebacker, he won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award twice each. He's in the College Football Hall of Fame.
The discipline numbers show his touch. Michigan State averages just 36.3 penalty yards per game, 7th in FBS. The defense allows 342.6 yards per game (56th) and 25.4 points (82nd). AP lists MSU's red-zone defense at 135th. That's where pitches are catching too much plate.
The offense is the slump. MSU gains 310.7 yards per game (128th) and scores 21.3 points (113th). It throws for 191.6 yards (107th) and runs for 119.1 (119th). It converts 40.2% of third downs (77th). MSU is -5 in turnover margin, 122nd.
Players to Know
QB Alessio Milivojevic: 1,263 yards, seven touchdowns, three interceptions, 65.4% completions. Against Northwestern he went 19 of 30 for 216 yards and two touchdowns, plus a 3-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1.
WR Chrishon McCray: caught a 53-yard touchdown against Northwestern.
WR Bryson Williams: caught a 32-yard touchdown just before halftime against Northwestern.
WR Jayden Savoury: team-best 27 catches for 261 yards.
RB Jaziun Patterson: 327 yards on 76 carries and five touchdowns. He ran 15 times for 72 yards against Northwestern.
Eli Coenen: team-high 3.5 sacks, plus a blocked field goal against Northwestern. Framed it.
Devin Vaught: team-high 46 tackles.
The Conference Picture
Michigan State is 2-5 overall and 0-4 in the Big Ten. The Spartans beat Toledo 30-20 and Eastern Michigan 35-7. Then came five straight losses: 27-10 at Notre Dame, 31-13 to Nebraska, 31-3 at Wisconsin, 38-37 in overtime to Illinois and 24-21 to Northwestern.
Those last two hurt. Illinois won when MSU's 2-point try failed in overtime, and Northwestern won on a field goal with two seconds left. Fitzgerald said the staff has to "coach better to get over the hump". After UCLA, MSU has an open week, then plays at Michigan, hosts Washington and Oregon, and finishes at Rutgers.
This Week: Game Preview from Both Sides
Michigan State (2-5) at No. 9 UCLA (6-0) · Saturday, Oct. 24, 3:30 p.m. ET · Rose Bowl, Pasadena, Calif. · CBS
Last time out. Michigan State lost 24-21 to Northwestern on Oct. 17. MSU led 21-13 early in the fourth quarter before Northwestern tied it, blocked a Spartan field goal and kicked the winner. UCLA beat Wisconsin 17-7 the same night.
MSU's offense vs. UCLA's defense. This is a tough count. UCLA allows 292.3 yards per game (20th) and 16.2 points (21st). Opponents convert only 25.9% of third downs against the Bruins, 3rd in FBS. UCLA is +10 in turnover margin, 5th. So Milivojevic has to protect the ball and win early downs. UCLA's pass defense (47th) is a bit more hittable than its run defense (20th).
UCLA's offense vs. MSU's defense. UCLA runs for 231 yards per game, 12th in FBS. Wayne Knight has 571 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns, with a rushing score in all six games. Starter Nico Iamaleava hurt his leg at Oregon and missed the Wisconsin game. Backup Ty Dieffenbach went 22 of 33 for 264 yards in his first start. Our advantage here is discipline: UCLA averages 83.2 penalty yards per game, 133rd.
Series. UCLA leads the all-time series 4-3, per both schools' history pages. Three meetings came in the Rose Bowl game itself: MSU won 28-20 in 1954 and 17-14 in 1956, and UCLA won 14-12 in 1966. Treat those details as thin.
Availability. No official conference availability report has been published. Iamaleava's status is unknown.
Three questions that decide it:
1. Can MSU protect the ball against UCLA's +10 turnover margin?
2. Can the Spartans move the chains against the No. 3 third-down defense?
3. Can MSU's discipline turn UCLA penalties into points?
Local Flavor
The Rose Bowl is a bucket-list stop for any Spartan, and we've won there before. Wear your green with pride and be a gracious guest. I'll share confirmed tips for traveling fans before kickoff. Not an ad. Green and white, all day.
My call: UCLA Bruins 31, Michigan State Spartans 18.