Michigan State football grades: Nothing but F's, and it's not ALL Mel Tucker's fault
EAST LANSING — Free Press sports writer Chris Solari rates Michigan State football on a scale of A to F after the Spartans’ 49-0 loss to No. 2 Michigan on Saturday.
Offense: F
The Spartans managed just 182 total yards of offense, the program's worst since Wisconsin held Mark Dantonio’s final team to 149 in a 38-0 road loss on Oct. 12, 2019. MSU had five three-and-out possessions in quarterback Katin Houser’s nine drives, and the redshirt freshman threw a pick-six interception in the third quarter as part of his 12-for-22 passing performance covering just 101 yards. True freshman Sam Leavitt came in during the fourth quarter, moved the Spartans some, then also got picked off. Receivers failed to get separation. The offensive line gave up three sacks and struggled to open holes in the run game, and right tackle Spencer Brown took a flagrant personal foul and was ejected for diving helmet-first at U-M's Braiden McGregor, prone on the ground. Nathan Carter averaged just 2.1 yards on 17 carries, while backups Jalen Berger and Jaren Mangham combined for three carries and 9 yards.
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Defense: F
The penalties the Spartans took in the second half were egregious, costly and numerous: eight for 72 yards. Three of those flags were personal foul calls on back-to-back plays, with two of them on defensive tackle Derrick Harmon. Missed tackles also remained a problem, as did the porous pass coverage in the middle of the field that has plagued MSU since 2020. Michigan got 13 catches for 186 yards from three tight ends, including two touchdowns from Colston Loveland and another for AJ Barner, who had eight catches for a game-high 99 yards. The Spartans had few answers at any level for J.J. McCarthy, who dodged pressure, rolled away from defenders and stepped up into the pocket to complete 21 of 27 passes for 287 yards and four TDs before going to the bench in the third quarter. The lone, limited positives: MSU held Blake Corum to just 59 yards and a first-quarter touchdown and limited the Wolverines to just 120 yards rushing on 34 attempts.
Special teams: F
MSU had just three first-half penalties, but two came on special teams — an illegal formation penalty on MSU's first punt that wound up aiding the Wolverines’ third score, and a kick catch interference call on Alante Brown that helped set up U-M's fourth touchdown later in the second quarter. Other than punter Ryan Eckley averaging 46.9 yards on seven punts — one of them a touchback — the rest of the squad took the night off, with only one kickoff returned 14 yards by Tyrell Henry and none of the Wolverines’ four punts returned.
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Coaching: F
First, a clear disclaimer: The ugly mess Harlon Barnett inherited as interim head coach — particularly the continued lack of discipline (aka penalties and unforced errors) — is on Mel Tucker and was the defining on-field attribute of his three-plus seasons. Tucker hinted at a hard fall before his own downfall. However, that does not recuse Barnett and the rest of the coaching staff from blame. The worst loss in 100 years of football at Spartan Stadium and the first shutout loss to Michigan since 2000 will live on Barnett’s résumé, a near-mirror image of the minus-48-rushing-yards game in an MSU win a decade ago. Jay Johnson’s offense continues to go for it on fourth down in precarious spots and come up empty. Scottie Hazelton’s defense regressed against another top-10 opponent. Ross Els’ special teams units continue to spiral downward. And with two of MSU's remaining five games featuring top-10 foes Ohio State and Penn State, making fixes, applying bandages or finding workarounds as a lame-duck staff seems all but impossible.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football grades: Nothing but fails for the Spartans
