Michigan State football an underdog again? Doesn't matter as Spartans head to Iowa

Whether by three touchdowns or one, Michigan State football is starting to learn what it is like to be the underdog.

For the second straight week, the Spartans head on the road with the odds against them. Even thought they beat Michigan soundly Saturday, even though their next opponent, Iowa, is winless.

“If you go in there not expecting to win the game, you got no chance first of all,” said junior quarterback Rocky Lombardi, who is from Clive, Iowa. “Obviously, we thought we had a good chance, and really if you go back and look at the tape from Week 1, I know people gave us a lot of crap for how we played. But offensively, I felt very good about the way we played if you take away those turnovers. We showed it on Saturday (at Michigan), we had no turnovers, and we end up winning the game.

“It just comes down to, can you hold onto the football, can you execute? I thought we showed really good stuff in both games, so I don't really see any reason why we would go into a game thinking we can't win.”

MSU (1-1) travels to Iowa on Saturday for a third straight noon kickoff (ESPN). The Hawkeyes (0-2) are coming off close losses to Northwestern on Saturday and at Purdue in the opener.

Maintaining the focus the Spartans showed at Michigan for the second straight road game, first-year coach Mel Tucker said, is imperative. Particularly after the emotional rivalry victory after a week of naysaying outside the program.

[Michigan State football's next task: Avoiding letdown after big win over Wolverines ]

MSU was 7-1 after defeating Michigan during Mark Dantonio’s 13-year tenure. The Spartans were 4-4 in the eight wins between 1978 and 2001, so Tucker is imploring his team to put last week in the past quickly. To him, "the next game is the most important. Always."

"We have to move on to the next opponent,” Tucker said during his weekly news conference Tuesday. “I've been in rivalry games before, won rivalry games. They're major accomplishments and they're important, certainly, for everyone that's involved — the current players, our former players, our fans, our alumni. But at some point, you have to move on to what's next.

"As the head football coach, I have to set the tone in how we do that. That's what we do. It's not It's not an issue.

Tucker planned for his players to turn the page by practicing Sunday, particularly because Tuesday was an off day for the election. The practice was planned regardless of whether the Spartans won or lost the day before.

“I'm proud that Spartan nation is pleased and excited about our program and about our win against the school down the road. And bringing that Paul Bunyan Trophy back to East Lansing, that's a source of pride for all of our fans and all of our supporters,” Tucker said. “I knew that going into the game, I've known that for a number of years. I'm from Ohio, I played in the Big Ten, I started my career here in 1997 and 98 here at Michigan State. So I understand and embrace and respect the rivalry.

“And so there's no doubt about it, and I made sure our players knew how I felt about it. When you play the school down the road, that is THE game every year.”

It will be the first time the Spartans will play at Kinnick Stadium since 2013. They have only played Iowa twice since then, beating Kirk Ferentz’s team in the 2015 Big Ten championship game and again in 2017 for the current three-game win streak in the series.

[How Michigan State football's defense under Mel Tucker blends old, new concepts ]

“We're building on our process, our culture,” Tucker said. “And we must continue to play tough, hard-nosed football, play smart and be physical versus Iowa. ... Iowa is a very tough place to play — I don't think we have any players on our roster that have played there, but I've been there and we have several coaches on our staff that have been there as a player or coach. And we know that it's a tough place to play, whether they have fans or not. They're a very physically strong football team.”

[Michigan State football stock watch: New stars emerge in win over Michigan ]

Tucker said he and his staff remain vigilant about their players following safety protocols during the pandemic. The Boilermakers had their game this week canceled Tuesday as Wisconsin for the second straight week continues to battle COVID-19 cases, and the former Badgers defensive back wants to try and make sure the same issues do not befall his Spartans.

“We encourage our guys to continue to adhere to the behavior modification that is needed for us to continue to be able to practice and play. We talk about it all the time,” Tucker said. “I actually heard guys on the on the bus on the way back (from U-M) as we're pulling back up to our facility ... reminding each other to protect our bubble, be smart, stay with the protocols and protect our football team. That's something that we talk about daily, because it's real.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: MSU football underdog again? Doesn't matter as Spartans head to Iowa