3 Observations From MSU's Heartbreaking Loss to Minnesota

One more loss will mean that the Spartans will have a losing record for the fourth consecutive year, which would be the first such stretch for the program since it happened five years in a row from 1979-83.

The Golden Gophers winning anyway leads me to three specific observations.

A New QB1

Despite the loss, Alessio Milivojevic’s start went about as good as one’s first collegiate start could really go. The redshirt freshman completed 20 of his 28 passes, which totaled 311 yards and a touchdown. 

That yardage number would be the second-highest of previous starter Aidan Chiles’ career, and he turned it over three times during his 363-yard day against Maryland last year. Milivojevic did not commit a turnover during his first start.

Certainly, Milivojevic played well enough that he should remain the starter for now. MSU’s next game is against Penn State on Nov. 15. The Nittany Lions are on their backup QB, Ethan Grunkemeyer, due to a season-ending injury to Drew Allar.

Just the main thing Milivojevic will have to get better at is getting rid of the ball quicker. He was sacked seven times on Saturday, and while some of that is an offensive line issue, there were also a few where he held onto the football a beat or two too long.

Controversial Calls in OT

The thing that is going to be talked about for a while is the pass interference flags in overtime. 

MSU had third-and-3 when it had the ball first in overtime, and Milivojevic targeted Rodney Bullard Jr. in the endzone. Bullard’s jersey had clearly been tugged a little bit, and the P.I. flag came out. 

Probably about a minute later, the referee announced that there was actually no foul, presumably because they decided the tugged jersey didn’t actually impede Bullard’s ability to catch the pass. How that can be truly determined well after the play was over and when Michigan State was lined up for first-and-goal is unknown to anyone but the officiating crew.

Then, with Minnesota having the ball, the Gophers also went deep on third-and-4, where Malcolm Bell got called for pass interference. The call was probably correct, but there will always be some sour feelings about it, given what had just transpired a few minutes prior.

That free first down allowed Minnesota to punch it into the endzone (even that's a maybe) and win the game.

Constant Joe Rossi on TV

Watching from back home, I could only help but notice how often defensive coordinator Joe Rossi was shown, and how little head coach Jonathan Smith got the same treatment. 

Now, there is the storyline of Rossi coming back to Minnesota for the first time since he took the DC job at MSU, but just how often he was on the Big Ten Network’s feed was highly unusual for a coordinator. I would not be shocked if a casual Minnesota fan who doesn’t really know who the coordinators are watched this game and thought Rossi was the one running the team.

There’s still a good reason as to why. Rossi brings a level of energy that Smith does not. He got excited and ran over to congratulate his players whenever they forced a punt or made some other impactful play. The goal of the broadcast crew is to make things interesting, and Rossi certainly would seem more interesting to the average viewer right now.

It’s not to say Smith’s level-headed approach is inherently wrong or incorrect, but it’s clear this team needs a spark. The team certainly played like it had one, but that type of issue will always lead to Smith as the head coach, and he does not really seem like the one providing it.