Aug 29, 2025; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Jonathan Smith reacts to a play in the third quarter at Spartan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brendan Mullin-Imagn Images Brendan Mullin-Imagn Images

MSU's Philosophy on Holding Back in Non-Conference Games

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Aidan Champion | Last updated Sep 1, 2025 10:57 PM ET

Michigan State defeated Western Michigan, 23-6, in a game where the Spartans probably could have won a lot more.

The offense wasn't all that aggressive in the pass game and let up in the second half, going scoreless after scoring 21 in the first two quarters.

Many had speculated that Michigan State was holding back before it hosts a more superior opponent in Boston College.

Oftentimes, that is the case for teams during non-conference play, as they don't want to showcase too much of their offense. According to Spartans coach Jonathan Smith, not a whole lot of that is part of his team's philosophy.

"We don't put a ton of stock into it, to be honest with you," Smith said on Monday. "We're trying to play as well as we can. And to me, if you can do that, what you practiced in training camp, getting ready for, that's what you're putting on display in the first few weeks.

"Now, each week, you're playing a different opponent, there's some schematics that go into that, strategy of new schemes or we're showing some different looks. But there's not a ton of -- especially, offensively, defensively, like, 'Hey, we're not going to call it this week so that we can use it next week.' There's a little bit of that, but not much."

So, what was the deal against Western Michigan?

Michigan State's longest passing play against Western Michigan was 28 yards, compared to its longest run, which was the same. The Spartans gained 20-plus yards off of passes just twice. If concealing some of its offense wasn't factored too much into its offense, there is reason to be a little concerned ahead of the matchup against Boston College.

Then again, it's not to say the Spartans won't be more aggressive down the road. In Week 1, they may have merely wanted to play things a little safe, as opposed to "hiding" anything. There is a difference.

And now that Michigan State has an idea of what it does well on offense, it can exploit that and maybe broaden the playbook more. After all, you do have to adjust to some extent every week as you put more on tape.