EAST LANSING– Michigan State extended its win streak in season openers to 13 with a 23-6 victory over Western Michigan at Spartan Stadium on Friday night.
MSU started strong on both sides of the ball, but the offense dwindled in the second half.
There were many signs of potential for this Michigan State team, and many things they could improve upon. Here are some of the main takeaways from MSU’s season-opener.
Wear ‘em out on the ground
The sophomore running back duo of Makai Frazier and Brandon Tullis posed a huge threat on the ground. The tag team tore through the Broncos defense, as they rushed for a combined 155 yards and both found the endzone each with a touchdown of their own.
These two go way back; as the pair played football together in middle school, ending up in the same recruiting class, and followed Spartans’ head coach Jonathan Smith from Oregon State.
“We’ve been doing it since youth, so it’s fun to do it on a higher level,” Tullis said.
Frazier ran for 103 yards on 14 carries, which is the highest mark of his career. He gained coverage as the gritty power back moved the ball swiftly between the 20s, which made way for Tullis to capitalize in the red zone.
Sacramento State transfer redshirt senior RB Elijah Tau-Tolliver got some action in the second half, rushing for 17 yards with eight carries.
“I thought it set a tone in the run game,” head coach Jonathan Smith said. “The stats show you the physicality, and what we want to be able to do in the run game.”
Michigan State junior quarterback Aidan Chiles showed sparks of his athleticism against the Broncos’ defense when he ran through the breakaway for 26 yards, stepping out of bounds at the Western nine-yard line.
MSU dominated the time of possession on the field, the Spartans controlled the ball for 36 minutes and had three drives lasting over 10 minutes. This gritty style of play could be signature for the MSU offense if it can continue to execute efficiently.
Bend don’t break defense
The MSU defense was one of the Spartans’ bright spots, limiting Western to 29 rushing yards on 24 attempts, and held the Broncos to zero, with the addition of an interception returned for a pick-six.
“I think this is a good starting point for our defense, not allowing any points defensively is a big accomplishment, something that, we’re going to hold proud onto,” junior linebacker Jordan Hall said.
Hall showed out in his first game as a captain with a team high of eight tackles. Hall was also a disruptor behind the line of scrimmage with one sack and had another team high with 2.5 tackles for loss.
“We’re always buckled up, things don’t always go our way that we planned, but that’s the foundation of what our defense is- being able to respond when things don’t go our way,” Hall said.
Redshirt senior linebacker William Matthews III had himself a game, recording his first career interception with six tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss, and junior defensive back Malik Spencer put up five tackles with a team-high of four solo.
The Spartans’ defense earned its first safety since last year’s season opener against Florida Atlantic, which was forced by redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Alex VanSumeran and junior defensive lineman Jalen Thompson.
This safety was made possible with the help of redshirt junior punter Ryan Eckley, who had a 41-yard punt that pinned the Broncos at the one-yard line.
Sixth– year defensive lineman Quindarius Dunnigan had two broken up passes with two tackles, and redshirt senior defensive lineman Grady Kelly forced the pressure with a broken-up pass on third down.
The Spartans’ secondary limited the Western quarterback duo of Brady Jones and Broc Lowry to 16 of 33 passing completions, operating at 48% overall.
“Was really happy with the secondary, the response, because we were real challenged in the secondary, even the first drive, they got the early deep ball down the sideline, there was no panic defensively,” Smith said.
The defense proved to be a strong unit against Western, and it will be interesting to see how it will match up against Big Ten opponents.
Offensive Struggles
The offense came out smoking to start the game, scoring all three of their touchdowns in the first half.
Frazier and Tullis got it done on the ground for the Green and White, and sophomore wide receiver Nick Marsh continued to shine after his breakout 2024 rookie season, with a 7-yard touchdown following Chiles’ 26-yard dash.
Middle Tennessee transfer senior wide receiver Omari Kelly made an excellent showing in his Michigan State debut with seven receptions for 75 yards.
After the fireworks in the first, the offense was non-existent, going scoreless in the second half with multiple three-and-outs.
“Second half, they (Western) made adjustments, at the same time we’ve got to execute, and we didn’t do our job, simple as that,” Chiles said.
Chiles threw 17-23 for 155 yards, connecting with Marsh on his lone passing touchdown.
“I could do better, C+,” Chiles said on his performance. “Theres’s things that I can work on, there’s things that I need to work on, but we didn’t score, we didn’t finish, and part of it is on me.”
Western amped up its defense in the second half, pressuring MSU’s O-line and forcing Chiles to scramble in and out of the pocket.
“I think on the edge for them, they did a nice job on our tackles a couple of times, I mean we had a couple deep shots open, we just couldn’t get the ball off,” Smith said.
Careless mistakes revealed themselves in the second half, and after a drive to the red zone, the Spartans’ offense committed a false start penalty at the 20, leading to a sack and a fumble recovery by the Broncos.
“We just need to slow it down and continue to do what we have been doing,” Chiles said. “Just play our game, we can’t let other teams dictate our pace, our speed, and how we operate.”
Consistency was a major missing factor in MSU’s 2024 season. The Spartans must find ways to execute for an entire four quarters of football, because looking great for one half is not going to win games in the Big Ten.
MSU will host Boston College at Spartan Stadium on Saturday September 6 at 7:30 p.m. Tune into the live radio broadcast featuring Jacob Maurer and Kyle Keegan locally on 88.9 FM or at https://impact89fm.org/
