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    • Michigan State falls apart after early chance, loses 38-7 vs. Ohio State
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    Michigan State falls apart after early chance, loses 38-7 vs. Ohio State

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    EAST LANSING – Jonathan Smith showed Michigan State football has changed. A lot of.

    Even though the gap between the Spartans and third-place Ohio remains extremely large.

    MSU absorbed the Buckeyes’ body blows early and responded with a promising offense that produced costly turnovers. Ultimately, the disparity in depth and talent weakened the Spartans, and Ohio State pulled away to a 38-7 victory on Saturday night.

    It was the Buckeyes’ ninth straight win over the Spartans, by a combined score of 358-84.

    Quarterback Aidan Chiles finished 13-for-19 for 167 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the third quarter. MSU (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) managed just 47 rushing yards and was outrebounded 483-246 by the Buckeyes.

    The Spartans were there early, matching firepower offensively with the Chileans before their mistakes and lack of depth repeatedly caught up with them.

    “That’s a good football team, well-coached. I thought they played hard. Talented, about as we expected,” Smith said of Ohio State. “I think we didn’t help ourselves in the first half. We did that to ourselves. …

    “I told our team that I didn’t feel like there were that many shots, that we were just overwhelmed. ‘Oh, they’re too talented, they’re too physical.’ That’s a really good team, one of the best teams in the country. But I’m trying to encourage our guys that if we can get some things done and get back to some of the details on ball security and on, we can compete leaving the field in third place.”

    RAINER SABIN: Aidan Chile’s stint with Michigan State football is still a work in progress

    OSU quarterback Will Howard went 21-for-31 for 244 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Star freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith had a touchdown catch and another scoring run, while Emeka Egbuka caught seven passes for 96 yards and another score for the Buckeyes (4-0, 1-0).

    Ohio State finished with a 35:41-24:19 possession advantage, a 3-1 takeaway margin and went 5-for-5 in the red zone to MSU’s 1-for-3. The Buckeyes also converted 8 of 17 on third down and 3 of 4 on fourth down. They also sacked Chiles four times, while the Spartans had none and struggled to apply pressure all game.

    “I think we did what we wanted to do, let them run the field. And they just made too many plays,” linebacker Cal Haladay said. “And we also have to take some action on defense.”

    MSU will now have a short week to prepare for its next game, a cross-country road trip to No. 7 Oregon for a 9 p.m. ET kickoff at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon (Fox).

    SHAWN WINDSOR: A botched call ruined Michigan State’s chance for a compelling story at Spartan Stadium

    Keep close

    The twists and turns of the first half showed that, unlike the previous four meetings, MSU could be much more competitive and aggressive. But it also showed how small the Spartans’ margin for error is with this team.

    MSU’s defense kept the Buckeyes out of the end zone on the first drive, forcing a 30-yard Jayden Fielding field goal after a time-consuming 11-play, 63-yard drive.

    The Spartans responded quickly in attack and reached Ohio State territory. Chiles’ pass to Jaron Glover fell one yard short on third down at the 20, and the offense quickly returned to the line of scrimmage. Chiles tried to sneak a dive over the pile, but Buckeyes linebacker Cody Simon met him in the air and stopped him for no gain and turnover on downs.

    Then things started to get weird.

    OH NO: Michigan State defensive lineman Maverick Hansen left the field with a left leg injury

    Aided by a questionable late hit outside the lane flag on MSU safety Malik Spencer, Howard once again marched OSU deep into Spartan territory. The first oddity occurred between quarters, when the officials reviewed and determined that the Buckeyes did not get their first-down play before time expired. That negated MSU’s defensive work of running back Quinshon Judkins for no gain and gave OSU a first-and-goal to start the second quarter instead of a second deficit.

    Cornerback Ed Woods knocked free a second-down pass that was ruled incomplete at the goal line, then Spencer dropped a would-be interception into the end zone on the next play. The free down benefited the Buckeyes, with Howard Gee Scott Jr. tight hit for a three-yard touchdown on fourth down to Spencer for a 10-0 lead just 56 seconds into the period.

    Moving MSU into OSU territory again, Chiles hit Jack Velling on an angle and the tight end charged toward the Buckeyes’ 10. But before he went down, Velling was stripped from behind by OSU’s Jordan Hancock and Sonny Styles recovered it to end the Spartans’ threat. .

    Linebacker Jordan Turner then made a nice play to pick off Howard and returned the ball deep into OSU territory. The Spartans took advantage when Glover caught Chiles’ quick throw and outpaced a defender to the left pylon. Jonathan Kim’s extra point cut the deficit to 10-7.

    After an 18-yard Jeremiah Smith touchdown run on an end-around rebuilt the Buckeyes’ 10-point lead, Chiles once again led the Spartans into OSU territory.

    But Chiles fumbled and the Buckeyes recovered at their own 16, although the officials missed a grab of Chiles’ facemask by Ohio State’s Tywone Malone before the ball came loose.

    Two plays later, Buckeyes running back TreVeyon Henderson appeared to fumble on a catch deep in his own territory, and Turner recovered for MSU. But a replay review confirmed that Henderson’s forearm was down before he fumbled, and the Buckeyes kept possession.

    Pull away

    The Spartans forced a punt but went three-and-out on the next drive, giving OSU the ball back with good field position and 1:13 to go before halftime. Freshman phenom Smith made two one-handed catches on the ensuing drive, including a 17-yard touchdown highlighted by backup QB Devin Brown that sent the Buckeyes into halftime with a hard-fought 24-7 lead.

    The Spartans were outrebounded, 319-186, and allowed OSU to convert four of eight third downs and the fourth down TD. But it was much closer at the half than the last four times MSU faced the Buckeyes, being outscored 147-26 in the first half and 205-42 overall.

    It didn’t take long after halftime for Ohio State to put the game away.

    Chiles was nearly intercepted on the first drive of the third quarter, and the Buckeyes turned their ensuing drive after a punt into a 7-minute, 9-second drive that lasted 13 plays and 76 yards, capped by Howard’s 33-yard TD pass to Egbuka on a fourth and five intersecting route. Chiles was intercepted on MSU’s ensuing drive deep in OSU territory, and Howard needed just three plays, rushing in for a 6-yard TD run, making the score 38-7 with 2:05 to go in the third quarter.

    The Buckeyes converted six of 12 third-down attempts and went for it all three times on fourth down in the first three quarters before the backups took over for both teams.

    Glover, who caught four passes for 53 yards, missed the previous two games with an injury. MSU offensive lineman Stanton Ramil was questionable and dressed but did not play, and the Spartans used true freshman Rakeem Johnson for much of the game and classmate Rustin Young as his replacement.

    Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.

    Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes every week Apple podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And check out all our podcasts and daily voting briefing at freep.com/podcasts.

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