The special teams is a glaring concern as the Spartans were exposed by the Broncos kick return unit. 

Sophomore cornerback Darius Phillips had 170 yards and a touchdown after his first two attempts.

Phillips finished with 4 returns for 185 yards. MSU attempted a squib kick on their third kickoff to limit Phillips impact. 

Junior receivers Corey Davis and Daniel Braverman torched the Spartans secondary. Davis had 10 catches, 154 yards and a touchdown while Braverman had 13 catches for 109 yards.

The secondary and special teams units will have to be better next week if the Spartans hope to beat Oregon.

"I think there's a lot of things we need to clean up, but that's what this first game is for," senior defensive end Shilique Calhoun said. "I wasn't disappointed in my teammates because they played hard, they played fast and they were relentless."

After the Broncos cut the lead to 10 early in the fourth MSU answered with its most important drive of the game. 

With momentum favoring WMU the Spartans turned to freshman running back LJ Scott on a nine-play 71-yard drive that ended with a field goal and a 13-point MSU lead.

"We needed a score," senior quarterback Connor Cook said. "When we need a score we make it a point to go out on the field and do whatever we gotta do."

Scott had six carries for 43 yards on that drive showing that Dantonio has faith in his young back. 

The Spartans have a backfield full of talent. Scott finished with 13 carries for 77 yards. Sophomore Madre London finished with 13 carries for 66 yards and two touchdowns and redshirt freshman Gerald Holmes finished with nine carries for 55 yards and a touchdown.

"LJ Scott, for being a freshman, to see the way he ran out there, he was bouncing off guys the tackles he was breaking was pretty cool to see," Cook said. "I thought the running backs played great."

On a brighter note for the MSU defense, the front seven held WMU to just 18 rushing yards. The defense also managed to get seven sacks and Broncos junior Zach Terrell was pressured several more times. 

Junior linebacker Riley Bullough, who had three sacks, credited the Broncos for their game plan. 

"Western schemed us up pretty good," Bullough said. "They had some great plays that we didn't practice against. They have some great players, a lot of athletic guys on their offense."

For MSU, a team with national title expectations, this game can serve as a reality check, Cook said.

"A game like this could be good for us to check ourselves," Cook said. "To know what we need to improve on, what needs to be addressed (and) what needs to be changed. There's no doubt in my mind that the coaches and the players will be ready for Oregon next week."