“I’m very surprised [by this performance],” Head Coach Jonathan Smith said. “Through the week we felt good, back to work, guys with energy and focus. So yeah, surprised that this performance looked the way it did.”

This has not been the MSU offense seen in the first few weeks of play. Against USC, it produced 337 total yards and 31 points. Against Boston College, it produced 380 yards and 42 points. 

Against Nebraska, only 240 total yards and 27 points were produced, and against UCLA, only 253 yards and 13 points were produced. There has been a shift. An obvious shift. One that has not fared well for MSU and its offense. 

As of late, the only thing that has been consistent about the Spartan offense is how consistently inconsistent they’ve been. MSU has not found success through the air nor on the ground, possessing inconsistent first, second and third down efficiency with a lack of sufficient blocking. It's a recipe for an offensive disaster, cheffed by an impotent offense.

Such problems rang true against UCLA. The Spartans could not find holes to run through, failed to obtain completions down the field, were not efficient on first and second downs and allowed early turnovers to drain any momentum. To finish the game, the Spartans ran 60 plays and finished with an average of 4.2 yards per play. 

“This time right now, it’s a tough time,” junior linebacker Jordan Hall said. “Good times create soft people, soft people create hard times, hard times create good people. So that’s where we’re at right now, we’re in hard times. But we’re going to continue to work through those times, and we’re gonna be hardened and calloused as a team. We’re gonna get back to good times and do it the right way.”

MSU scored on its first drive of the game. It was a quick, ten play, 59 yard drive that saw junior quarterback Aidan Chiles rush for a two yard score to put the Spartans up 7-0. Following this score, UCLA would go on a 38-to-0 run, one where such consistent problems began to persist. 

These consistent problems were first evident on the Spartans' second drive. On a three-and-out, they faced a fourth-and-one on their own 34-yard line. Rolling the dice, MSU kept its offense on the field, only to pitch the ball to sophomore running back Makia Frazier, who was stuffed at the line of scrimmage, turning the ball over on downs. With optimal field position, UCLA's offense scored in just three plays, taking a 10-7 lead.

This questionable play call in a questionable scenario led to the Spartans first turnover, which led to a lead MSU would not – could not – reclaim. 

Two drives later and down by two scores, MSU was treading water, hoping not to drown. It needed a touchdown to sustain life. Instead, a turnover was committed, one that drained all momentum. Junior quarterback Aidan Chiles took the snap, dropped back, and methodically reviewed his progressions, only to be hit from behind by UCLA defensive lineman Devin Aupiu, forcing a fumble that UCLA recovered. Eight plays later, the Bruins scored on a 12 yard touchdown pass, extending their lead to 24-7. 

Chiles would finish the day going 8-for-17 with 66, adding one rushing touchdown. On the eighth play of the second half, he took a hit to the upper body while trying to spin away from a tackle. He would exit the game due to injury and not return. Backup freshman quarterback Alessio Milivojevic would replace him for the second time in the past two games. Milivojevic finished going 8-for-18 with 100 yards and one passing touchdown. 

“He got banged pretty good,” Smith said. “And he wasn’t available the rest of the time.”

When an offense can’t produce, it puts pressure on the defense. This was seen in last week’s 38-27 loss to Nebraska, and it was seen again against UCLA. 

The MSU defense was on the field for over 36 minutes. Some of this was an issue of the Spartan defense not being able to get off the field, but it’s also an issue of the Spartan offense not producing. When turnovers and constant three and outs are committed, UCLA gets more offensive opportunities, meaning MSU’s defense has to constantly stop – or try to stop – these opportunities. 

As the final whistle blew and the MSU boos were cast upon Spartan Stadium, UCLA and its offense racked up 418 yards on a defense that had its back against the wall all day. It wasn't just the case of UCLA's red hot offense beating a pressured MSU defense, but also the case of UCLA's red hot offense capitalizing off MSU's offensive mistakes. 

“We’d like to be at a better place,” Smith said. “I’m not pressing a huge panic button, but there’s extreme urgency to get this thing into a better place, so we’re gonna be back to work doing that tomorrow.”

Michigan State football played its first consistent game of the season—though unfortunately, it was consistently bad, marked by a lack of execution. Next week, the Spartans will look to find more positive consistency against No. 7 Indiana at 3:30 p.m.