3 Keys to the Game for Michigan State against UCLA

Michigan State (3-2 overall, 0-2 Big Ten) is headed into an interesting battle against UCLA (1-4, 1-1) for homecoming and the Spartans' first home game in nearly a month.

Outside of East Lansing, much of the focus on this game will be on the Bruins to see if they are maintaining momentum from a win over then-No. 7 Penn State last week.

For MSU and head coach Jonathan Smith to pick up a critical fourth victory this year, these are three things it needs to do:

Contain UCLA's Nico Iamaleava

Michigan State's defense cannot allow UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava to do what he did to the Nittany Lions last week. He had a solid 166 yards and two touchdowns through the air, but what pops out is the 128 yards and three scores he got with his legs.

MSU defensive coordinator Joe Rossi puts a major emphasis on preventing big plays from happening. That will be a challenge with Iamaleava's mobility, as he had four runs of greater than 20 yards against Penn State.

Iamaleava's 332 rushing yards this season are the most on his team. UCLA's top running back, Anthony Woods, has 190 rushing yards.

Success on Early Downs

Oct 4, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive back Ceyair Wright (1) attempts to tackle Michigan State Spartans running back Makhi Frazier (5) during the second quarter of the game at Memorial Stadium. | Kylie Graham-Imagn Images

Being able to move the ball on first and second down was one of my keys last week against Nebraska. Michigan State's offense was not remotely good enough during early-down situations and that was one of the biggest reasons why the Spartans lost.

There is one main reason why that happened: the offensive line didn't play good enough. Aidan Chiles was constantly pressured, and there were not many lanes to run through. Pro Football Focus gave MSU's offensive line its lowest grades of the season for both pass and run blocking. Michigan State running backs Makhi Frazier's and Brandon Tullis's carries averaged 2.7 yards.

UCLA's defense allows 217.6 rushing yards per game and 5.3 per rush, both of which are the highest in the Big Ten. The Spartans should be able to find some success running the ball, but they didn't against Nebraska, whose totals are the second-worst in the conference on a per-game basis and the fourth-worst on a per-carry basis.

Offensive Tackles

Aidan Chiles (2), Michigan State offensive line | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans On SI

Michigan State still needs to get its offensive tackle situation figured out, with starting LT Stanton Ramil out due to injury.

Against Nebraska, the Spartans moved Conner Moore to left tackle after he had been starting on the right side and then made Ashton Lepo the starter on the right side, which he did last season. It didn't work. Lepo was MSU's lowest-graded starter on PFF. Moore had his lowest individual grade of the season, as well.

If Michigan State were to make a change there, it would likely be Moore going back to right tackle and putting redshirt freshman Rustin Young in at left tackle. When Ramil went down against USC, Young went the rest of the way and seemed to perform fine, given how young he is and how good the Trojans' defensive line is.

Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith watches a play against Western Michigan during the first half at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Friday, August 29, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Keep up with all our content when you follow the official Spartan Nation page on Facebook, Spartan Nation, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be sure to share your thoughts on these keys to the game vs. UCLA when you join our community group, Go Green Go White, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE. Don't forget to give us a follow on X @MSUSpartansOnSI as well.