Two Big Problems that Appeared for Michigan State at Nebraska

Coming out of a bye week, the hope is always for a cleaner performance. It's not realistic to expect a team to move up several tiers in two weeks, but a step forward needs to be made.

Heading into Saturday, the matchup between Michigan State and Nebraska was going to feature two teams hoping for just that: signs of improvement. The game was anything but that.

The Cornhuskers played like a beatable team. Not necessarily a bad one, especially their defense, but "good" teams find ways to win that one. After Nebraska still won 38-27, it feels more like MSU gave the game away than it does the Cornhuskers taking it. These are the two biggest reasons why:

Special Teams Blunders

One phase of the game that cost Michigan State valuable points it certainly needed was special teams. The unit is coached by Chad Wilt, who also handles the team's rush ends.

During the first quarter, some poor blocking on a punt allowed Nebraska's Jamir Conn to reach MSU punter Ryan Eckley virtually untouched. He practically took the football off Eckley's foot, but instead had it hit his waist and bounce to Carter Nelson for a Cornhusker touchdown.

Textbook blocked punt for Nebraska!pic.twitter.com/TMZlFxzsUU
— Old Row Sports (@OldRowSports) October 4, 2025

Even when Michigan State got the punt off, there were problems. Nebraska's Jacory Barney Jr. had a 57-yard punt return during the second quarter. Barney also had another return where it looked for a second like he'd gone for a touchdown, but it was called back due to a blindside block penalty.

Then there's the turnover on a kickoff. On the ensuing kickoff after Nebraska tied the game up at 21-21, MSU's Sam Edwards and Jay Coyne collided while trying to catch a short kick. The wires getting crossed resulted in neither of them catching it, and the Cornhuskers got on the free ball. That free drive for Nebraska resulted in three points.

Offensive Line Issues

It was always tough to imagine Michigan State's offensive line being dominant in its first game without starting left tackle Stanton Ramil, but things were really, really difficult for the engine of the Spartans' offense on Saturday evening.

Starting quarterback Aidan Chiles appeared to be playing through some injury and pain throughout the game. Backup Alessio Milivojevic came in relief during MSU's first touchdown drive and threw a scoring pass to Jack Velling. Milivojevic also ran in a score, but it was clear Nebraska had the game won at that point in the fourth quarter.

In total, Chiles got sacked four times for a total loss of 43 yards. That doesn't really tell the full story. Nebraska, a pass rush that had struggled a lot earlier this year, was pretty consistently getting pressure and forcing Chiles to hurry his passes. That had a hand in several incompletions and one of Chiles' two interceptions.

Michigan State also struggled to run the ball all game. That's another place where Nebraska had been struggling previously, as well. In total, the Spartans netted 84 yards on the ground and averaged 2.2 yards per carry. Even with sacks filtered out, they still only averaged 3.7 yards a rush.

Oct 4, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers linebacker (15) pressures Michigan State Spartans quarterback Aidan Chiles (2) as he throws during the second quarter of the game at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kylie Graham-Imagn Images | Kylie Graham-Imagn Images

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