Recapping MSU's Humiliating Loss to UCLA

On this postgame edition of the MSU Spartans Insider Podcast, we break down everything that went wrong during the Spartans' loss to UCLA.

Michigan State's Wayne Matthews III, right, tackles UCLA's Nico Iamaleava during the second quarter on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

EAST LANSING --- Michigan State is in a really rough spot. After falling 38-13 to UCLA during the school's annual homecoming game, the Spartans are now 3-3 overall and 0-3 against the Big Ten.

This loss in particular makes MSU's path to a bowl game feel nearly impossible. There's not a game left on the schedule that the Spartans are favored in, according to ESPN's Football Power Index.

UCLA's Ezavier Staples, center, holds up a Michigan State towel while celebrating with the team after the Bruins win over Michigan State on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On this postgame edition of the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast from the field of Spartan Stadium, we break down what went wrong for Michigan State on Saturday and where the program can go from here.

Watch the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast here:

In addition, you can find a partial transcript of Jonathan Smith's postgame press conference below.

Jonathan Smith

Michigan State Spartans head coach Jonathan Smith | Starr Portice, On SI

SMITH: OK, I'll start with, it's just not good enough. I'll start with myself, think about the staff, as we were responsible of preparing these guys for the week, and they come out and execute, and look great energy, and we didn't have it today.

I told the locker room, again, we lost a bunch of one-on-ones. All three phases. Opportunities to get off the field (for the defense) did not take place, the way they could run the ball...

And so we're at the halfway point, talked about it in the locker room just now. 3-3. That's the reality, it's gotten beat the last three weeks coming out, and we gotta work to fix some things that we can fix. But we gotta be able to play in the manner that we win way more one-on-ones than we did today.

Michigan State's Aidan Chiles warms up before the football game against UCLA on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Q: Jonathan, do you have an update on Aidan (Chiles) and what his status is?

SMITH: Yeah, he got banged pretty good at the start of the third (quarter) and wasn't available the rest of the time.

Q: And then the fourth and one call you mentioned earlier, I guess the thought was that wasn't designed to be that sweep, toss play.

SMITH: Checked play. We were gonna sneak it. They squeezed it, the check went to an outside play, and they lost a one-on-one.

Michigan State's fans look on after a UCLA touchdown during the third quarter on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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