3 Early Thoughts on UCLA's Home Game Against Michigan State

UCLA gets to spend most of the month of October near home this football season, beginning the month with a bye week, followed by a trip to Oregon and three straight home games -- two in the Big Ten and one nonconference.

The second of those home games comes on Saturday, October 24, against Michigan State. It'll be the second straight year the Bruins have faced the Spartans, earning a victory in East Lansing last season.

ucla footbal — 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

Here are some things to look out for and keep in mind as the Bruins aim to carry that momentum into this year's game.

1. The Long Home Stand

The three-game home stand comes at a great time for UCLA, allowing the Bruins an opportunity to set the tone and build a great environment early in the season. By the end of October, UCLA will have played five home games while only traveling three times. It'll make for a tough stretch with plenty of travel at the end of the season, but it may also be an advantage that allows the new era to get off to a good start.

ucla football hom — May 2, 2026; Pasadena, CA, USA; A general overall aerali view of the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

That puts this game in the must-win category for the Bruins. A successful and contending Big Ten team is expected to take care of business at home, and even though that might be a ways off for UCLA, its hopes of making a bowl game hinge on how quickly the team can learn to succeed there.

2. Another First-Year Coaching Matchup

It seems like UCLA is either facing first-year coaches or those on the hot seat every week, and Michigan State is no different. Pat Fitzgerald, who spent 16 seasons leading Northwestern, is now in charge of leading the Spartans and trying to engineer their turnaround just as Bob Chesney is trying to do for UCLA.

The matchup between UCLA and Michigan State allows both teams to see where they stand, and the winner will inevitably be considered further along in its development process than the loser.

3. MSU's Struggles on the West Coast Help UCLA

As a Midwestern Big Ten program, most of Michigan State's trips to the West Coast in football have come in the Rose Bowl and other postseason games. The Spartans rarely make true road trips to the area, and they haven't fared well. Michigan State has lost its last 16 true road games on the West Coast, including a trip to LA to face USC last September.

Michigan State's last true road win out West came in 1957, when its eventual National Championship squad shut out Cal 19-0. That was two years after its last road victory over the Bruins. It's traveled to UCLA for a regular-season game just once since then, a blowout Bruins' win in 1975. The streak will have to end at some point after the Big Ten's expansion into the area. UCLA just has to avoid being the victim.

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