Analyzing Michigan State’s blowout win over Prairie View A&M
Free Press MSU writer Chris Solari joins Lansing State Journal sports columnist Graham Couch to analyze Michigan State’s 40-0 win over Prairie View A&M.
EAST LANSING – Free Press sports writer Chris Solari looks back at Michigan State football’s 40-0 win over Prairie View A&M and looks ahead to the Spartans’ final nonconference game at Boston College.
Matchup: Michigan State (3-0) at Boston College (2-1).
Kickoff: 8 p.m. Saturday; Alumni Stadium, Chestnut Hills, Massachusetts
TV/radio: Big Ten Network, WJR-AM (760).
Line: Eagles by 6½.
The Eagles shocked college football in Week 1 by going on the road to Florida State and winning their season (and ACC) opener, 28-13, on Sept. 2. Even though knocking off the still-struggling Seminoles is looking less impressive, Boston College made another statement Saturday in going to No. 8 Missouri and taking the Tigers to the wire before falling, 27-21. Quarterback Thomas Castellanos is a more talented version of Florida Atlantic QB Cam Fancher, whom the Spartans beat in their opener. Castellanos, an elusive 5-foot-9, 196-pound junior, began his career at Central Florida and is coming off rushing for more than 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns last season for the Eagles. He has 97 yards on 28 attempts with a score this season while completing 64.8% of his 54 passes for 589 yards with nine touchdowns and two interceptions. Former Houston Texans and Penn State coach Bill O’Brien is in his first year at B.C., and the Eagles quickly have improved, averaging 408.7 yards a game (64th in the Football Bowl Subdivision) and 204.7 rushing yards (32nd). O’Brien’s offense is 37th in the FBS at 35 points a game, thanks to having Castellanos and the fourth-rated team passing efficiency. While MSU continues to struggle with penalties, B.C. ranks sixth in the FBS in fewest penalty yards (26.0) and 10th in fewest flags per game (3.67). The Eagles rank 38th in total defense (289.3 yards) and 31st in scoring defense (13.3 points).
Taking care of business: Jonathan Smith’s team did what was expected of a Big Ten team playing an opponent from the bottom end of the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision. The Spartans dominated every statistical category (458-140 in total yards, 188-17 on the ground, 22-10 in first downs, 33:57-26:03 in time of possession), leading to their first shutout win since beating Akron, 52-0, in 2022. Defensively, MSU forced just one turnover —Charles Brantley’s 100-yard pick-six — and did not turn the ball over, though each team had an interception negated by penalties.
Penalties persist: It was the third straight game MSU had at least 10 penalties (11) and 100 penalty yards (102). That combination had never happened before in school history — the last time the Spartans had three straight games of double-digit flags came in 2003 even then, they didn’t have three straight with triple-digit yards. MSU ranks 132nd in the 133-team Football Bowl Subdivision in both penalties per game (11) and yards penalized (114).
Depth charged: A blowout win against a substandard opponent allowed Smith and his staff to rotate liberally at a few positions throughout the game, most notably tight end, linebacker and defensive line. MSU continues to battle injuries that have limited the numbers in the secondary, and a third-quarter injury to offensive lineman Gavin Brosicious could put Smith and position coach Jim Michalczik in a bind, considering Broscious took over after the first game for Kristian Phillips, out for the season with an apparent left leg injury.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.
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