College football: Michigan State vs. Ohio State, Oct. 8, 2022

EAST LANSING – Four straight losses, all by double digits.

Michigan State (2-4, 0-3 Big Ten) suffered its latest setback in a 49-20 defeat against No. 3 Ohio State (6-0, 3-0) on Saturday in East Lansing.

“Obviously very disappointed in the outcome of the game. … Obviously I’m not really happy right now,” coach Mel Tucker said.

The Spartans are coming off an 11-win season capped by a New Year’s Six bowl victory and top-10 ranking in the final polls. Now just becoming bowl eligible this year looks like a major challenge.

“It’s very tough, very tough,” quarterback Payton Thorne said of the losing streak. “Not something that you want to go through. It’s not easy.”

Michigan State’s 2-0 start feels like a long time ago and is. It was Sept. 10 when the Spartans rolled to a 52-0 win at home against Akron. In the four games since – road losses at Washington and Maryland and home defeats against Minnesota and Ohio State – they’ve been outscored by a combined margin of 149 to 68. The Spartans have also been giving up 528.5 yards per game during the losing streak while averaging only 282.0 of their own.

“I’m not looking to make any changes from a coaching staff standpoint at all,” Tucker said when asked specifically about potential staff changes. “Any changes that we make scheme wise or personnel we’ll have to evaluate the tape.”

Michigan State falls far short again in test vs. Ohio State

Michigan State’s latest loss was its most lopsided this season and that didn’t come as a surprise. Ohio State brought the nation’s top scoring offense to East Lansing led by quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate C.J. Stroud. The Spartans, meanwhile, have an injury-riddled defense that continues to get torched through the air.

The result was another monster game for Stroud as the Buckeyes rolled to an easy win. He completed 21 of 26 passes for 361 yards, six touchdowns and an interception. The Buckeyes also had a strong day on the ground and finished with 614 yards of offense.

“We’ll keep working on it,” Tucker said of the defense. “We’ll go back and see what we can do with the guys that we have. It’s not an easy fix but we’ll do whatever we can to make it better.”

Michigan State’s offensive struggles also continued with barely more than 100 yards through three quarters before starters were pulled for substitutes. Thorne said he doesn’t think the team’s mindset has changed but admitted the losing streak has been very difficult to handle.

“I don’t really know how to answer that one,” Thorne said. “Not good. Frustrated, upset with how things are going. I hate losing a lot. After losing four games in a row, that’s not something that I feel like I’ve ever really done to be honest with you, in any sport. It’s frustrating and it’s tough and there’s a lot of question marks right now. All we can do is work. All we do is show up tomorrow with the right attitude and move forward together.”

Michigan State’s Jaden Mangham ‘in good shape’ after being released from hospital

Michigan State will be challenged to snap its longest losing streak since 2019 before the end of the month. Next week the Spartans host Wisconsin (3-3, 1-2), which rolled to a 42-7 win on Saturday at Northwestern after Paul Chryst was fired last week and Jim Leonhard was named interim coach. Then it’s a trip to No. 4 Michigan (6-0, 3-0), which continued its hot start with a 31-10 victory at Indiana on Saturday.

“Like I told them in the locker room, I’m on the lookout for any type of negativity or anything like that because that’s zero tolerance,” Tucker said. “Life’s not easy, it’s a test of character for everyone in the room involved, coaches or players. We’ll see how we respond. I believe that we’ll respond like we have, coming in here ready to work the next day. But, if not, then you can’t be part of it.”

Buy Spartans gear: Fanatics, Nike, Amazon, Lids

Buy Spartans tickets: StubHub, SeatGeek, Ticketmaster

Stream Spartans games live: fuboTV, ESPN+ and Hulu + Live

Related Michigan State football stories:

Michigan State’s Jaden Mangham carted off field after scary injury against Ohio State

Key players back in uniform for Michigan State while others out vs. Ohio State

Fast start ‘critical’ for Michigan State vs. Ohio State

C.J. Stroud carved up Michigan State last year and brings Heisman campaign to East Lansing

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (User Agreement updated 1/1/21. Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement updated 7/1/2022).

© 2022 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local.

Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site.