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V-Cast: Did Jonathan Smith lose the Michigan State fanbase with an ugly loss to UCLA?

On3 imageby: Paul Konyndyk10/12/25PKonyndyk
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EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State fans expected more from their team than they got in an ugly 38-13 loss to UCLA on Homecoming at Spartan Stadium. This game was over before halftime, and many of the fans that booed head coach Jonathan Smith and his staff before halftime, didn’t stick around for the final two quarters.

Afterward, SpartanMag staffers Jim Comparoni and Paul Konyndyk sorted through the wreckage of arguably the worst loss in Smith’s tenure in a wide-ranging V-Cast touches on the future at quarterback moving forward, and the disappointing direction of the program.

V-CAST TOPICS

A Step Backward: There were enough flashes in road losses at USC and Nebraska to give Michigan State fans hope that a small measure of progress was being made. Against USC, the Spartans played well in stretches on offense. Against Nebraska, Michigan State won a lot of defensive possessions. With that being the case, the challenge for the Spartans against UCLA was to put together a complete game performance. Michigan State failed miserably in meeting that challenge and the result was an embarrassing loss at home in front of Spartan Stadium crowd that vocal in its disapproval of the product on the field against the Bruins.

Chiles or Milivojevic? Aidan Chiles struggled in the role of quarterback for the second straight game, and inaccuracy was significant problem for the second-year Spartan starting quarterback. Chiles was forced out of the game as the result of a hit to the head by a UCLA defender in the third quarter. With Chiles out, Michigan State turned to redshirt freshman Alessio Milivojevic, who did not put up big numbers in relief of the Spartan captain, but did manage to throw the lone touchdown pass of the game. With Milivojevic showing flashes of strong play in appearances both this week and last, is there the possibility that the Spartans will find themselves in a quarterback controversy ahead of a road game at Indiana next weekend? Chiles is a fierce competitor, who can do more with his legs as a scrambling threat than any quarterback in the Spartan program. The problem for Chiles, however, has always been inaccuracy. Chiles is missing more throws in the past three games against Big Ten opponents than he did earlier in the year.

 Saying It Out Loud: It probably isn’t fair to talk about a potential coaching change at Michigan State less than two years into the tenure of head coach Jonathan Smith. Fans, however, are displeased with the lack of progress in the program with Smith at the helm, and a growing number are no longer willing to give the Michigan State coaching staff the benefit of the doubt. A performance like this on Homecoming will only fuel the fire of those calling for Smith’s ouster.

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