PASADENA, CA – Anelu Lafaele couldn’t stop staring.
Not at the beautiful vistas off in the distance at the Rose Bowl. The Michigan State football defensive end’s eyes were locked on defensive tackle Ben Roberts being helped to the sideline by trainers. For almost a full minute.
Another teammate fallen by injury, on the first play for the Spartans’ defense. Not even seven minutes into the game against No. 10 UCLA on Saturday, Oct. 24. And not even the first – or last – significant injury of the day.
Running back Marvis Parrish got his first start for MSU, with Cam Edwards done for the season and backup Jaziun Patterson ruled out before kickoff against the Bruins. Parrish’s day lasted three plays into the 28-10 loss, getting knocked out after his two runs totaled 9 yards.
Another long afternoon in a season in which the Spartans cannot keep their top players healthy. Or win a game.
REPORT CARD: MSU gets bad grades vs UCLA, but can you even blame them?
“It's a type of game where obviously we've seen a lot of guys go down. At any given moment, it’s just next guy up. And that’s the reality of it,” defensive end and captain Kenny Soares Jr. said. “It sucks. But that's the reality.”
The toll has been immense all season. And it continued to grow Saturday, as did the Spartans' losing streak – to six straight.
Patterson was out, along with quarterback Alessio Milivojevic. True freshman Kayd Coffman got the start in place of Milivojevic, going 4-for-10 for 42 yards with an interception before being pulled for redshirt freshman Leo Hannan – making his collegiate debut – in the third and fourth quarters. Hannas, a native of Long Beach, California, went 9-for-15 for 67 yards and another interception.
Right guard Nick Sharpe went down with an upper-body injury in the second quarter and did not play after halftime despite returning to the field in uniform, with his helmet. And safety Devin Vaught, who was in the midst of a strong defensive performance, was KO'd in the third quarter making a tackle.
All of those injuries are on top of MSU (2-6, 0-5 Big Ten) entering Saturday without starting linebacker and captain Jordan Hall and its top three cornerbacks (Tre Bell, Tyran Chappell and Charles Brantley). Backup quarterback Cam Fancher also remained out, and wide receiver Charles Taplin missed a second straight game.
First-year coach Pat Fitzgerald, who spent 17 seasons coaching at Northwestern after being an All-American and College Football Hall of Fame linebacker for his alma mater, said MSU’s rash of injuries is unlike anything he has experienced. Which makes this week's bye both necessary and needed, with a rivalry game at Michigan ahead on Nov. 7.
“We’ve gotta do what’s right for the team this week,” Fitzgerald said. “And so as we look at where our depth is and what’s smart, I’ll always err on the side of doing what’s right – not only for the short-term, but the long-term health of the team.
“This is unique. I’ve never seen so many injuries. And they’ve all happened in games. That’s what’s so crazy to me. If it was in practice, I could turn the dials up and down, left or right. When they happen in a game, I don’t have a big solution for that, besides next guy up.”
Still, with all of the attrition, MSU managed to force UCLA (7-0, 5-0) into two first-half turnovers and take a 7-0 lead early on Coffman’s first career touchdown pass. It was a 14-yard swing pass to running back/kick returner Kenneth Williams – the Spartans’ No. 4 running back a month ago took over for Parrish after he got hurt and finished with 54 yards on 17 carries but also had a costly fumble.
MSU’s 156 yards of total offense were their fewest since the blowout loss to Penn State to close out the 2023 season.
“There were a lot of times today on the headphones where it was like, ‘Just call what we can execute,’” Fitzgerald said. “So we’ve gotta tighten everything up as a coaching staff to give our guys the best opportunity – with the youth and inexperience – to play fast and play really the Spartan way. And at times, I didn’t see that from the sideline.”
Fitzgerald said the biggest bye week need is to get healthy. Who will and won’t be available against the Wolverines won’t be known for at least 10 days. The opportunity to end a long losing streak this season – and a four-season skid against the Wolverines – is two weeks away.
Still, the Spartans have not punted on the season, even with injury upon injury, and loss upon loss. Yet seeing Roberts readying to leave the field on crutches, then having a wheelchair take him back to the locker room was a stark reminder of the physical toll they are dealing with collectively.
“Just seeing how far people push past their limits, it kind of gives you a sense of relief,” senior safety Nikai Martinez said. “We all did it for each other. It was never like a selfish thing. So we always knew, ‘Hey, stay ready so you don’t gotta get ready.’”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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Next up: Wolverines
Matchup: Michigan State (2-6, 0-5 Big Ten) at Michigan (4-3, 1-3).
Kickoff: Time TBA, Nov. 7; Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor.
TV/radio: TV TBA; WJR-AM (760), WCSX-FM (94.7).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Bye week hits at vital time in Michigan State football injury epidemic