Michigan State got back in the win column Saturday night with a 32-20 homecoming win over Iowa. It was a crucial win, and could go a long way in helping the Spartans get back to a bowl game in year one of Jonathan Smith.

Here are my takeaways from the game:

MSU made a lot of progress in the running game as well as Chiles letting the game come to him against a stout Iowa defense. Michigan looked bad in offense against the Illini but played well in defense. If, and it is a big if, our offense makes progress this week, and UM offense stays in a rut, and our defense controls their running game, I expect that we can win.
Ann Arbor is a tough place to play and staying composed could bring us a W.
Your thoughts?

There is a new favorite in the recruitment of coveted Northwest Mississippi Community College cornerback Keshawn Davila: the Michigan State Spartans. With that said, Davila is not ready to make a commitment decision quite yet and has other official visits to take this fall.

Davila is one of the most coveted junior college recruits this cycle, as he currently has well over 40 scholarship offers and ranks as the No. 14 JUCO prospect in the country.

Michigan State made a strong impression on Davila's official visit this past weekend, and he tells Spartans Illustrated that the Spartans are at the top of his list as things stand right now.

"Michigan State is most definitely number one (for me) right now," Davila said. "What stands out most (about MSU) is the way that the defensive backs play. I feel like I play the way that Coach Meat wants me to play. He doesn't care about my size. He really cares about me as a player and as a person, too."

Much more from Davila here:

What did Cignetti do to turn a program around in one year from 3-9 to 7-0 in 2024? It is astounding .

Michigan State rides the leg of Jonathan Kim back into the win column with a 32-20 homecoming victory over Iowa Saturday night.

Full game recap:

Jonathan Smith wasn't discouraged after Michigan State lost three-straight games. After a big homecoming win over Iowa, it's easy to see why.

"I think it speaks to a little bit that I think we've got some genuine belief in this locker room of the approach and how they're going," Smith said. "You lose three-straight games and then you've got a week to really just think about it. I think it speaks to kind of the culture that these guys — player-led — want to build around here. And they have been bought in and going and still motivated. And I looked at the week of practice, felt the same way. And then again tonight, and I think (Iowa) was a good football team. And so, if you look at these numbers and what we were able to do, I think it speaks a lot to the buy-in and the culture that's player led around here."

Much more here from Smith:

Ferguson was a huge factor in MSU sports through the years and important in the hiring and/or support of George Perles, Nick Saban, Mark Dantonio, and Tom Izzo, among many other things he did over a lifetime.

Where do we find 3 more wins in the next 6 games to qualify for a bowl game?

While eating a Grand Traverse Pie Company box dinner at 1:00am that Iowa offered to the press box media before they left, I typed out 1,000 words on the importance of tonight's game for MSU. (The pie in the box was mixed berry; it was pretty much perfect.)

Here:

I am quickly becoming a Cignetti fan. IU looks consistently good. Their QB has the highest completion percentage in the nation and is 9 of 10 today with one drop

Could be the most critical game of the season.

In honor of Red Grange, Illinois has the sharpest throwback uniforms I've seen.
The jerseys are sharp. The best is the leather helmet look. Gary Danielson said it took 2 hours per helmet to get the look.

The best part is Illinois is beating Michigan 21-7.

Michigan State's availability report ahead of tonight's game against Iowa:

Dr G+W----has the simulated predictions here: But I am betting the long shot of at least 8 wins. Who is with me? 🤣 🏆 🥇

77% chance of 3-7 wins
27% chance of 3 wins
36% chance of 6 wins
10% Chance of 8 wins
1.3 chance of 10 wins

Just curious a few years ago a guy on this board would talk about his son from Michigan who moved to Venice Florida. I remember him talking up his son as being a great qb. I’m wondering if it’s the Purdue qb he was talking about.

Thoughts?
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Michigan State (3-3) hosts Iowa (4-2) this Saturday at Spartan Stadium (7:30 p.m. Eastern Time on NBC). As usual, the Spartans will be hosting several recruiting visitors. It is also MSU's homecoming game.

Obviously it's early in the week, and this list will likely grow exponentially ahead of Saturday, but we'll get it started now and add more names as we learn them.

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Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith has named true freshman offensive linemen Mercer Luniewski, true freshman walk-on defensive lineman Mason Nickel, true freshman walk-on linebacker Chris Piwowarczyk, redshirt sophomore walk-on running back Chris Williams and redshirt sophomore walk-on defensive back Shawn Smith.

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Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Michigan State’s homecoming matchup versus Iowa on Saturday night, via @KLuce98:

I did not get a chance to attend this year's MSU basketball media day, but I did have a chance to review Coach Izzo's comments.

He spoke for over an hour, and he covered a lot of topics. My main impression was that Izzo is getting a little more introspective and philosophical at these events. It is a natural part of getting a little older and on being the true elder stateman of college basketball. It is a mantle that he has earned and that he wears very well.

I could have touched more on some of his comments on individual players, but there was nothing really that surprising. They are all bigger, stronger, smarter, shooting better, learning the system... you get the idea.

Instead, I focused on some of the bigger picture stuff. How much longer is Izzo going to coach? (He won't say.) What does he think about NIL and the portal? (He doesn't like it, but he's adapted to it.) How was the trip to the U.P? (It was awesome.)

My full story is linked here:

Enjoy!

Michigan State football is set for another weekend of hosting recruits on campus when it hosts Iowa for a game under the lights on Saturday.

Here is a breakdown of many of the notable names who will be at MSU:

The bye week couldn't have came at a more appropriate time for Michigan State, having dropped three-straight games after a promising start to the 2024 season.

The Spartans' 31-10 loss to Oregon in Eugene showed some holes on both sides of the ball that the Spartans will look to patch up before their homecoming game matchup versus Iowaon Saturday night at Spartan Stadium. Let's dive into the player spotlight ahead of the contest.

More here:

Michigan State and Iowa will battle on homecoming in East Lansing tomorrow night. Find out more about the Hawkeyes below.

Would love the support, give it a listen!

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