Michigan State recreation vs USC stay updates, rating, highlights in Week 4 – Detroit Free Press

Michigan State football is taking part in some Saturday evening (and early Sunday morning) soccer, with a visit out to the West Coast for its first Huge Ten matchup of the 2025 season.
The Spartans (3-0) face USC (3-0) on Saturday, Sept. 20, on the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles. The sport can be broadcast on Fox with kickoff at 11 p.m. ET.
The Spartans are unbeaten after a 41-24 win in opposition to FCS opponent Youngstown State on Sept. 13, however enter the USC recreation as a heavy underdog, with the Trojans favored by 19½ factors as of Saturday night.
Nevertheless, Michigan State did get some optimistic information on Friday when vast receiver Nick Marsh and operating again Makhi Frazier, each of whom left the Youngstown State recreation with accidents, were cleared to play in opposition to USC.
Get your caffeinated beverage of selection prepared, as a result of we’ll have all of the updates right here for this late-night Huge Ten battle.
This part can be up to date.
2Q, 4:26: USC 17, MSU 10
A few scrambles from MSU quarterback Aidan Chiles and a trick play from vast receiver Omari Kelly set the Spartans up with 1st-and-goal from the USC 10-yard line. Nevertheless, the USC move rush was ferocious, holding the Spartans to a discipline objective on the possession.
Kicker Martin Connington makes it a one-possession recreation with the 29-yard kick.
Michigan State switch receiver Omari Kelly dropped a backwards move from Aidan Chiles on a 1st-and-10 from the USC 32. After recovering the fumble, Kelly whipped a move to an open Michael Masunas, who bought a toe down in bounds for a 12-yard acquire to get the Spartans within the purple zone for the primary time tonight.
USC went for it on 4th-and-4 from the Michigan State 48-yard line, with USC quarterback Jayden Maiava discovering tight finish Walker Lyons on a three-yard move. Nevertheless, a swarm of Michigan State defenders tackled Lyons earlier than he may acquire the wanted yardage, turning the ball over to the Spartans.
When Michigan State linebacker Jordan Corridor was ejected from the sport for targetting, MSU misplaced the designated defender who will get direct from the teaching employees by means of a helmet radio, recognized by a inexperienced dot sticker on the again of his helmet.
Linebacker Wayne Matthews III has taken Hall’s place because the green-dot defender for the Spartans.
USC has scored on all three of its possessions, displaying why they’ve one of the vital prolific offenses within the nation. In response to USC’s most up-to-date landing, Michigan State went three-and-out, with punter Ryan Eckley nailing a 57-yard punt to place USC down by itself 11-yard line.
2Q, 11:36: USC 17, MSU 7
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava took instant benefit of an MSU protection with out linebacker Jordan Corridor, discovering receiver Makai Lemon on a 40-yard landing move to present the Trojans the lead.
On the play earlier than, Corridor was ejected for targetting on a helmet-to-helmet hit in opposition to USC tight finish Lake McRee.
Michigan State linebacker Jordan Corridor was known as for targetting in opposition to USC tight finish Lake McRee and was ejected from the sport in consequence.
Corridor is a pacesetter on the Spartans protection, successful the Huge Ten Defensive Participant of the Week following the crew’s win over Boston Faculty on Sept. 7.
Finish 1Q: USC 10, MSU 7
The Spartans have pushed 22 yards on 5 performs on their present drive to arrange a 2nd-and-8 when the second quarter begins
To this point the Trojans’ offensive firepower has proven out and was just a few yards away from scoring two touchdowns on their first two drives. Michigan State is driving, however may need to place up numerous factors this recreation to maintain up with USC.
1Q, 2:38: USC 10, MSU 7
USC as soon as once more confirmed its prowess of their dashing assault with 46 yards on 4 carries on the drive. Working again Eli Sanders ripped off runs of 12 and 16 yards every to begin the drive, with Maiava faking out the whole protection on a designed run that introduced the Trojans again forward.
1Q, 5:27: MSU 7, USC 3
Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles discovered switch receiver Crishon McCray for a 42-yard landing move to present the Spartans an early lead within the first quarter.
Again-to-back connections from Chiles to receiver Nick Marsh helped arrange the scoring play, with Chiles rolling out to his proper earlier than launching the ball down the sphere to an open McCray. Spartans are up 7-3.
Sophomore operating again Brandon Tullis began the sport over Makhi Frazier, who entered the sport for his first play on a third-and-two run that he transformed for a primary down.
Large receiver Nick Marsh began the sport for the Spartans.
1Q, 9:03: USC 3, MSU 0
USC drove 73 yards in 12 performs on the opening drive of the sport, however a key false begin penalty and a defensive stand from MSU saved the Trojans out of the tip zone.
USC operating again Eli Sanders had the longest play of the drive with a 19-yard run, with the Trojans placing up 31 dashing yards on the drive.
Jason Benetti, the first play-by-play announcer for the Detroit Tigers, did not name in the present day’s Tigers recreation in opposition to the Atlanta Braves. Now we all know why.
Benetti has been tabbed because the play-by-play man for tonight’s Michigan State recreation, with former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III the colour commentator.
The Trojans elect to obtain the opening kickoff, placing Michigan State on protection to begin.
With the Arizona State vs Baylor recreation ongoing on Fox, the printed of the Michigan State vs USC recreation could start with the sport already in progress.
We’ll present broadcasting updates right here.
In what may very well be a reasonably large blow for the Trojans, USC vast receiver Ja’Kobi Lane has been ruled out of Saturday’s recreation in opposition to Michigan State.
Lane caught 43 passes for the Trojans and led all USC receivers with 12 touchdowns within the 2024 season. And whereas he has solely made 9 receptions in three video games to this point in 2025, he leads the Huge Ten with 26.6 yards per reception.
Consider it or not, the 11 p.m. Michigan State vs USC recreation is just not the latest-starting recreation of the weekend.
That title goes to the Fresno State vs Hawaii recreation, which is kicking off in Honolulu at midnight ET. The distinction, in fact, is that the sport in Honolulu is kicking off at 6 p.m. native time, with the sport at USC kicking off at 8 p.m. native time.
There isn’t a rain within the forecast in Los Angeles tonight, although the LA sky has darkened with clouds as kickoff approaches.
Michigan State confirmed that offensive lineman Luka Vincic will miss the rest of the season after struggling a knee harm within the crew’s win over Youngstown State on Sept. 13.
Vincic is in his fourth faculty season and first at Michigan State after taking part in at Oregon State from 2022-24. He’s eligible to play within the 2026 season after redshirting his first yr at Oregon State.
Tonight’s recreation in opposition to USC is a homecoming of kinds for Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles and coach Jonathan Frazier, who each grew up within the Los Angeles space.
Chiles, who was born in Long Beach and attended Downey Excessive Faculty, expects to have his mother and father and different relations in attendance on the Coliseum. Smith, in the meantime, is from Pasadena and performed highschool soccer at Glendora earlier than turning into a four-year beginning quarterback at Oregon State from 1998-2001.
Michigan State has eight gamers listed as out for his or her recreation in opposition to USC.
No Michigan State participant is listed as questionable. Although Marsh and Frazier don’t seem on the record, it’s unclear what number of snaps every participant will play after each suffered accidents in opposition to Youngstown State on Sept. 13.
Tonight’s matchup between Michigan State and USC encompasses a pair of Heisman Trophy candidates … kind of.
At +2500 according to FanDuel, USC quarterback Jayden Maiava presently has the Twelfth-best odds to win the Heisman Trophy, which might make him the ninth-ever Trojan (and fourth USC quarterback) to win the award. And with the USC offense as explosive because it seems to be, Maiava could find yourself a severe candidate for the award.
In the meantime, Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles’s Heisman odds are listed at +20000 in keeping with FanDuel — the very best of any Michigan State participant, however seemingly too low for anybody to be thought of a severe candidate for 2025.
The Spartans have an enormous take a look at in entrance of them, dealing with a prolific opponent late at evening on the opposite facet of the nation. So as to add to the strain, tonight’s recreation could function a measuring stick for this system as coach Jonathan Smith continues his second yr main the Spartans.
However as our Spartans insider Chris Solari writes, Michigan State doesn’t necessarily have to win to indicate that the crew is on an upward trajectory.
The Spartans and the Trojans have not confronted one another in soccer since 1990, when Michigan State beat USC 17-16 within the John Hancock Bowl in El Paso, Texas on New Years Eve.
The pinnacle-to-head document between these two colleges is tied at 4-4, with Michigan State successful the final three matchups and USC successful the three earlier than that. The final time Michigan State performed USC on the Coliseum was on Sept. 29, 1978, which led to a 30-9 USC victory.
Essentially the most well-known matchup between Michigan State and USC was the 1988 Rose Bowl, which Michigan State gained 20-17 on a game-winning discipline objective from John Langeloh within the closing 4 minutes of the sport.
That is the primary recreation of the season Michigan State enters as a heavy underdog, and for comprehensible causes. The Trojans have the No. 1-ranked offense within the nation, averaging 604 yards per recreation of complete offense behind their quarterback Jayden Maiava, who has six passing touchdowns and no interceptions to this point in 2025.
Understandably so, our panel of experts predicts USC successful in a clear sweep.
The place: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles.
Channel: Fox.
Time: 11 p.m. ET.
Streaming: Fox One, Fubo (free trial).
Radio: WJR-AM (760 in Detroit).
Unfold: Trojans by 19½ factors.
Over/underneath: 55½ factors.
Moneyline: USC (-1000), MSU (+625).
All odds are courtesy of BetMGM as of Saturday night.
You’ll be able to attain Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
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