Michigan State’s march to infamy continues. And this setback might be the most painful of all this fall. Despite putting together a gritty performance, the Spartans were burned by special teams and squandered a 10-point fourth-quarter lead in a 20-17 loss at Iowa on Saturday for their eighth straight defeat. Michigan State (3-8, 0-8 Big Ten) gave up 13 unanswered points over the final 12 minutes and Drew Stevens booted a game-winning 44-yard field goal for the Hawkeyes (7-4, 5-3) as time expired to complete the senior day comeback. Embattled coach Jonathan Smith and his team showed moxie going on the road to Kinnick Stadium as 17. 5-point underdogs but remain without a conference victory. The Spartans, who face Maryland at Ford Field in Detroit next week, haven’t gone winless in Big Ten play since 1958. Iowa All-American returner Kaden Wetjen was the biggest difference maker on Saturday with three punt returns for 147 yards and a touchdown. Michigan State finished with more yards (335-301) and first downs (18-16) but punted on each of its final four possessions. Alessio Milivojevic played through another series of big hits but fell to 0-3 as a starter after completing 25 of 42 throws for 255 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Chrishon McCray hauled in six grabs for 75 yards and two scores while tight end Jack Velling posted career highs with eight receptions for 88 yards. Brandon Tullis and Elijah Tau-Tolliver combined for 24 carries for 91 yards. Iowa’s Mark Gronowski was 12-for-22 passing for 147 yards, one touchdown and a pick to go with 57 yards on the ground while Kamari Moulton rushed for 78 yards on 18 carries. The teams exchanged punts on their first two possessions before Wetjen returned one 45 yards and was knocked out of bounds by punter Ryan Eckley. One play later, the Hawkeyes took a shot up top and Gronowski’s ill-advised throw was intercepted by safety Malik Spencer. That was only the 10th turnover forced by the Spartans all season but they couldn’t move the sticks as Nick Marsh dropped a pass on third-and-2. Then Wetjen decided to finish the job after getting another chance by returning the ensuing punt 62 yards for a touchdown and 7-0 lead with 3: 53 left in the first quarter. It was his sixth career return touchdown to set a new program record. Michigan State’s defense continued to dominate with three punts forced and an interception on Iowa’s first four possessions. Then the offense stepped up with a 14-play, 78-yard drive that took 6: 19 off the clock. Milivojevic hung in to make tough throws after taking big hits but the Spartans once again stalled deep in the red zone. First-and-goal from the 5 was followed by a 4-yard loss on the ground and a pair of throw-aways under pressure before a 27-yard Martin Connington field goal with 2: 49 to play in the opening half. Gronowski didn’t complete his first pass until just before the 2-minute timeout and Michigan State nearly got burned trying to steal points late. The Spartans moved the ball to midfield and instead of letting the clock run out, Smith called a timeout on fourth-and-3 with 12 seconds remaining. Milivojevic’s screen pass was intercepted but it didn’t prove costly as Stevens missed wide left from 53 yards out as time expired. Michigan State went into the locker room down 7-3 but with advantages in total yards (177-101), first downs (12-6), plays (40-26) and time of possession (17: 05-12: 55). Iowa countered with 107 yards on two punt returns by Wetjen with special teams accounting for all the points in the half. Michigan State went three-and-out to start the third quarter with a 49-yard punt by Milivojevic before the defense came up with its second turnover of the day. Gronowski fumbled on a scramble and it was recovered by linebacker Jordan Hall at the Iowa 38. Two plays later Milivojevic uncorked a 45-yard touchdown pass to McCray. That gave Michigan State its first lead of the day at 10-7 midway through the third. The Spartans followed by forcing a three-and-out as Kinnick Stadium fans booed and then their offense put together a third scoring drive in four possessions. Tullis found a hole along the right side for a 35-yard gain before Milivojevic and McCray hooked up on a great throw and catch for a 5-yard touchdown. That put Michigan State up 17-7 late in the third quarter for its multi-score lead since a Week 3 win against Youngstown State. Iowa’s offense finally put together a drive that reached the red zone after Gronowski hit a few chunk plays in the passing game. But the Spartans stood up in the red zone and forced a 26-yard field goal by Drew Stevens to cut the deficit to seven with 11: 27 to play. Michigan State went three-and-out on its next three possession before getting burned by Wetjen again. He put together his third long return of the game, this one for 40 yards, to set up Iowa at the Spartans’ 42 with 2: 37 on the clock. The Hawkeyes quickly moved into the red zone and Gronowski threw a 13-yard touchdown to Jacob Gill to knot the score at 17 with 89 seconds on the clock. Michigan State got the ball back with a chance to drive for the winning score but instead punted it back after picking up only one first down. Iowa took over at its own 21 with 41 seconds left and Gronowski completed three straight passes to advance to the Spartans’ 25. That set up Stevens for the game-winning field goal and sent Michigan State home with an eighth straight loss.
https://www.mlive.com/spartans/2025/11/michigan-state-still-winless-in-big-ten-after-blowing-lead-at-iowa.html
Michigan State still winless in Big Ten after blowing lead at Iowa
