Michigan State Overridden by Injuries, Falls 21-14 to Washington

Injuries be damned, the Spartans gave it everything they had but ultimately fell to the Washington Huskies, 21-14, in a hard-fought battle.

With the loss, Michigan State falls out of bowl eligibility. At one point, the Spartans were down to their third-string quarterback handing the ball off to their fifth-string running back.

Injuries have been the bugaboo for Michigan State since the very beginning. A story as old as time, but for the Spartans, it feels different. It feels personal, like an attack from the football gods directly targeting the team in green and white.

The Spartans were actually beginning to get healthy despite bringing a laundry list of injuries into the game. However, another 60 minutes of football brought another slew of injuries.

No injury was bigger than that of starting quarterback Alessio Milivojevic. After taking several hard hits throughout the game, a blow to his right shoulder ultimately proved to be the last one. Milivojevic headed to the locker room before eventually returning to the sideline with a coat covering his upper body.

Backup quarterback Cam Fancher, who returned from an injury that had cost him multiple games, came in and managed to keep Michigan State not only afloat but tied with the Huskies heading into halftime.

However, that aforementioned personal attack became even more evident when Fancher also suffered an injury, forcing the Spartans to turn to freshman quarterback Kayd Coffman.

Fancher ultimately returned to the game, but Michigan State was held scoreless in the second half.

The Spartans’ defense, which has done everything it can to keep the team above water in recent weeks, once again held its own for much of the afternoon. However, a late fourth-quarter drive proved to be too much to overcome.

Huskies quarterback Desmond Williams Jr. outperformed everyone on the field, throwing for 288 yards and two touchdowns. But his biggest throw came with just over two minutes remaining, when he delivered a strike to the sideline that was hauled in spectacularly at the 1-yard line.

Washington pounded the ball into the end zone to take a touchdown lead, giving Michigan State one last opportunity to respond.

The football gods paid no attention to the Spartans’ prayers, but teased them ever so slightly. Michigan State moved the ball into Washington territory before a massive hit on Carson Gulker jarred the ball loose. Washington recovered the fumble, and just like that, the game was over.

The Spartans fall to 3-7 on the season and lose whatever momentum they had built following their win over Michigan. Michigan State will look to regroup quickly as it prepares to host the Oregon Ducks at Spartan Stadium this Friday night at 8 p.m.