Saturday at Spartan Stadium comes with a storyline fans can’t miss, but both sides are trying hard not to let it take over the moment.
MSU, sitting at 2-4 overall and 0-3 in the Big Ten, hosts Northwestern at noon on Oct. 17.
The Wildcats arrive at 4-1 and 1-1 in conference play, with the matchup set to air on Peacock. There’s plenty of history in the air, but the people at the center of it are treating this like a football game first.
“This game is not about me,” Fitzgerald said. “I'm a Spartan, and I'm proud to be a Spartan. I'm honored to be here, and our sole focus is getting our team better, getting prepared to play a top-25 team and finding a way to be ready to go.”
Chiles kept the same tone when asked about seeing his former team. “It’s a fun opportunity,” Chiles said.
“That’s really all it is - another game, another nameless, faceless opponent coming out and competing. At the end of the day, we’re still cool.
I’m going to talk to them after the game, but in between the lines, we got to play football the same.”
For MSU fans, though, Chiles will look a lot different than he did in East Lansing. The former Spartan quarterback has grown into one of the Big Ten’s more dangerous dual threats through five games at Northwestern. He has thrown for 1,172 yards and nine touchdowns, and he’s added six more scores on the ground.
The biggest leap has come in his ball security and decision-making. Over two seasons at MSU, Chiles threw 14 interceptions.
This year, he has not been picked off yet. The Long Beach, California, native has also cut down on sacks, going from 2.55 per game to 1.8 in 2026.
“I feel like I’ve regained my confidence a little more,” Chiles said. “I feel like the last few years haven’t been as fun playing football, and this year, I came back, and it took a little minute, but at the end of the day, football’s been fun recently.”
That version of Chiles creates a difficult assignment for an MSU defense that looked vulnerable against Illinois last week. The Spartans struggled to finish tackles, and the Illini made them pay by extending plays and stringing together drives. If those same issues show up again against a quarterback who can punish defenses through the air and on the ground, MSU could be in trouble.
The challenge is even steeper because of the injuries stacking up on the Spartan defense. Linebackers Jordan Hall, Brady Pretzlaff and Caleb Wheatland are all out, and MSU is also missing its top four cornerbacks: Tre Bell, Charles Brantley, Keshawn Williams and Tyran Chappell.
With so much of the secondary sidelined, MSU’s backups will have to help keep Northwestern from piecing together long possessions. That puts even more pressure on the offense to stay on schedule and avoid getting buried early.
There were signs of life last week on that side of the ball. Sophomore quarterback Alessio Milivojevic helped spark the 17-point comeback against Illinois and posted his best game of the season. MSU will be hoping that performance wasn’t a one-off.
The run game also gave the Spartans something to build on. Graduate running back Jaziun Patterson scored four touchdowns, a strong showing that suggests MSU can still find success on the ground even after losing graduate running back Cam Edwards to a season-ending injury.
Still, the larger question hangs over the week: can MSU turn one strong showing into a real turnaround? The Spartans have lost four straight, and while they are not calling Saturday a must-win, they know the need to answer is real.
“We want to win every game going forward; that’s the bottom line,” Milivojevic said. “So, I’m not going to pin it as a must-win, but it’s a game we need to win.
Going forward, we need to take every game like that. We want to go 1-0 every single week, and that’s the goal.”
In Other News...
Michigan State Is Sending A Clear Message About Pat Fitzgerald's Fire
Michigan States recent trip to Illinois had no shortage of frustration, and Pat Fitzgerald showed just how much the moment got under his skin after a disputed offsides call went against his team. The Spartans head coach reacted with a middle finger gesture toward officials, a flash of emotion that quickly became part of the postgame conversation before Fitzgerald later apologized for it at a press conference.
Even with the apology, Michigan State is making it clear it does not see the incident as something that defines Fitzgeralds approach. Athletic director Dan Bartholomae publicly backed the coachs passion and enthusiasm, saying he appreciated the energy Fitzgerald brings to the program. For a team looking to channel intensity in the right direction, that kind of support suggests the Spartans would rather focus on the fire than dwell on the flare-up. [Read more 🡒]
Tom Izzo Sends Michigan State Football A Message Fans Needed
A public vote of confidence from Tom Izzo carries real weight in East Lansing, and the longtime Michigan State basketball coach made sure the football program got one after a bruising stretch. Speaking at a press conference, Izzo backed Pat Fitzgerald and the Spartans direction, offering the kind of steady support that resonates with fans who have been looking for a reason to stay patient.
Izzos message mattered because it came after a close overtime loss, the sort of result that can leave a fan base frustrated and searching for bigger answers. By urging support for the football team and its coach, he tried to shift the conversation back toward belief and continuity, a familiar move from a program figure who understands how quickly moods can swing when the results are tight and the questions start piling up. [Read more 🡒]
Tom Izzo May Have A New Michigan State Center To Trust
Freshman center Ethan Taylor has already given Tom Izzo something to chew on early this season, and that matters in East Lansing. The Michigan State coach has praised Taylors motor and the progress he has made, a notably different tone than the one he used when discussing former player Xavier Booker. For a program that often leans on trust, toughness and steady development down the middle, Taylors emergence has been one of the early surprises.
The bigger question now is how quickly that trust turns into a larger role. Veteran Anton Bonke is still the current starter, but Taylors play has created the possibility that he could take over the position as the season goes on. Izzos comments suggest he sees more than just a useful freshman, and for Michigan State, that kind of early belief can change the shape of a frontcourt in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]