This is the Depth Dossier: the Michigan State Spartans, Week 7.

Michigan State lost a game it had no business losing by that little, falling 24 to 21 to Northwestern after blocking a field goal and then having one blocked right back in the final minute.

The Spartans built an eight point fourth quarter lead on two touchdown passes from quarterback Alessio Milivojevic, a 53 yard strike to wide receiver Chrishon McCray and a 32 yarder to wide receiver Bryson Williams. Then it slipped away. Northwestern scored late, blocked a potential go ahead field goal from kicker Liam Boyd with a minute left, and drove for a 34 yard winning field goal as time expired. Running back Jaziun Patterson ground out 72 yards, but Michigan State only held the ball for just over 25 minutes and needed every big play it could find.

Here's the part that doesn't add up on paper. Michigan State hadn't recorded a single sack in its previous three games, and it was playing without its top three inside linebackers and top three cornerbacks. And yet the defense found five sacks and ten tackles for loss. Linebacker Dion Crawford had 14 tackles, and linebacker Cam Stodghill added 11 tackles and two pass breakups, anchoring a patchwork front seven that completely outplayed its injury report.

That defense also cleaned up an ugly mistake. An early fumble handed Northwestern the ball at the 10 yard line, the kind of gift that usually turns into a touchdown. Instead, the Spartans sacked their way backward for a loss of 10 yards on the drive and forced a field goal. That's about as good as a non-takeaway defensive stand gets.

Special teams swung this game both ways. Tight end Eli Coenen blocked a 41 yard Northwestern field goal attempt in the second quarter, and a 44 yard kickoff return helped set up a touchdown drive. Then, with the game on the line, Northwestern blocked Michigan State's go ahead attempt with a minute to go, flipping the whole outcome on one play. Two blocked kicks, one on each side of the ball, in the same contest. That's exactly the kind of split that decides a three point loss.

And that time of possession gap matters. Northwestern held the ball nearly 35 minutes to Michigan State's 25. The Spartans were living on chunk plays instead of sustained drives, and that's what let Northwestern keep enough possessions to come back.

Now to the depth chart, and the injury situation is the headline there too. No new injuries were reported, but that defense already played this one down six key starters, three inside linebackers and three cornerbacks. The fact that it held up with five sacks and ten tackles for loss says a lot about Crawford and Stodghill's workload. Both are now entrenched as the answer at linebacker for as long as the regulars are out.

On offense, keep an eye on Bryson Williams, who scored his first career touchdown on that 32 yard catch. The receiver room already leans heavily on Chrishon McCray, who added a 41 yard punt return on top of his touchdown catch, so now there's a second big play option emerging behind him.

Special teams is where the real uncertainty sits heading into next week. Liam Boyd had his potential go ahead kick blocked in the biggest moment of the game, while Eli Coenen's block on the other end was one of the plays that kept Michigan State alive. Neither performance changes a job by itself, but a blocked kick in a one score loss tends to get a second look.

The bigger picture hasn't changed. Michigan State is now in back to back three point games decided by a single special teams swing. Milivojevic keeps delivering efficient, explosive outings. The real question going forward is whether this battered defense can keep playing this far above its injury report.

This was the depth dossier. For everything college football, be it depth charts, data or dossiers, head over to C F B Depth dot com. We will be back next week. This was an AI-generated podcast from content developed by real human beings passionate about college football.