By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa –  The Iowa football team will try on Saturday to win at Michigan State for the first time since the 2012 season.

Michigan State is trying to avoid having Jonathan Smith’s first season as head coach turn into a rebuilding process, but time is running out on the 3-3 Spartans, who have lost three straight games.

In fairness, the last two losses were against Ohio State and Oregon by scores of 38-7 and 31-10, respectively.

Michigan State’s other loss came at Boston College by a score of 23-19 in the fourth game.

So, the Spartans haven’t lost to any bad teams, considering Boston College has been ranked at times this season.

Iowa also didn’t do much better against Ohio State, losing 35-7 on Oct. 5 in Columbus, Ohio.

The oddsmakers still have 4-2 Iowa as a 6.5 favorite despite playing on the road. That’s probably partly because Michigan State is in a transition year with 61 newcomers on the roster, while Iowa has 16 returning starters from last season’s 10-4 team.

Iowa is also averaging 222.8 rushing yards per game, which ranks first in the Big Ten, while the Spartans are averaging just 120.2 rushing yards per game.

Since 2020, Iowa is 14-5 in road games.

“Right now biggest thing for us, our focus is on the challenge waiting for us in East Lansing Saturday night playing Michigan State,” said Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.  “They typically have a talented team. That is certainly the case. A lot of good players in all three phases.”

Kirk Ferentz also speaks highly of Jonathan Smith, who came to Michigan State from his alma mater Oregon State where he had success as a head coach and as a former walk-on quarterback.

“They’re really well-coached,” Kirk Ferentz said of the Spartans. “Got nothing but total respect for coach Smith. Only got to meet him this past summer. I’ve known about his career and admired him from afar, also as a player. Always have a little affinity for guys that walk on. He walked on at Oregon State, led them to an awful lot of success as a player.”

Saturday’s game will ultimately come down to several factors as all football games do, factors such as turnovers, field position and luck.

Kirk Ferentz will be seeking his 201st win as a Big Ten head coach and he currently ranks second all-time in conference history behind Woody Hayes’ 205 wins for Ohio State.

Saturday’s game, which starts at 6:34 p.m., will mark the 15-year anniversary of the 2009 game in which Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi connected with Marvin McNutt for a touchdown pass as time expired to give Iowa a 15-13 win at Spartan Stadium.

That game is the last time Iowa has played a night game in East Lansing.

Iowa has to win on Saturday to keep its already slim chance of making the 12-team college playoff alive, while Michigan State wants to avoid a four-game losing streak.

Here is how both team matchup at each position:

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Quarterback: Spartan sophomore Aidan Chiles has started all six games this season after following Jonathan Smith from Oregon State.

Chiles’s performance has left much to be desired as he has thrown more interceptions (8) than touchdown passes (5).

The Long Beach, California native is completing 56.6 percent of his passes (86-of-152) and he also leads the team with three rushing touchdowns.

Chiles passed for 363 yards in the win at Maryland, which is the eight highest single-game total in Spartan history.

But he also threw three interceptions in the 23-19 loss at Boston College, and two in a narrow 16-10 victory over Florida Atlantic in the season opener at home.

The 6-foot-3, 217-pound Chiles certainly has the size and athleticism that you look for in a quarterback.

However, his accuracy and decision making both need work.

It also doesn’t help the Michigan State’s running game also needs work.

Chiles was the backup quarterback for Oregon State last season as a true freshman, so he should be comfortable in Jonathan Smith’s offense, though, sometimes it doesn’t look that way.

Cade McNamara has an 8-3 record as the Iowa quarterback, but his statistics, which include averaging just 132.3 passing yards per game, are average at best.

McNamara has the luxury of playing with one of the top rushing attacks in the country, and he hasn’t really been asked to do much as a passer or as a runner.

He is completing 63.2 percent of his passes (86-of-136), and he has only thrown three interceptions.

McNamara, who transferred from Michigan after the 2022 season, has mostly been a game manager this season, and that could be enough against the Spartans, assuming the running game delivers.

Advantage: Iowa

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Running back: Iowa junior Kaleb Johnson has rushed for 937 yards and scored 12 rushing touchdowns in 5 ½ games, while Michigan State has rushed for 721 yards and scored seven rushing touchdowns as a team.

Johnson is second in the nation in rushing yards, and he has 16 rushes this season of 20-plus yards.

He also has some talented backups in sophomore Jaziun Patterson and redshirt freshman Kamari Moulton, who have rushed for 154 and 149 yards, respectively.

UMass graduate transfer Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams leads Michigan Sate with just 338 rushing yards, but he is averaging a respectable 5.0 yards per carry.

Redshirt junior Nathan Carter started the first six games at running back and he has rushed 245 yards and scored one touchdown. Carter led Michigan State in rushing last season with 798 yards.

Advantage: Iowa

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Wide receiver:  The Spartans can go four deep at receiver, and they also feature one of the top freshmen in the conference in 6-3, 209-pound receiver Nick Marsh.

The Detroit native leads Michigan State with 320 receiving yards and he ranks 12^th in the Big Ten with an average of 64.0 receiving yards per game.

Marsh  also ranks second in the Big Ten, and 23^rd in FBS, with a 20.0 yards-per-catch average.

He had eight catches for 194 yards in the 27-24 win at Maryland in the second game of the season. It ranks as the 10th most receiving yards in a game by a Spartan, and the second most by a freshman.

Fifth-year senior Montorie Foster has 22 catches for 274 yards and one touchdown. He led the Spartans in receptions (43), receiving yards (576) and touchdown catches (3) last season.

Sophomore Jaron Glover and redshirt freshman Aziah Johnson have 150 and 145 receiving yards, respectively. Glover has started seven games as a Spartan and has 26 catches and 413 receiving yards in 13 games.

Iowa has eight wide receivers that have caught at least one pass this season, led by Northwestern transfer Jacob Gill, who leads the team with 169 receiving yards, and is second on the team with 16 receptions.

Junior Seth Anderson had one catch for 27 yards in the win over Washington last Saturday after having missed the first five games due to an injury.

Redshirt freshman Dayton Howard had his first catch as a Hawkeye in last Saturday’s win over Washington and it resulted in 33-yard touchdown.

Advantage: Michigan State

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Tight end: Oregon State transfer Jack Velling ranks second for Michigan State with 19 catches for 238 yards through his first six games.

However, he has yet to catch a touchdown pass for the Spartans after having finished tied for the FBS lead among tight ends last season with eight touchdown catches.

The 6-5, 252-pound Velling has 64 career receptions for 957 yards and 11 touchdowns in 29 games, including 23 starts.

No other tight end for Michigan State has more than 39 receiving yards this season.

Fifth-year senior Luke Lachey leads Iowa with 19 catches and is second on the team with 156 receiving yards. He also excels as a blocker in Iowa’s running game.

Lachey has 57 career catches for 764 yards and four touchdowns.

The Ohio native missed the final 11 games last season due to a lower leg injury.

Iowa is expected to be without junior tight end Addison Ostrenga for the second straight game due to an injury.

Sophomore Zach Ortwerth made his first start of the season against Washington last Saturday. He has two catches for 35 yards this season, including a 31-yarder against Illinois State in the season opener.

Junior walk-on Johnny Pascuzzi could play a more prominent role in Saturday’s game in Ostrenga’s absence, especially as a blocker.

This was a very difficult choice because both teams have a standout tight end, but not much beyond that in terms of productivity.

Ostrenga’s loss is significant as he is ranked fourth on the team with 11 catches.

Advantage: Michigan State

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Offensive line: The fact that Michigan State is only averaging 120.2 rushing yards per game shows how much its offensive line has struggled.

The Spartans have some talented players on the offensive line, including center Tanner Miller, who transferred from Oregon State, and sixth-year graduate Brandon Baldwin, who has started 21 games for Michigan State, 18 at left tackle and three at right guard.

Miller, another sixth-year senior, was named a second-team All-American by ESPN last season while playing for Oregon State.

He has started 20 career games, including all six games at center this season.

Miller was also voted a co-captain by his teammates.

Redshirt sophomore Ashton Lepo has started all six games at right tackle for the Spartans, while three different players have started at both right guard and left tackle.

Iowa is expected to be without starting left guard Beau Stephens in Saturday’s game because of an injury. But even without him, Iowa’s five starters on the offensive line have combined to make 143 starts, led by Mason Richman’s 45 starts at left tackle.

Richman has made the fourth most starts among offensive linemen in the Kirk Ferentz era.

He and his cohorts up front have helped to pave the way for Kaleb Johnson’s success this season under new offensive coordinator Tim Lester.

Senior Tyler Elsbury is expected to start in Stephens’ absence at left guard. Elsbury has played in 43 games for the Hawkeyes, so he is far from being inexperienced.

Except for the loss at Ohio State, Iowa’s running game has been highly effective, largely because of these guys blocking up front.

Advantage: Iowa

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Defensive line: The Spartans have four defensive linemen that have started all six games this season.

They are defensive ends Khris Bogle and Jalen Thompson and defensive tackles D’Quan Douse and Alex VanSumeran.

Bogle, a sixth-year graduate, ranks 13^th in the Big Ten with three sacks and 14^th in the league with five tackles for loss.

Douse, a sixth-year graduate transfer from Georgia Tech, has 17 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss one sack and one safety this season.

Iowa also has four defensive linemen that have started all six games this season.

They are senior defensive ends Deontae Craig and Ethan Hurkett, senior defensive tackle Yahya Black and junior defensive tackle Aaron Graves, who was named the Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.

Craig and Black have both started 20 games for Iowa, while Graves and Hurkett will both make their seventh career starts on Saturday.

Iowa’s four starting defensive linemen have combined to play in 157 games overall.

Graves leads the Iowa defensive linemen with 18 tackles, five tackles for loss and five sacks. He also has forced two fumbles

Sophomore Brian Allen has provided depth at defensive end as he has 11 tackles, four tackles for loss, two quarterback hurries and one pass break-up this season.

Advantage: Iowa

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Linebacker: Both of Michigan State’s starting linebackers – Cal Haladay and Jordan Turner – are fifth-year seniors that have combined to play in 83 games with 64 starts.

Haladay has started 40 games for the Spartans, including 29 straight. He has led the team in tackles three years in a row and ranks 11^th in program history with 335 tackles, which is fifth most among active FBS players.

Turner, who transferred from Wisconsin in January, leads Michigan State with 37 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.

Turner has 172 career tackles, 19 tackles for loss, eight sacks and four interceptions in 36 collegiate games. He will make his 25^th career start in Saturday’s game.

Old Dominion transfer Wayne Matthews has added depth at linebacker for Michigan State as he has 21 tackles and one fumble recovery in six games.

Sophomore Jordan Hall has 13 tackles and one tackle for loss. His 1-yard tackle for loss came on fourth down in a goal-line stand against Boston College.

Iowa also has its own highly productive linebacker tandem in fifth year-senior Jay Higgins and sixth-year graduate Nick Jackson, who played his first four seasons for Virginia.

Higgins leads Iowa with 62 tackles and his average of 10.3 tackles per game ranks first in the Big Ten

The Indianapolis native also has two interceptions, one tackle for loss, one sack, two quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery this season.

Higgins tied the Iowa school record for single-season tackles with 171 last season. He also made first-team all-Big Ten in 2023 and was a preseason All-America selection this season.

Jackson is ranked second on the team with 39 tackles.

The Atlanta, Georgia native has made 53 career starts and played in 66 games overall.

Jackson has 503 career tackles, 29.5, tackles for loss, 15.5 sacks and 24 career 10-plus tackle games.

Jackson is also just 75 tackles shy of becoming the all-time FBS tackles leader.

Iowa also has an experienced third linebacker in graduate Kyler Fisher, who played in 53 games with five starts.

Advantage: Iowa   

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Secondary: Both teams often play five defensive backs, which is becoming more common as defenses try to keep pace with the spread offenses that are so popular these days.

Juniors Malik Spencer and Nikai Martinez have started all six games at safety for the Spartans and they rank second and fourth on the team with 29 and 25 tackles, respectively.

Sophomore cornerback Charles Brantley leads Michigan State with three interceptions and with five pass break-ups. He also has 23 tackles, including 15 solo stops.

Fifth-year senior nickel back Angelo Grose is tied for fifth on the team with 23 tackles. He has 254 tackles in his career and four interceptions.

He also has played in 46 collegiate games with 40 starts, 21 at safety and 19 at nickel back.

Graduate Ed Woods has started the last five games at cornerback for Michigan State and has 22 tackles this season.

Iowa’s five listed starters in the secondary for this week have combined for 110 career starts, led by Quinn Schulte’s 33 starts at free safety.

Graduate cornerback Jermari Harris leads Iowa with three interceptions this season, and he has eight interceptions in his career.

The Chicago native has started 24 games and has played in 38 games overall for Iowa.

Graduate safety/cash Sebastian Castro will make his 27^th career start in Saturday’s game and he has 28 tackles this season. Castro earned All-America accolades last season, as well as second-team All-Big Ten.

Junior Xavier Nwankpa and sophomore Koen Entringer both have made key contributions this season at strong safety where Nwankpa has started 18 games in his career.

Nwankpa and Entringer finished with 10 and seven tackles, respectively, against Washington last Saturday.

Sophomore Deshaun Lee is listed as the starter at the other cornerback, though, he and junior T.J. Hall both played against Washington last Saturday. Lee and Hall, who started the first three games, both have had their moments this season, but they have also struggled at times in pass coverage.

Advantage: Iowa

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Special teams:  This is where where Michigan State is the strongest right now under Jonathan Smith.

Sophomore punter Ryan Eckley ranks second in FBS with a 48.0 average, while kicker Jonathan Kim has made all nine of his field-goal attempts this season, including two from beyond 50 yards.

“Maybe the two best specialists in the conference, excellent punter, excellent kicker,” Kirk Ferentz said of Michigan State’s two specialists. “Unfortunately, the kicker had a 58-yarder against us last year. They’re a good football team.”

Iowa also has its own formidable one-two punch at punter and kicker in freshman punter Rhys Dakin and junior kicker Drew Stevens.

Dakin, who is from Melbourne, Australia, has punted 30 times for a 44.6 average and 14 of his punts have been downed inside the 20.

He faced the daunting task of replacing fellow Melbourne native Tory Taylor, who was the 2023 Ray Guy Award winner as the nation’s best collegiate punter.

And while nobody is ready to compare Dakin to Taylor just yet, Dakin has met the challenge so far.

Stevens has made 10-of-11 field-goal attempts this season, and he is 4-for-4 from 40 to 49 yards and 1-for-2 from beyond 50 yards.

He also has converted 57-of-58 point-after kicks in his career and he handles kickoffs for the Hawkeyes.

Stevens struggled late last season to where Kirk Ferentz benched him in the Nebraska game.

Stevens has since bounced back, and he now ranks among the league’s top kickers.

Iowa also has one of the conference’s top return specialists in senior Kaden Wetjen, who is averaging 9.9 yards on punt returns and 24.7 yards on kick returns.

Michigan State doesn’t have a player on the roster that has returned more than four punts or three kicks this season.

This was probably the toughest decision among all the positions because both teams excel on special teams.

Advantage: Michigan State