On paper, the 38-7 loss on Saturday to No. 3 Ohio State looks like another chapter for Michigan State in the long string of blowout losses to the Buckeyes.

After all, it is the ninth consecutive loss in the series and eighth-straight defeat by at least 20 points. But that 31-point difference is a bit deceiving, and that is shown based on how MSU head coach Jonathan Smith talked about the game and his team.

“I didn't feel that there were a bunch of snaps out there that we were just overwhelmed. ‘Oh, they have too much talent, they’re too physical.'" Smith said postgame. “That’s a really good team, one of the best teams in the country. [I was] trying to encourage our guys that we can go toe-to-toe if we can finish on some things and get back to some details on ball security and getting off the field on third down.”

It was evident Michigan State (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) was prepared to make it a ballgame. But, two red zone turnovers and a separate turnover on downs might have spotted the Buckeyes (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) as many as 21 points. Along with that, OSU was 6-for-12 on third down with its starters in.

“I thought the effort was there, but the execution wasn't,” Smith said. “Biggest positive is if these guys will go back to work, because we’ve got a short week and being able to learn from this and continuing to move forward, that’ll be the biggest positive for me.”

After Ohio State opened the game with a field goal, an Aidan Chiles quarterback sneak at the OSU 20-yard line was snuffed out on fourth-and-1 to end MSU’s first drive. On the ensuing Buckeye drive, they converted on three third downs and on a fourth-and-goal to get in the end zone and make it 10-0.

“Going into the game, it felt like field goals against this team, this offense, was not going to give us the best chance to win,” said Smith on the decision to go for it. “Honestly, on fourth-and-1, I’m going to be overly aggressive, these guys know that, and we need to go get that done.”

In response, MSU continued to move the ball, but what looked like a 26-yard Jack Velling reception to Ohio State’s 10-yard line ended up turning into a lost fumble. The play of the game for Michigan State was Jordan Turner essentially canceling that play out by intercepting Will Howard and returning it to the OSU 12-yard line. Chiles went to Jaron Glover for a touchdown on the following play.

Another brutal swing against the Spartans was the second fumble, this one against Chiles. MSU had the ball on the OSU 16-yard line and it was third-and-3. Chiles tried to scramble up the middle and a facemask penalty against Ohio State’s Tywone Malone Jr. should have been called, a sentiment Smith agrees with. No flag came out and Lathan Ransom forced the ball out of Chiles' grip and Jack Sawyer recovered it.

That meant that Michigan State’s first four drives ended in the Ohio State red zone and it only had seven points to show for it.

“It's in the details and it's in these turnovers,” Smith said. “We are going to continue to work, credit to those guys. At the end of the day, 38-7 is not close because it's about the scoreboard. There will be plenty of snaps that we'll watch from this game that we are right there with them. I thought defensively they had some good athletes out there and we tried to go toe-to-toe.”

Michigan State has now turned the ball over at least three times in all four of its games against FBS teams, for a total of 13. That is tied for the third-highest mark in the FBS and is the second-highest among Power Four teams (Auburn, 15).

One positive is that the Buckeyes had to truly work for their points, for the most part. Ohio State’s opening drive took 11 plays. Its first touchdown drive was 14 plays. The Buckeyes’ initial turn with the ball in the second half was a 13-play, 76-yard touchdown drive.

“I did feel like we wanted to force them to earn it,” Smith said. “Put longer drives together and execute eight, 10, 12 [plays], and then they did it a few times. We didn’t have a bunch of the 60, 70-yard touchdowns that we’ve been watching on tape.”

Some of it was also Ohio State being Ohio State. True freshman superstar wide receiver Jeremiah Smith had 102 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns at halftime. One touchdown that Jonathan Smith was complimentary of was a one-hander that made it 24-7 before the half.

“Let’s face it, this is big time college football against a big time [opponent],” Jonathan Smith said. “They’re going to make a play or two. You look at some other snaps where we could have executed better on some other plays, but not given the opportunity. One-on-one with some of these guys, they’re going to make their fair share of plays.”

More big time opponents await. MSU will have a short week to recuperate and prepare for a road game against Coach Smith’s old rival from his time at Oregon State — No. 6 Oregon.

“Every week’s important,” Jonathan Smith said. “It’s going to be a short week, and again, reloading, recovering, getting our mind flipped to another really good and talented opponent.”

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