Michigan State football: What went wrong in first 2021 loss at Purdue?

2. Michigan State’s secondary was atrocious

This should come as no surprise — a week earlier, Michigan State made Cade McNamara look like Tom Brady. Purdue quarterback Aidan O’Connell was 40-for-54 with 536 passing yards. There’s not a defense on earth that should allow more than 500 passing yards to a team that throws it 54 times and gains 58 rushing yards.

Michigan State didn’t even pose a challenge, often being outmatched by better receivers or just simply falling in man coverage. This was one of the most pathetic defensive performances I have ever seen.

Before Saturday, Michigan State had gotten lucky where their special teams have been able to come up in big situations, as it did against Nebraska. They’ve been able to at least rely on the “not breaking” portion of their defense. Against Michigan, the defense forced Jim Harbaugh into settling for four field goals, which ultimately led to the Spartans’ win.

Purdue’s offense should not have been able to run down the clock in the last four minutes of regulation. There’s no reason for that. Instead of using the run, Purdue used screens to set up big plays and easy conversions. It’s like Michigan State wasn’t even prepared.

It’s really hard to put into words how poor this defense played. Even those 54 rushing yards are a lot for Purdue’s offense.

Michigan State’s defense hadn’t killed them yet before today’s game against Purdue. On Saturday, it did. Even against Nebraska, it held up. Against Miami, Northwestern, and others, it held up. Their defense at least kept the Spartans in the game. On Saturday, the water level rose too high. They were ill-prepared in every facet on that side of the ball.