The Bob Chesney era is off to one heck of a start at UCLA as the Bruins, one year removed from a 3-9 season, have already topped that win total from 2025 and are 5-0 and ranked No. 12 nationally. There were some who believed that Michigan State should have targeted Chesney but Pat Fitzgerald’s rebuild is taking a little longer — and that was to be expected.
In two weeks, Fitzgerald and Chesney will meet up in Pasadena for a game that no longer feels very winnable for Michigan State. At the beginning of the season, it was definitely in that winnable column, but after six weeks, UCLA is going to be heavily favored.
Things did swing in the wrong direction for the Bruins on Monday, however, as star quarterback Nico Iamaleava suffered what’s being considered a season-ending knee injury in a Week 6 upset win over Oregon.
UCLA standout QB Nico Iamaleava is expected to miss the rest of the season due to a knee injury he suffered during the Bruins’ win over Oregon on Saturday, sources tell @CBSSports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) October 12, 2026
An unfortunate development for No. 12 UCLA and for Iamaleava, who had been brought up by multiple… pic.twitter.com/TemOyOlJjM
Iamaleava had been having a decent season before the injury, passing for just under 1,000 yards with four touchdowns through the air and another on the ground. He has had a bit of a turnover problem with four interceptions in five games. Still, he’s been a steady presence under center, completing over 62 percent of his passes while learning a brand-new offense.
This is a really big blow to the Bruins who were already performing well ahead of schedule under Chesney and now they’re going to have to rely on senior transfer Ty Dieffenbach from Cal Poly who threw the eventual game-winning touchdown pass at Oregon last week.
He was 3-for-6 against Oregon with 43 yards and a touchdown. At Cal Poly in 2025, he had 1,305 passing yards and nine touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also rushed for 321 yards and four more touchdowns.
Not the best passer, but definitely a threat to run; Michigan State has struggled with dual-threats.
Michigan State’s slim chances vs. UCLA slightly improved
Michigan State has six games remaining and after a 2-4 start, the Spartans have to finish 4-2 if they want to play in the postseason for the first time in five years.
Considering Michigan State faces Michigan, Oregon, Washington, and Northwestern still, this is probably a must-win road game. It’s tough to call a road game against the No. 12 team in the country a “must-win” but the Bruins are going to look a lot different without Iamaleava.
Dieffenbach is going to get a shot to prove himself, as is Iamaleava’s younger brother, Madden Iamaleava. Purdue put up a fight against the Bruins on the road and Iamaleava had his best game of the season. I’d like to think that the Spartans can play a decent enough game to have the Bruins on upset alert.
This is just a horrible blow to UCLA and a tough break for Iamaleava who has been playing really well but the Bruins’ promising season could now take a turn for the worst.
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