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    • Aidan Chiles struggles, defense shines, Michigan State survives against Florida Atlantic
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    Aidan Chiles struggles, defense shines, Michigan State survives against Florida Atlantic

    Vaseline Posted on

    East Lansing — D’Quan Douse weaved his way through Florida Atlantic’s offensive line on Friday night before wrapping his arms around the Owls quarterback and dragging him down like a rag doll.

    Douse, a transfer from Georgia Tech, jumped to his feet and celebrated the success along with the boisterous crowd in the green-and-white striped Spartan Stadium.

    The first points of the Jonathan Smith era were scored by a safety.

    It probably wasn’t how Smith envisioned those points. But then again, there were plenty of moments during the 16-10 season opener against Florida Atlantic that didn’t seem to go as planned.

    SCOREBOX: Michigan State 16, Florida Atlantic 10

    The Spartans had set up a play for Aidan Chiles to throw a long ball to Montorie Foster Jr. on the opening drive — a pass that was eventually intercepted. There were several more turnovers and plenty of penalties and fouls during Friday night’s dogfight.

    That said, a win is a win, and it’s a better start than the previous regime.

    The defense repeatedly got stops and takeaways, which helped alleviate the pressure the offense felt to execute early. When Chiles and the rest of the group were on the same page, Michigan State found success, but the momentum wasn’t sustainable.

    Most of the match wasn’t exactly pretty.

    The offense often seemed out of sync, which was to be expected given the lack of playing experience this group had together. Michigan State totaled 293 yards that night. Chiles, in his first career start, went 10-for-24 for 114 yards passing with two interceptions. He also generated 28 yards on the ground with a touchdown.

    The defense, on the other hand, looked much better than the offense. Joe Rossi’s group was solid overall, generating two turnovers in the second quarter alone. There were a few mistakes that resulted in flags being thrown, but the tenacity and effort were there as the Spartans limited the Owls to 248 total yards and recorded 10 tackles for loss, including seven sacks.

    With 61 new players who weren’t there a year ago and an almost entirely new coaching staff that has set up a different offense and defense, mixed results were to be expected in the Spartans’ first game.

    On the first play of the game, just seconds into the game, something quarterbacks fear most when letting the ball fly happened to Chiles.

    Michigan State, in an attempt to make a big impression, had Chiles throw a pass to Foster, but the veteran wide receiver fumbled the ball, which ended up in the hands of Owls defensive back Kahzi “Buggs” Brown. An official review of the play determined that Brown was in bounds when he controlled the ball, confirming the turnover.

    Later in the first quarter, Ryan Eckley’s punt was set up on the first line, paving the way for Douse’s sack, which came on the second play of that drive.

    The Spartans offense had good moments, with Chiles running up the middle for an 11-yard touchdown in the second quarter to give Michigan State a 9-0 lead.

    Central Florida transfer Nikai Martinez intercepted Cam Fancher on the Owls’ next drive.

    Chiles handed the ball to Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams. A key block from Tanner Miller helped Lynch-Adams break free and run 63 yards to the end zone for the Spartans’ second touchdown of the game.

    Lynch-Adams finished with 101 rushing yards on nine carries.

    Late in the second quarter, Morgan Suarez gave the Owls some signs of life by kicking a field goal from 43 yards out.

    Florida Atlantic, trailing 16-3 at halftime, made things interesting when Fancher connected with Jayshon Platt for a 10-yard touchdown. After Saurez knocked in the extra point, the Owls trailed only 16-10 with the entire fourth quarter remaining.

    But Michigan State ultimately held on.

    The Spartans have a long week of training ahead of them before traveling to Maryland next Saturday for their first Big Ten game of the season.

    This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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    @madkenney

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