Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch gives his initial thoughts on the Spartans' performance Saturday at Spartan Stadium. 1. Nothing is going to come easy for this MSU team This is going to be a hard season for Michigan State. Doesn't mean it can't be a successful one, but the way MSU is playing is a hard way to win week in and week out without slipping up somewhere it shouldn't. It's also a hard way to beat good teams. If there was going to be a week where MSU was going to have a feel-good win offensively, this game against Central Michigan was it. Until Rutgers on Thanksgiving, at least. It didn't happen. MSU didn't score until four minutes into the second quarter. The dam broke and this became a relatively lopsided win because CMU's offense couldn't get anything going against the Spartans for the most of the first three quarters. "Very disappointing," Brian Lewerke said of not being able to put away CMU with offense. "Something we're very aware of. "It just sucks we can't finish out teams. I really want to be able to do that." Eventually, after enough good field position, MSU quarterback Brian Lewerke found a rhythm and MSU's running game, for the first time since the first half at Arizona State, began to make hay. It also took Lewerke using his legs more than he has. That'll be critical moving forward — especially with one less weapon in the passing game with receiver Cody White out for a while with a broken hand. Lewerke and MSU offensive play-caller Dave Warner can't be reluctant to go that route to continue drives and punch it in in the red zone. MORE: Couch: Lewkerke's legs are key to saving MSU's season MORE: Grading the Spartans' performance against CMU 2. Jake Hartbarger's injury is going to hurt MSU MSU punter Tyler Hunt didn't make any gaffes. He didn't even punt it into the end zone when MSU had a chance to pin Central Michigan deep. But the Spartans are losing about 10 yards in field position per punt without injured senior punter Jake Hartbarger. And on this day, it kept CMU from being pinned inside its own 10-yard line a couple of times. That extra breathing room changes a lot. It takes the crowd out of it. It keeps the defense from pinning its ears back, salivating at the opportunity. It prevents a nervous punt out the end zone. Against better teams — for this MSU team — that could well be the difference. MORE: Michigan State overcomes slow start, topples Central Michigan, 31-20 MORE:Turning point, unsung hero and more from Michigan State's win over Central Michigan 3. This is why you should never bet a favored Dantonio team to cover the Vegas spread Las Vegas made MSU 28 1/2-point favorites coming into this game against CMU. Based on the matchup alone — a CMU team that was among the worst offensively in college football, against an MSU team hungry to get going — there's no way the Chippewas were a smart bet. But perhaps no coach plays the game more unaware of the point spread than Mark Dantonio. He won't do his alumni any favors on that front. MSU led this game 31-3 with 4:42 left in the third quarter. From there, MSU's defense lets up, CMU's offense starts moving and, on the other side of the ball, Dantonio puts in backup quarterback Rocky Lombardi in early in the fourth quarter for a drive that went nowhere — and boom: MSU doesn't come close to covering the spread. Dantonio's MSU teams are decent bets as underdogs or to win straight up, but they rarely win impressively on the scoreboard when they can. Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter at gcouch@lsj.com.<doc-sep>Hey, look — a noon kickoff! The Michigan State Spartans take on the Central Michigan Chippewas for a Saturday matinee in East Lansing. The Spartans look to improve to 3-1 heading into the full-time Big Ten slate the rest of the season, while the Chips will look to stun MSU and win back-to-back games for the first time this season. Here is your official game thread post. You know what to do in the comments section. Be sure to catch up on all of the great content from The Only Colors this week leading up to the game:<doc-sep>After squaring off with its first Big Ten opponent of the year last weekend at Indiana, No. 21 Michigan State ducks back out of the league for one final non-conference game Saturday with Central Michigan. The Chippewas are 1-3, their lone win coming a week ago over Maine of the Football Championship Subdivision. Below are details on how to watch the game, and links to relevant stories from the week: When: Saturday, noon Eastern TV: FS1 (Sean Kelley, James Laurinaitis) Online: fubotv.com, Available at FoxSportsGo.com/Fox Sports Go app Radio: Spartan Sports Network (94.9 FM/1240 AM in Lansing; 760 AM in Detroit). Click here for a full list of SSN affiliates Weather: 53 degrees, sunny, 0 percent chance of rain at kickoff MSU depth chart: Central Michigan How Michigan State found a new punter on its bye week Central Michigan breaking in new QB ahead of trip to MSU Notebook: Dantonio remembers Mylan Hicks 2 years after his death Staten: Offensive line improvement is a process 5 questions with CMU beat writer Evan Petzold MSU DE Willekes adding to his pass-rush tool belt This isn't one of those Dan LeFevour/Cooper Rush-era Central Michigan teams that could put a scare into MSU. Quite the opposite, actually, as the Chippewas are undergoing a transition at quarterback from Lansing Catholic's Tony Poljan to senior Tommy Lazzaro, who made his first start last week. On the other side of the ball, it's CMU's pass defense that stands out, as the Chippewas rank No. 5 nationally in passing yards allowed per game (140). While the outcome of the game isn't likely to be in jeopardy, there's plenty of intrigue on MSU's side of things, too. The first issue is who plays, and whether they're unable to or simply being held out for precautionary reasons. Offensive linemen Cole Chewins, David Beedle and Kevin Jarvis are all listed as starters on this week's depth chart, but their status for game day remains unclear. Running back LJ Scott is in the same situation. If the Spartans can secure a comfortable lead, it's likely redshirt freshman Rocky Lombardi takes his first college snaps at quarterback (he made his MSU debut in Week 2 as the emergency punter at Arizona State). It's important to MSU's coaches that Lombardi gets some live reps because none of starter Brian Lewerke's backups have ever played in a real game. And if MSU does build a big cushion on the scoreboard, it's also possible some more true freshmen see the field for the first time. So far, just four have played this season: wide receiver Jalen Nailor, safety Xavier Henderson, running back La'Darius Jefferson and defensive tackle Jacob Slade. Get the latest info on Michigan State football, basketball and recruiting sent straight to your inbox. Just enter your email address HERE to sign up for our free Spartans newsletter now!<doc-sep>MSU 31, CMU 20, 6:44 4Q. Chips score 17 points in less than seven minutes to make this a two-score game, the latest coming on a halfback pass. Spartans have kept their starters in the game, they've just had plenty of breakdowns and penalties Kyle Austin<doc-sep>
EAST LANSING, MI - SEPTEMBER 29: Brian Lewerke #14 of the Michigan State Spartans runs for a first down in the second half while playing the Central Michigan Chippewas at Spartan Stadium on September 29, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) Sure, Michigan State football came away with a Week 5 win over Central Michigan, but the second half was ugly. What went wrong? Building a 31-3 lead, everything seemed right with the world. The Spartans were about to jog to a nice, comfortable win over Central Michigan, but Michigan State allowed 17 straight points to make the game tighter than it needed to be. Must Read: MSU Football: 5 reasons to remain optimistic about 2018 outcome The Spartans seemed to fall apart late in the game to allow the Chippewas to get back into it, but it wasn’t all Central playing well (though they did play better in the fourth), it was also Michigan State turning the intensity down about five notches after three solid quarters. So what went wrong for the Spartans against Central in the second half? Here’s a quick run-down: Offense became more predictable. The Spartans were playing it safe, running the ball and not opening up the pass, especially to the tight ends. Run plays were primarily between the tackles while the successful runs of the day were to the outside. Spartans weren’t ready for a Central Michigan onside kick. Secondary eased off Central receivers in the fourth quarter and they were burned on quick routes all the way down the field. Rocky Lombardi came in for a drive early in the fourth quarter when it should have been Brian Lewerke with an 18-point lead. I get wanting to get Lombardi some experience, but the game was far from over and Michigan State moved backwards. Pass rush over-pursuing, allowing Tommy Lazarro to escape pressure and pick up positive rushing yards. Brian Lewerke was inaccurate, again, but also had his No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 receivers out with injuries and Cam Chambers, too, was hurt. No killer instinct. It wasn’t the perfect game for Michigan State and plenty went wrong in the second half after building a comfortable lead, but the Spartans still came away with a double-digit victory. It’s time for Michigan State to wake up as Northwestern comes to town looking for blood next weekend. The Wildcats have had the Spartans’ number over the years.