MADISON, Wis. – Backup quarterback Rocky Lombardi’s pass was tipped and intercepted at the Wisconsin 1-yard line in the final minute of the fourth quarter.

That sealed the shutout loss as Michigan State (4-3, 2-2 Big Ten) was hammered 38-0 at No. 8 Wisconsin (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) on Saturday. But, it was abundantly clear well before that point it was going to be a miserable offensive performance for the Spartans against the Badgers, who ranked first in the nation in total defense and scoring defense.

“I thought we’d be able to run it a little bit more effectively, I also thought we’d throw it a little bit more effectively,” Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. “You go into a game with a gameplan and you figure something’s going to work. But, you’ve got to execute those too.”

The shutout was just the second in Dantonio’s 13 seasons leading the Spartans, joining a 38-0 loss to Alabama in a 2015 College Football Playoff semifinal. Getting held out of the end zone on Saturday came after Michigan State scored just one offensive touchdown in three of its first six games.

The lack of offensive production is a carryover from last season in which the Spartans failed to score a touchdown in three of their last four games as the heavily-scrutinized group was one of the worst in the nation. As a result, Dantonio made the unconventional decision to not hire or fire anyone on the offensive staff and simply shuffled around his assistants with Brad Salem taking over as coordinator. Following the loss on Saturday, Dantonio was asked if it was a mistake not bringing in new offensive staff.

“I don’t think we ask those questions right now,” he said. “We’re seven games into the schedule. I think that’s sort of a dumb(expletive) question to be quite honest with you.”

Reporter: Was it a mistake not to bring in a new offensive staff?



Mark Dantonio was having none of it. pic.twitter.com/EeLaUNpSIL — Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 12, 2019

While Michigan State’s defense gave up more than 400 yards for the second straight week, the offense couldn’t move the ball. The Spartans finished with just 149 yards of total offense – 67 of which came in the fourth quarter when the outcome was already cemented. It represented the fewest number of total yards in a game for Michigan State since posting just 94 in a loss to Michigan last year. Their seven first downs were the fewest in at least two decades as sports-reference.com only tracks stats back to the 2000 season.

“Packing the box pretty good, we couldn’t really run it very well,” Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke said of Wisconsin’s defense. “I wasn’t throwing it very well – the wind was a little bit of a factor. We just couldn’t move the ball.”

Lewerke finished just 7-for-16 passing for 53 yards and an interception that was returned for a touchdown before being replaced in the fourth quarter by Rocky Lombardi, who completed 5 of 14 throws for 66 yards and an interception. Starting running back Elijah Collins had only eight carries for 16 yards.

“You’ve got opportunities to make plays,” Dantonio said, “you’ve got to execute too.”

Linebacker Tyriq Thompson led the team in rushing due to his 20-yard gain on a fake punt in the third quarter. That was the longest offensive play of the game for Michigan State and first time the team crossed midfield but back-to-back sacks and a penalty resulted in another empty drive.

“Probably our biggest play of the game, a fake punt to get us down there,” Dantonio said, “but we didn’t do anything with it.”

Through the first six games this season, Michigan State’s offense was better than last year, but that wasn’t much of a compliment. However, the inability to execute and finish drives and, most importantly, score points, remain constant problems. And they’re issues Michigan State takes into a bye week with a two-game losing streak and a visit from No. 10 Penn State coming up on Oct. 26.

“We’ve got to make sure guys stay together and not have a repeat of this,” Lewerke said, “make sure we learn as much as we can in practice to make sure everyone’s on the same page.”