Michigan State football offensive snap counts vs. Minnesota revealed

On Saturday, Michigan State football fell to Minnesota in overtime. The Spartans were facing adversity throughout the contest, being down players, starting a new quarterback, and that is before talks of officials happen. On Saturday, the Spartans had three extra downs to add to their snap counts due to the overtime period.

As always, starters will be italicized. Snap counts and percentages will be out of the 70 offensive snaps.

How did the Michigan State football snap counts break down on offense?

Quarterback

Alessio Milivojevic: (69) 98.5%

Aidan Chiles: (1) 1.5%

Alessio Milivojevic was tabbed for his first career start in the Twin Cities. The redshirt freshman graded out extremely well, throwing for 311 yards and a touchdown. Most of the sacks he took did not fall on him, either. Overall, it appears exceedingly likely that the Spartans will have a new QB1 after the bye week.

Aidan Chiles played the last snap before halftime, and this occurred due to the Big Ten buzzing down to have Milivojevic checked for a concussion, as revealed by Jonathan Smith post-game.

Running back

Brandon Tullis: (40) 57%

Elijah Tau-Tolliver: (27) 38.5%

Bryson Williams: (3) 4%

Brandon Tullis was the starting running back against the Gophers after Makhi Frazier landed on the injury report. This was his second start, following the USC contest in week four. Tullis added a touchdown on the day, but Tau-Tolliver was the star of the running backs, with his rushing yardage of 127 yards being the most by a Spartan this season.

Freshman Bryson Williams lined up in the backfield for a few packages, too, adding his first career rush for six yards.

Fullback

Jay Coyne: (6) 8.5%

Coyne was utilized for six snaps this week, most of which came in the goal line formations. Considering the Spartans’ overall struggles in the redzone this week, it is hard to give a favorable review for the I-formation and goal line formations with Coyne.

Wide Receiver

Omari Kelly: (65) 93%

Nick Marsh: (63) 90%

Rod Bullard Jr.: (50) 71%

Evan Boyd: (5) 7%

Charles Taplin: (1) 1.5%

With Chrishon McCray out, Bullard was given his first Spartan start. The receiver was the best of the group, adding a 100-yard game. Marsh had a frustrating day, as the sophomore phenom’s game is best described as “what if.” He dropped a touchdown catch and was out of sync with Milivojevic, which was weird considering their usual sharpness late in games.

Omari Kelly was very much present during the game, which led to a 94-yard outing. Kelly had eight catches on the day, which was rarely seen with Chiles slinging the ball. Taplin was the only receiver between him and Boyd to record a catch on the day, with the freshman’s first career snap resulting in an eight-yard gain. Boyd was called upon in a few situations as a decoy.

Tight End

Michael Masunas: (44) 63%

Jack Velling: (43) 61%

Kai Rios: (3) 4%

Masunas got the start on Saturday, but Velling was the pass catcher. In spite of previous connections with Milivojevic, including a 21-yard touchdown strike to end the Michigan contest, Masunas was held out of the reception column. Velling had good chemistry with the redshirt freshman in his other games, and the senior had a pair of catches for 28 yards.

Rios played a handful of snaps, but there is not much to remember or write about from his game.

Offensive Line

Conner Moore: (70) 100%

Matt Gulbin: (70) 100%

Rustin Young: (70) 100%

Caleb Carter: (70) 100%

Gavin Broscious: (37) 53%

Rakeem Johnson: (33) 47%

Four ironman games for the Spartans on Saturday, with Gulbin continuing his mark as the only Spartan to play every offensive snap of the year. When the line gives up seven sacks, along with three of the six being whistled for a penalty, not a lot of highlights to commemorate. Stanton Ramil was out for the contest after trying to battle through injury against Michigan, but missing the entire second half.

Rakeem Johnson got his first career start at a guard spot after starting as a left tackle against Ohio State last year, and had the best pass block grade. Gulbin had an uncharacteristically bad game. The tackles continue to be a concern. Overall, not a high-grading game from the unit.

The Spartans are back in action on November 15, hosting the Penn State Nittany Lions for Senior Day. It will kick at 3:30 p.m. EST.