The Michigan State Spartans may have had some trouble putting away FCS Youngstown State on Saturday, but the analytics behind the quality of performance the team put together were positive after the 41-24 victory at Spartan Stadium .

Pro Football Focus gave MSU (3-0) a 91.1 overall grade for the game, the highest mark for the Spartans under second-year coach Jonathan Smith and best since a 2023 Week 2 matchup with FCS Richmond.

The Spartans’ offense graded out higher with an 82.7 compared to its defense with a 79.9, with both marks being well above an average grade (64 out of 100).

The quality of opponent certainly comes into account, but it crucially shows that the Spartans largely played with solid fundamentals, even if many of the results didn’t go their way — PFF doesn’t grade bas

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