MINNEAPOLIS — Michigan State’s 23-20 overtime loss at Minnesota on Saturday was a reminder of how fine the margins are in this sport. The Spartans are every bit as good as the Gophers, who are 6-3, and somehow 4-2 in the Big Ten (which is embarrassing for the league) and have a coach who’s not on the hot seat. MSU is right there with an utterly flawed Nebraska team, also 6-3 and 3-3 in league play, a program so enthralled with their second-year coach that they just signed him to an contract extension, scared they might lose him to Penn State.

And then there’s Jonathan Smith. If only he’d beaten those two teams. The MSU fan base would still be conflicted about him. But he’d have time to change that. Instead, even when he comes within a whisker of a road win, with his defense giving every

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