On Sep. 12, 2026, the Eastern Michigan Eagles traveled to East Lansing to take on the Michigan State Spartans. The Eagles lost the in-state matchup with a final score of 35-7. The Eagles’ next game is yet another tough road test as the team will be traveling to Madison, Wisconsin, to take on the Wisconsin Badgers.
Close first half
The first quarter of the game was back and forth with each team seeming to feel out the other team's style. Of the five drives in the first quarter, only one turned into points. After a punt by Eastern, Chrishon McCray returned the ball 31 yards to the Eagles’ 24-yard line. The punt return led to an 18-yard passing touchdown by Alessui Nukivojevic, bringing the score to 7-0.
The second quarter was better for each offense. The quarter started with a 16 play, 80-yard drive by Michigan State which resulted in a touchdown by Cam Edwards. Eastern Michigan answered right back with a 13 play, 78-yard drive which resulted in a rushing touchdown by Noah Kim. The running game was crucial for this drive as two of the Eastern Michigan running backs Amareon Blue and Braydon Bennett had big plays resulting in over 10 yards. Going into halftime, the Michigan State Spartans were in the lead with a score of 14-7.
Second half distancing
The second half of the game is where the distance in the final score began.The Spartans opened the second half with a scoring drive. The Eagles were not able to respond as they fumbled the ball a few plays after their kick return. The momentum for Michigan State continued as they went on to score yet again before the third quarter came to a close.
Michigan State had the first drive of the fourth quarter, and the Eagles managed to force and recover a fumble. The Eagles offense was not able to push past the Spartans defense, and had to punt the ball back. Before the game ended, the Spartans managed to score yet again, bringing the final score to 35-7.
Player successes
While it was a tough loss for the Eagles, there were some good games individually. Braydon Bennett had nine carries for 56 yards, averaging 6.2 yards per carry. Bennett had a 22-yard reception to go alongside his rushing yards. While the Spartans defense was resilient, Bennett was able to help the offense keep drives alive. Amareon Blue has 8 rushes for 40 yards, which included a long 20-yard pickup. Harold Mack recorded the most receiving yards on the team, finishing with five receptions for 49 yards.
On defense, the highlight of the game was the forced fumble by Peyton Christian which was recovered by Jason Marshall. As for pressuring the quarterback, Quincy Byas was in on both of the teams sacks, giving him a total of one total sack, with Ronn Hardin and Makhi Gilbert each recording 0.5 sacks. Linebacker Bryce Eliuk tracked the offense and had a final tackle-for-loss stat of 1.5.
Looking ahead
The Eagles will be on the road again in their next matchup against the Wisconsin Badgers. The game will take place at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, at 12:30 p.m. on Sep. 19, 2026. Fans can tune into Peacock to watch the game live.
