Connect with us

Boston, MA

Takeaways, observations from Michigan State’s loss at Boston College

Published

on

Takeaways, observations from Michigan State’s loss at Boston College


Michigan State had an upset win on the road within reach for the second time in four games.

The Spartans (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) couldn’t finish this time while suffering a 23-19 loss at Boston College (3-1, 1-0 ACC) on Saturday night at Alumni Stadium.

Here are quick takeaways and observations from the game:

* Warts and all, this team continues to show grit. The offense turned to option No. 4 at right guard to start the game while a redshirt freshman walk-on receiver logged first-quarter snaps. Injuries have depleted the Spartans at key positions and they keep making brutal, self-inflicted errors but don’t fold. It was a game they definitely could have won but didn’t deserve to due to back-breaking mistakes.

Advertisement

Two turnovers on the first two touches of the second half leading to 10 points in 13 seconds for Boston College didn’t snap the Spartans. Backed up at the 2-yard line, they turned in their longest drive of the season to reclaim the lead late in the fourth quarter. The Eagles go back in front with less than 90 seconds to play, Michigan State quickly moves within field goal range.

The difference was the final mistake couldn’t be overcome. Aidan Chiles was picked off in the end zone with 36 seconds left, the Eagles ran out the clock and coach Jonathan Smith suffered his first loss leading the Spartans. What could have been a 4-0 start that turned heads going into a brutal stretch starting against Ohio State and at Oregon was washed away on a rainy night on the road.

* It continues to be very clear what Michigan State has in Chiles – a game-changing talent who also looks like he just turned 19. The dazzling plays weren’t enough to overcome critical errors in his fourth career start. Chiles was elusive in the open field with his legs while moving the chains in key spots but also threw a trio of interceptions. Th first two were off target for tight end Jack Velling and the third was a poor decision.

After getting the ball back with 1:28 to play, Chiles was 3-for-3 with passes of 6, 21 and 12 yards to Velling. The Spartans were at the Boston College 36 with 42 seconds left, two timeouts and within range for kicker Jonathan Kim, who was already 4-for-4 on the night. They were moving the ball and heaving into double coverage at Montorie Foster after escaping pressure was obviously not the right decision. Chiles finished 17-for-35 for 241 yards, zero touchdown passes, three picks and ran for 57 yards and a score. He continues to show growth and has tremendous talent but must do a better job taking care of the ball after seven interceptions and a fumble already this fall.

* Behind a makeshift offensive line, an underwhelming run game struggled again. Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams led the team with 15 carries for 61 yards and 38 of those came in the fourth quarter, including 19 on a huge third-and-15 pickup. Five of Nathan Carter’s nine rushes were for zero or negative yards while frequently ambushed by defenders in the backfield. With a young quarterback on the road and a depleted group of receivers, the run game needed to show up consistently but didn’t.

Advertisement

* With the top two right guards – Kristian Phillips and Gavin Broscious – both out due to season-ending injuries, the Spartans went with a shakeup that didn’t include Dallas Fincher, who finished at the spot against Prairie View A&M last week. Starting left tackle Brandon Baldwin moved to right guard and was replaced by redshirt freshman Stanton Ramil, who was already pushing for the starting role. Luke Newman remained at left guard and Tanner Miller at center. It wasn’t a great night for the offensive line, which didn’t generate enough movement in the run game and had protection issues but stuck with its starting five.

* When one of three starting receivers is a redshirt freshman with zero career catches, you have a problem. Next up at the spot and on the field in the first quarter was a second-year walk-on with only five offensive snaps in a blowout against an FCS program. That sums up the depth chart the Spartans took to Boston.

Starters Jaron Glover and Nick Marsh were both out, along with Antonio Gates Jr. while Alante Brown missed his third straight game. Down four of the top five or six receivers on the roster led to Jaelen Smith getting the start and walk-on Jack Yanachik playing first-quarter snaps.

Despite the absences, opportunities were there in the pass game the Spartans couldn’t capitalize on. Chiles missed a pair of deep shots early to Foster before connecting on a third to set up the first touchdown. He overshot the fifth-year senior again on what would have been an easy touchdown in the third quarter before a field goal. Velling was a frequent target but missed throws prevented a larger impact. Foster led the team with 87 yards on four catches while Velling had six for 77 and Aziah Johnson three for 59 in his first career start.

* We’ll see how Michigan State’s defense holds up against Ohio State next week but the change so far under coordinator Joe Rossi has been notable. The Spartans got pushed around a bit early but did more than enough to win the game. They limited Boston College to 292 yards and 2-for-4 in the red zone while coming up with huge stops deep, both after a sudden change and at the end of a drive. Linebacker Jordan Hall’s stuff of quarterback Thomas Castellanos on fourth-and-goal from the 1 early in the fourth quarter was huge but still not enough.

Advertisement

The front seven remains a deep rotation as Khris Bogle continues to shine and fellow ends Quindarius Dunnigan and Anthony Jones and linebacker Jordan Turner all had a sack on Saturday while limiting Castellanos on the ground. Cornerback Charles Brantley had another strong performance while continually throwing around all of his generously-listed 170 pounds to make open-field tackles and another pass break-up. Castellano’s game-winning 42-yard touchdown throw to Logan Bond came as Angelo Grose slipped in coverage for the only pass play of at least 30 yards for the Eagles.

* Michigan State outclassed Boston College on special teams but one mistake was a game changer. Lynch-Adams took over as the deep man on kickoff returns after Johnson made a pair of ill-advised decisions to take the ball out of the end zone at Maryland, then made the same mistake himself. This one was more costly and came with Michigan State looking to add to its lead to start the second half.

Lynch-Adams brought it out from a yard deep and was drilled, resulting in a fumble Boston College recovered at the 5. The Spartans held the Eagles to a field goal but it was still a free three points before Chiles threw a pick on the next snap.

Kim was arguably Michigan State’s player of the game, finishing 4-for-4 on field goals, including a 51-yarder amid the elements late in the first half. A fifth attempt could have tied the game in the final seconds but he never got a chance. Ryan Eckley punted only twice with kicks of 50 and 48 yards, including one under intense pressure in the end zone.

  • BETTING: Check out our guide to the best Michigan sportsbooks, where our team of sports betting experts has reviewed the experience, payout speed, parlay options and quality of odds for multiple sportsbooks.



Source link

Advertisement

Boston, MA

Police investigating shooting in Downtown Crossing – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News

Published

on

Police investigating shooting in Downtown Crossing – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News


BOSTON (WHDH) – Police are investigating a shooting in Downtown Crossing that occurred Thursday night.

Officials said the shooting occurred around 10:30 p.m. near Tremont and Temple Streets.

When officers arrived on scene, they found a man with a gunshot wound; he is expected to survive.

Police have not said if any arrests have been made.

Advertisement

(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Join our Newsletter for the latest news right to your inbox



Source link

Continue Reading

Boston, MA

Lawsuit: ICE detained East Boston father despite legal status

Published

on

Lawsuit: ICE detained East Boston father despite legal status


Local News

Jose Pineda, 62, a Salvadoran immigrant who has legal status in the U.S., spent two days in a Burlington ICE facility under “cruel and inhumane conditions,” his attorneys say.

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent is seen in Park Ridge, Ill., Sept. 19, 2025. AP Photo/Erin Hooley, File

An East Boston father is suing ICE, alleging immigration agents unlawfully stopped, arrested, and detained him because of his race and national origin despite having his legal status, his lawyers said. 

Lawyers for Civil Rights filed the lawsuit Thursday on behalf of Jose Pineda, a 62-year-old Salvadoran immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for more than three decades and is authorized to remain and work through humanitarian relief, the nonprofit legal organization said in a press release. 

Advertisement

The suit is seeking damages under the Federal Tort Claims Act, alleging false arrest, false imprisonment, assault, and severe emotional distress.

“I came to the United States to escape the civil war that devastated El Salvador. I worked hard, started a family, and built a life here,” said Pineda, who works as a landscaper and lives with his wife and 13-year-old daughter. “I never expected to feel that kind of fear again, much less in the United States.” 

According to the 30-page complaint, written by LCR senior attorneys Victoria Miranda and Mirian Albert, Pineda has been a recipient of Temporary Protected Status, which allows certain foreign nationals from designated countries to live and work legally in the U.S. 

Pineda also had a pending asylum petition and had been granted a T visa, which provides immigration protections to trafficking victims, the complaint states. 

“We will not stand idly by as ICE wreaks havoc on immigrant families. Through racial profiling, ICE agents are carrying out an unquestionably discriminatory agenda,” Miranda said in the release. “The law exists to protect people like Mr. Pineda, and it must be enforced against ICE.” 

Advertisement

The lawsuit stems from a May 2025 encounter in Weymouth, where Pineda was driving a landscaping truck to a job site when agents in unmarked ICE vehicles surrounded him, according to the complaint.

“The aggressive nature of the questioning made it clear to Mr. Pineda that he was not being judged based on any evidence of unlawful conduct, but rather on his identity, race, ethnicity, and/or national origin,” Pineda’s attorneys wrote. 

The lawsuit alleges ICE officers then “forcibly” handcuffed and shackled Pineda before taking him to the agency’s field office in Burlington. 

Officers searched Pineda’s belongings during the stop and again at the field office, allegedly confiscating $600 in cash that he intended to use to pay his family’s rent. The money has not been returned, according to the complaint. 

Pineda spent two days in ICE custody under what the lawsuit describes as “cruel and inhumane conditions.” 

Advertisement

“After what ICE did to me, and after everything my family has endured, I don’t know if I will ever truly feel safe again,” Pineda said. 

According to the complaint, he was held in severely overcrowded cells containing more than 40 people — at times as many as 60 — leaving little room to sit and forcing him to remain standing for much of his detention. Detainees also allegedly shared a single toilet and sink without soap or toilet paper and were not provided toothbrushes, clean clothes, or showers. 

Fluorescent lights remained on around the clock, making it difficult to sleep, while temperatures became “extremely cold” overnight and some detainees received only aluminum blanekts for warmth, the complaint states. 

Pineda was given only a two-minute phone call during his detention and received two bottles of water each day, along with “inadequate and limited” food and water, according to the complaint. 

“Mr. Pineda has suffered devastating and ongoing physical and emotional harm that has impacted all aspects of his life,” his attorneys wrote. “Mr. Pineda brings this action to seek accountability for these violent and traumatizing tortious acts of the ICE officers and to address the harms inflicted upon him.” 

Advertisement

According to LCR, Pineda was released following advocacy by Centro Presente, a Massachusetts immigrant rights organization. 

After his release, ICE initiated removal proceedings against him depsite his humanitarian protections, the organization said. Those proceedings were ultimately dismissed. 

“ICE targeted Mr. Pineda based on nothing more than his perceived national origin and the nature of his work,” Albert said in the press release. “Our laws prohibit this kind of arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement. Through this lawsuit, we seek to hold the federal government accountable for the violence and harm inflicted on Mr. Pineda.”

ICE referred questions about the lawsuit to the Department of Homeland Security. DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday evening.

Sign up for the Today newsletter

Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.

Advertisement





Source link

Continue Reading

Boston, MA

Pedestrian struck and killed in Roxbury – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News

Published

on

Pedestrian struck and killed in Roxbury – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News


BOSTON (WHDH) – A pedestrian was hit and killed in Roxbury Thursday morning.

The collision occurred just before 8:20 a.m. on Tremont Street.

Police said Tremont Street was closed in both directions between Brigham Circle and Roxbury Crossing.

This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Advertisement

(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Join our Newsletter for the latest news right to your inbox



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending