Michigan State continued its downward spiral last week with a loss to Illinois. It was the Spartans’ fourth straight defeat and fifth of the season. Michigan State must now win two of its final three games to be bowl eligible.

But that didn’t seem to be on coach Mark Dantonio’s mind on Tuesday. The embarrassment of losing and blowing a big lead to Illinois, though, absolutely was, as he said the result is something that he’ll “probably carry” with him for the rest of his life.

That’s incredible to think about but also not hard to understand why. Michigan State led Illinois 31-10 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Fighting Illini rallied with 27 points in the final stanza to win by three. Illinois scored the game-winning touchdown with five seconds remaining.

Michigan State has suffered bigger losses, but Saturday was about as tough as any loss the Spartans have suffered during the Dantonio era. They will look to rebound this Saturday against rival Michigan on the road.