Rutgers vs Michigan State Prediction: The Spartans' Bowl Game or Bust

Get a bowl if you win. That is the deal for Michigan State.

The team’s new coach, Jonathan Smith, was supposed to have a rough and inconsistent first season, but it is been… weird.

The team was good enough to beat Iowa 32–20, but they had lost six of their last seven games and had to work too hard to beat Purdue.

But what about those six losses? At Illinois, Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan, and Michigan State were five of them. There is no shame in that.

Rutgers is already good enough to go to the bowl game, but it needs to get a seventh win to get a good game.

In the second half of the season, the offense has stepped it up, but the team as a whole needs to be ready for a desperate team that needs this.

Rutgers vs Michigan State: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024
Game Time: 3:30 pm ET
How To Watch: FS1
Venue: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, MI
Teams: Michigan State (5-6), Rutgers (6-5)

Why Rutgers Will Win

The stress is gone.

Rutgers is going to play in a bowl game, so it can relax and do what it normally does. Simple steps will be used to make the Scarlet Knights. Keep your eye on the game and the clock as you run and hit.

Michigan State is the worst team in the Big Ten at stopping the other team on third down. The Spartans are also 0-4 when giving up 133 yards or more on the ground, but Rutgers should be tough enough up front to at least get close to that.

Why Michigan State Will Win

Rutgers has trouble completing passes, and the Spartan defense has to be very smart about how they cover midrange passes.

When the Scarlet Knights do not hit at least 60% of their throws, they have a hard time. That is not good enough for Michigan State.

The Spartans are 4-0 when they let teams connect on less than 59% of the time and 1-6 when they let teams connect on more of the time. MSU has had a hard time getting to the quarterback, but if they can hold out against the run and give up a little…

Rutgers vs Michigan State: Who Will Win?

Things will be rough in East Lansing, but not always on the field.

It will be about 25 degrees, and there will be snow and wind. The running games for both teams will be weak, and the passing games will be tough. With everything on the line at home, Michigan State will hold on thanks to one of its best running days of the season.