Michigan State Looks to Contend for Big 10 Title
The Utah State Aggies and the Michigan State Spartans will both be looking to go 1-0 to start the season. They meet at Spartan Stadium on Friday night to kick off the 2018 campaign. Big Ten Network has the kickoff at 7 pm EST.
Oddsmakers opened the Spartans as -27-point favorites versus the Aggies, while the game's total opened at 50.5. The line is now Michigan State -23.5 and the total is up to 52.
No. 11 Michigan State enters this season with hopes of contending for a Big Ten title. Maybe a national championship if things go their way. They have to prove it on the field and avoid a start like 2017.
Michigan State Returns A Lot of Starters
Coach Mark Dantonio returns 19 of 22 starters from last season's 10-3 campaign. That includes junior quarterback Brian Lewerke. He threw for 2,793 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2017.
The Spartans' offense features a number of big playmakers. They are led by senior running back LJ Scott who had 898 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground in 2017. Senior receiver Felton Davis III had 55 catches, 776 yards and nine touchdowns last season.
The Spartans juggled three running backs in 2017. This season, Scott should get most of the carries. He is hoping to avoid the fumble troubles that plagued him as a junior.
Having a more experienced Lewerke under center will make defenses have to respect the Spartans' passing game more. Scott may be able to find more holes and finally get his first collegiate 1,000-yard rushing campaign.
Defensively, Michigan State may be even better. They allowed only 20 points per game in 2017 and returning nearly every starter.
Junior linebacker Joe Bachie is the leader for Dantonio's defense. He paced the Spartans in tackles with 100, forced fumbles with two, and earning team MVP honors.
Utah State is Loaded With Returning Players as Well
The Aggies return 18 starters and could provide some troubles if the Michigan State offense isn't sharp, having ranked tied for sixth in the nation in 2017 with 29 forced
The Aggies' quarterback duties are sophomore Jordan Love's this season. He displaced then-senior Kent Myers partway through the 2017 campaign. He finished with 1,631 yards and eight touchdowns through the air. Love has had an offseason to better learn coach Matt Wells' system.
He'll have plenty of experienced targets to look for in the passing game. The biggest question is how well the Aggies can protect Love. The team has struggled with over the past few years. Love is nimble on his feet and has shown the ability to pick up yards on the ground when he needs.
PREDICTION: Michigan State 42, Utah State 17
Recent Form
| Name | Record | ATS | Offense | Defense | Diff | ATS Home | ATS Away | OU Record | OU Home | OU Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah State | 6-7 | 6-7 | 33.00 | 26.92 | 6.08 | 3-3 | 3-4 | 8-5 | 3-3 | 5-2 |
| Michigan State | 10-3 | 8-5 | 27.00 | 20.00 | 7 | 5-2 | 3-3 | 6-7 | 2-5 | 4-2 |
Power Stats
Yards Per Point
| Name | Offense | Defense | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| UTAHST | 13.3 | 14.84 | -1.54 |
| MICHST | 17.51 | 14.88 | 2.62 |
Yards Per Pass
| Name | Offense | Defense | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| UTAHST | 11.12 | 11.35 | -0.23 |
| MICHST | 11.28 | 10.91 | 0.37 |
Yards Per Rush
| Name | Offense | Defense | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| UTAHST | 4.27 | 4.51 | -0.24 |
| MICHST | 5.21 | 3.37 | 1.84 |
Team Records
Utah State Aggies
| Name | Record | Home | Away | ATS | ATS Home | ATS Away | Offense | Defense | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 6-7 | 3-3 | 3-4 | 6-7 | 3-3 | 3-4 | 30.15 | 26.92 | 3.23 |
| vs Conf | 4-4 | 1-3 | 3-1 | 4-4 | 1-3 | 3-1 | 32.63 | 22.75 | 9.88 |
| Last 3 | 1-2 | 1-0 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 1-0 | 0-2 | 31.00 | 21.33 | 9.67 |
Michigan State Spartans
| Name | Record | Home | Away | ATS | ATS Home | ATS Away | Offense | Defense | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 10-3 | 6-1 | 4-2 | 8-5 | 5-2 | 3-3 | 24.54 | 20.00 | 4.54 |
| vs Conf | 7-2 | 4-0 | 3-2 | 5-4 | 3-1 | 2-3 | 21.78 | 20.11 | 1.67 |
| Last 3 | 3-0 | 1-0 | 2-0 | 2-1 | 0-1 | 2-0 | 33.00 | 10.33 | 22.67 |
Supergrid
| Title | Stat | Rank | Stat | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Away Team Overall Scoring vs Home Team Overall Defense | 30.15 | 51 | 20.00 | 19 |
| Away Team Road Passing vs Home Team Home Passing Defense | 241.43 | 50 | 184.14 | 37 |
| Away Team Road Rushing vs Home Team Home Rushing Defense | 180.43 | 42 | 89.57 | 6 |
| Home Team Overall Scoring vs Away Team Overall Defense | 24.54 | 96 | 26.92 | 67 |
| Home Team Home Passing vs Away Team Road Passing Defense | 224.71 | 74 | 139.86 | 2 |
| Home Team Home Rushing vs Away Team Road Rushing Defense | 169.14 | 73 | 266.29 | 122 |
Head To Head Summary
| Name | Record | ATS | OU | Score | Rush | YPR | PA | CP | PY | TY | TO +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Utah State | -- | -- | -- | ||||||||
| Michigan State | -- | -- | -- |
Head To Head Detail
| Date | Away | Home | Score | Line | Total | OU Result | ARY | APY | ATY | ATT | HRY | HPY | HTY | HTT | Away Team Attempts | Home Team Attempts | Away Team Completions | Home Team Completions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Data to Display | ||||||||||||||||||
College Football Betting Odds & Trends
| Utah State Aggies | ||
|---|---|---|
| Utah State is 6-14 ATS in its last 20 games | ||
| Utah State is 7-15 SU in its last 22 games | ||
| Utah State is 4-12 ATS in its last 16 games on the road | ||
| Utah State is 3-13 SU in its last 16 games on the road | ||
| The total has gone OVER in 8 of Utah State's last 11 games on the road | ||
Michigan State Spartans | ||
|---|---|---|
| Michigan State is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games | ||
| The total has gone OVER in 4 of Michigan State's last 6 games | ||
| Michigan State is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games at home | ||
| Michigan State is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Michigan State's last 9 games at home | ||
Team Last 5 Games
Utah State Aggies
| Date | Opponent | score | Result | line | ATS Result | offensive rush yards | offensive passing yards | offensive total yards | defensive rush yards | defensive passing yards | defensive total yards | turnovers | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 29, 2017 | NMEXST | 20-26 | L | -5.5/63.5 | L/U | 187 | 254 | 441 | 184 | 191 | 375 | -1 | A |
| Nov 25, 2017 | AIRFOR | 35-38 | L | 2/57 | L/O | 237 | 284 | 521 | 407 | 33 | 440 | 0 | A |
| Nov 18, 2017 | HAWAII | 38-0 | W | -10/56 | W/U | 311 | 164 | 475 | 172 | 146 | 318 | 0 | H |
| Nov 4, 2017 | NEWMEX | 24-10 | W | 3/51 | W/U | 129 | 114 | 243 | 265 | 75 | 340 | -2 | A |
| Oct 28, 2017 | BOISE | 14-41 | L | 13/51.5 | L/O | 93 | 186 | 279 | 163 | 370 | 533 | 0 | H |
Michigan State Spartans
| Date | Opponent | score | Result | line | ATS Result | offensive rush yards | offensive passing yards | offensive total yards | defensive rush yards | defensive passing yards | defensive total yards | turnovers | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 28, 2017 | WSHST | 42-17 | W | -2.5/47.5 | W/O | 227 | 213 | 440 | 24 | 272 | 296 | -1 | A |
| Nov 25, 2017 | RUTGER | 40-7 | W | -14/42 | W/O | 209 | 222 | 431 | 14 | 98 | 112 | -3 | A |
| Nov 18, 2017 | MARYL | 17-7 | W | -14/44 | L/U | 271 | 20 | 291 | 83 | 121 | 204 | 0 | H |
| Nov 11, 2017 | OHIOST | 3-48 | L | 17/55 | L/U | 64 | 131 | 195 | 335 | 189 | 524 | 1 | A |
| Nov 4, 2017 | PENNST | 27-24 | W | 10/46.5 | W/O | 74 | 400 | 474 | 65 | 401 | 466 | -2 | H |
Next up:
Utah State home to New Mexico State Saturday, September 8
Michigan State at Arizona State Saturday, September 8
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