Last Week:
Penn State came up short against Illinois, falling thanks to a last second field goal that knocked the Nittany Lions down to 6-5 on the year with only one game to go in the regular season. Michigan State on the other hand bounced back from a loss to Ohio State that knocked the Spartans out of likely playoff contention and the Big Ten title game. Since the OSU loss the Spartans have tallied a 37-15 win over Maryland and a 45-3 victory over Rutgers.
The Good:
Michigan State is really pretty good at everything. They’re scoring 43.9 points a game which is 7th best in the nation. The Spartans are racking up 245 yards on the ground good for 20th best in the country. Couple that with a 20.8 points against average that is 22nd best in the land and you have a team that can score points and keep people from scoring. It’s a deadly combination that is largely why the Spartans have lost only to No. 3 Oregon and No. 14 Ohio State.
Connor Cook is as veteran a quarterback as they come in the Big Ten and his 2,720 yards through the air and 21 touchdowns aren’t too shabby either. Running back Jeremy Langford’s 1,242 yards on the ground and Tony Lippett’s 1,071 receiving yards gives the Spartans a threat both through the air on the ground with even more talent behind those two primary weapons.
The Bad:
For as good as the Spartan’s are on defense they’ve been prone to giving up the big play or two from time to time. While Penn State’s offense hasn’t exactly been a factory for big plays and long passes there is in theory an opportunity to try and take advantage of that weakness on the Spartan defense. Then again, a weakness on a very good defense could be a strength on many others.
The Player To Watch:
It’s hard to imagine Penn State losing simply because Langford ran through the nation’s best rush defense so that puts eyes on Cook and Lippett. If either of those players can put up the numbers they have all year Penn State will have a hard time winning on Saturday. A little pressure in Cook’s face and a turnover or two might just be enough to give Penn State fans some hope.
The Prediction:
It’s hard to imagine Penn State winning, but that doesn’t mean the Nittany Lions don’t have one more upset in them during the sanction era. Senior Day and having nothing to lose can sometimes be produce the perfect storm. But it will take an offensive attack that hasn’t existed for that to happen and unless Christian Hackenberg and his targets get on the same page it’s difficult to see the upset coming to fruition.
Michigan State 35 Penn State 14
