The Spartans visit the Ducks on Friday night. Here’s what you need to know.
The Spartans are about to make their first Big Ten West Coast trip to take on #6 Oregon on a Friday evening. MSU is reeling after two consecutive losses and they are facing another daunting opponent, this time on the road and on a short week. Hopefully MSU makes a great deal of progress in this six-day span between games and can pull off the upset. Here’s the info you need before this game.
Michigan State at Oregon
When: Friday, October 4 @ 9 PM EST
Where: Autzen Stadium; Eugene, OR
TV: Fox
Radio: Local listings , online or on the app
Betting: Oregon -24; over/under 52.5
Predictions:
Mike: I’m torn between a competitive game where MSU finally starts to make some plays or an outright Oregon blowout. Sadly, I just can’t see an MSU win here. I’ll go with something closer to the former scenario though, and similar to MSU’s last game at Oregon in 2014. The Spartans had a huge second quarter in that game and went into halftime with the lead before Oregon pulled away in the second half. I don’t know if MSU is up at halftime this year, but they keep it close for a while before Oregon eventually pulls away. The score will look better than the OSU game but MSU goes into the bye week on a 3-game skid. 34-17 Ducks.
Steve: Take the points Spartans as I don’t think Oregon will cover but I also don’t think the score will be close 27-7 Oregon on top. Coach Smith may be the secret weapon though in this one as he knows the Ducks very well.
Brian: Well, the Spartans go into Autzen Stadium 23.5-point underdogs with Vegas thinking 38-14, Bad guys. I disagree. Both the Spartans’ offense and defense showed us something on Saturday – they can play with anyone for at least a half. If that scoreboard hadn’t been slapped by correctable turnovers after 30 minutes, that second 30 is a lot more competitive (even if OSU ultimately wins). I don’t think Oregon sees themselves at OSU’s level just yet – they haven’t played that game, won’t get to until next week, and they know it. Overthinking the Spartans’ successes from a few quarters back creates a couple of opportunities. The Spartans have a few linemen with ‘thrown into the fire’ experience behind them, and both sides of the ball find just enough big plays when needed. 24-21 MSU.
O: I am thinking I may have to put Mike and Steve on administrative leave until they start picking MSU to win games again. Their lack of faith gets to me this week. 28-13 Oregon.
Enjoy the game. Game thread will open 2 hours before kickoff.
GO GREEN! GO WHITE!