The Michigan State Spartans will host the Iowa Hawkeyes in a Big Ten battle Saturday afternoon at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. The game is set to start on Saturday, September 30th at 4:00 p.m. EST. The conference match-up can be seen on FOX for your afternoon entertainment. The Spartans are a -3.5 point favorite against the Hawkeyes. Also, the contest’s total rests at 45 points.
The Iowa Hawkeyes lost a heart-breaker against the Penn State Nittany Lions last weekend. Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley squeezed a perfect pass between two Iowa defenders with no time remaining. As a result, the Hawkeyes lost a last second, hard-fought BIG-10 battle at home.
The Michigan State Spartans are coming off a 38-18 home loss to the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. In that match-up, the Spartans defense came to play and held the Notre Dame offense in check. Unfortunately, Michigan State turned the ball over three times which led to 17 Fighting Irish points which was too much for them to overcome. These two midwestern rivals last met in the 2015 season. In that game, Michigan State came away with a 16-13 road victory.
Iowa Hawkeyes (3-1)
The Iowa Hawkeyes were one play away from staying undefeated. However, the Nittany Lions scored the game-winning touchdown on fourth and goal as time expired to win it 21-19. Against Penn State, quarterback Nathan Stanley was solid, connecting on 13 of 22 passes for 191 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. The sophomore signal-caller is having a superb year. Altogether, he has completed 64 passes for 846 yards with an impressive 12 touchdowns and one pick.
The Swiss-Army knife tailback Akrum Wadley made some big plays in the loss at home last weekend. Overall, he concluded his day with 80 rushing yards along with four catches for 75 receiving yards and a score. The senior running back is a threat when taking handoffs, rushing for at least 80 yards in three of four games. Also, Wadley has a team-leading 227 receiving yards.
Iowa uses two wide receivers to try to move the chains when they decide to look downfield for some production. Senior Matt Vandeberg and Nick Easily make a nice one-two punch. Together, they have combined for 28 catches for 300 yards and four scores. Tight end Noah Fant also is a red zone threat. This year, the 6’5 beast of a man has three end zone appearances.
The Iowa defense was sturdy against a talented Penn State offense. In fact, they held the Nittany Lions to a season-low 21 points. Furthermore, they limited them to 6 for 18 on their third down conversions. So far, they rank 38th in the country, giving up just under 20 points per game. The Hawkeye defense is going to give them at least a fighting chance the rest of the way in the Big-10.
Michigan State Spartans (2-1)
The Spartans faced rival Notre Dame last week and gave up 28 first-half points while turning the football over three times. It’s pretty tough to stay undefeated when you keep making critical errors against solid opponents.
Even so, dual-threat quarterback Brian Lewerke played well. In the loss, he threw the ball for 340 yards on 31 completions with three scores and a pick. Keep in mind, Lewerke is also the leading rusher for the Spartans with 206 yards on the year. Altogether, he has over 750 yards passing with six touchdowns and two interceptions. Not bad for a kid who just started taking snaps for Michigan State this year.
Running back L.J. Scott wasn’t much of a factor in the loss to the Irish. He carried the ball only 11 times for 62 yards. The junior tailback has not received as many carries as last season and as a result, has registered a lowly 186 rushing yards in three games. Teammate Madre London is another threat out of the backfield. So far, he has 22 carries for just under 100 yards and a score.
Darrell Stewart Jr. and Felton Davis III try to keep opposing secondaries honest when the Spartans look to pass. Combined, the two pass catchers have reeled in 27 balls for just over 300 yards and three trips to the promised land. Three other wideouts have caught at least six more balls and tallied one more touchdown.
The Michigan State defense could not stop Notre Dame on third down last week. The Irish converted 8 out of 14 of them and put up 28 points in the first half alone. The let-down performance was a bit of a shock because the Spartans defense played very well in their first two wins in 2017. This week, they will need to focus their efforts against the Hawkeyes run game, while respecting the play of quarterback Nathan Stanley.
Predictions
I like the road dog Iowa Hawkeyes in this BIG-10 affair on Saturday. Not only did they almost upset a great Penn State Nittany Lions ballclub but are getting a half point in my favor here. Las Vegas has this line at 3.5 and that’s all I needed to see to convince me to go with the Hawkeyes.
Line setters also have this game’s total at 45. Personally, I believe that this is a very playable line. Like I said on the radio, this isn’t your grandpa’s Iowa offense this season. Nathan Stanley has been smart with the football and is completing enough balls downfield for the running game to flourish. Akrum Wadley is also capable of putting up some points on his own as well.
Other the other sideline, quarterback Brian Lewerke has also been pretty productive with his arm and his legs. Hopefully, the Spartans can find a few ways to get their stagnant rushing game going. Until now, they have basically depended on Lewerke to get them their yardage via the ground.
I don’t think this game is going to be a shoot-out by any means, but I certainly think that these two offenses can keep this one close and score some crucial fourth-quarter points to help push this game’s total 45 to the over.
The Iowa Hawkeyes go into East Lansing and find a way to get one back after their brutal defeat in the last minute to Penn State. Iowa 27-24 over the Spartans.
Trends
The Hawkeyes are 4-0 ATS in their last four conference games.
The Hawkeyes are 17-6 ATS in their last 23 road games.
The Under is 4-1 in the Hawkeyes last five games overall.
The Spartans are 5-1 ATS in their last six home games.
The Spartans are 3-7 in their last 10 games in September.
The Under is 4-1 in the Spartans last five home games.
The road team is 3-0-1 in their last four meetings against each other.
