What to Expect

Start of Big Ten Season

It is early in the season, and although both Michigan State and OSU have losses, both teams are 0-0 in the Big Ten and a trip to Indy for the conference championship game is still possible.

 

Advantage

I believe OSU has the advantage when comparing the OSU D-Line to the MSU O-Line, based on the injuries and inexperience of the MSU O-Line. Cousins has shown that pressure can result in interceptions. I believe OSU has the advantage when comparing the OSU O-Line to the MSU D-Line, because Michigan State is still a bit young on the D-Line but it is talented group. The MSU D-Line also has not racked up that many sacks. I think it is a draw between the OSU and MSU special teams, as MSU may have a better placekicker, but OSU has a better punter. Both teams have had success in the return game.

 

Expectations

I expect OSU to have 160 passing yards and 210 rushing yards. Michigan State will be limited to 200 passing yards and 125 rushing yards. Michigan State will have two or more turnovers. OSU will win this close game 27-14.

OSU Last Week

In his debut as the starting OSU QB Braxton Miller went 5 of 13 for 83 yards, two touchdowns, and 83 rushing yards.  Two of those throws by Miller were TD passes to Devin Smith, who is becoming a favorite target of Miller. Jordan Hall did his part with 231 all-purpose yards, including a 90-yard kickoff return. OSU had a short field most of the day, due to great returns and penalties on Colorado's kicking team. The kicking game was good, with punter Ben Buchanan placing three punts within the 15 yard line. Drew Basil is on a streak of five FGs in a row, including a long of 47 yards last week.

Things to Watch

How Good is the Michigan State Defense?

Michigan State leads the nation in limiting opposing teams to 172 yards/game, and is in the top ten in limiting teams to 11 points/game. Keep in mind, the Spartans have only played one BCS team and it was a loss to Notre Dame. So it isn't really clear if the MSU defense is good until it gets to the meat of its schedule. The MSU defense only has four sacks, so the D-Line has not put as much pressure on the opposing QB as one may think.

 

The Legends vs. The Leaders

This will be the first weekend involving games between the Legends and Leaders division in the Big Ten. As you probably know, Michigan State is in the Legends division and Ohio State is in the Leaders division. Most eyes will be on Nebraska playing at Wisconsin, and that also involves teams in both divisions. Let's see how often the TV commentators mix up the divisions.

The Series

OSU leads the series 27-12 and is 14-8 in games played in Columbus. Michigan State has lost seven straight to Ohio State, including the last game in 2008. The last MSU win in Columbus was in 1998 against a #1 Ohio State team, a game I unfortunately witnessed in person.

Last Time
It was an easy game in 2008 with OSU winning 45-7. Pryor had a big game passing for 116 yards and rushing for 72 yards. Beanie Wells added to the running game with 140 yards and two touchdowns. The OSU defense recovered three fumbles and caught two interceptions.

Scouting the Spartans

This Season
Michigan State had a relatively easy time with three of the non-conference games with wins against Youngstown State (28-6), Florida Atlantic (44-0), and last week against Central Michigan (45-7). The only loss came against Notre Dame in the third week, with a score of 31-13.

Offense
Fifth-year senior QB Kirk Cousins is in his third season as a starter. Cousins has thrown 69% for 947 yards, five touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. At running back is Edwin Baker with 216 yards and one touchdown. Also running the ball will be Le'Veon Bell with 217 yards and 6 touchdowns. Receiver BJ Cunningham leads the Big Ten with 7.3 catches/game and 107 receiving yards/game. Over 66% of Cunningham's receptions have been for a touchdown or a first down. Also catching the ball are Keshawn Martin, Keith Nichol, and TE Brian Linthicum. The O-Line has been dealing with injuries before and during the season, and has forced the team to shift three defensive players to shore up the O-Line.

Defense
At Linebacker are Max Bullough, Denicos Allen, and Chris Norman, and all three are the top three in tackles on the team with 24 tackles, 21 tackles, and 18 tackles respectively. Allen is second in the Big Ten with five tackles for loss. Jerel Worthy and William Gholston are the leaders on the D-Line. Worthy has 8 tackles and 2.5 tackles for losses. Gholston was a highly touted recruit from the same high school as Big Hank from OSU. The secondary is led by team captain Trenton Robinson at safety, who had his first interception of the season last week.

Special Teams
Kicker Dan Conroy is 5 for 7 in FGs with a long of 50 yards. The punter is Mike Sadler who averages 39.7 yards/punt with three inside the twenty yard line. Returning kicks is Nick Hill and he is averaging 26.9 yards/return, with a long of 42 yards. Receiver Keshawn Martin will return punts.

The Coaches

Luke Fickell
Luke Fickell is 3-1 in his first year as a head coach. Luke Fickell has been an assistant coach for 13 years. He was a graduate assistant at OSU under John Cooper in 1999. He was a defensive line coach at Akron from 2000-2001. Early in Jim Tressel's tenure at OSU, he hired Fickell as the special teams coordinator. He eventually coached the linebackers and was a co-defensive coordinator. Going into this season he was the assistant head coach, and was promoted in May to head coach, after Jim Tressel retired. Prior to coaching, Fickell was a four year starter for OSU, from 1992-1996. During his career, OSU was 41-8-1, won two Big Ten Championships and won the 1997 Rose Bowl. He started a school record 50 consecutive games. After graduation he spent one year on the injured reserve team for the New Orleans Saints.



Mark Dantonio
In his fifth season at Michigan State he is 36-20 and he is 54-37 in his career which includes three years at Cincinnati. Dantonio was the defensive coordinator at Ohio State for three years, including the 2002 National Championship season. Dantonio moved to OSU with Jim Tressel, after spending five years as a secondary and defensive coordinator at Youngstown. He has yet to beat Ohio State, the only Big Ten team he has not defeated.