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Michigan State Football: 2016 Game-by-Game Predictions

By Colton Wesley

Dec 5, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio celebrates with his team after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference football championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 5, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio celebrates with his team after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference football championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 30, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; Wisconsin Badgers players pose with the championship trophy after the 2015 Holiday Bowl against the Southern California Trojans at Qualcomm Stadium. Wisconsin defeated USC 23-21. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 30, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; Wisconsin Badgers players pose with the championship trophy after the 2015 Holiday Bowl against the Southern California Trojans at Qualcomm Stadium. Wisconsin defeated USC 23-21. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

Week Three: Michigan State (2-0) v. Wisconsin, September 24 

Series History: First meeting in 1913, Michigan State leads the series 30-22.

What Happened Last Time: 2012: Michigan State won 16-13.

The Wisconsin Badgers:

The Badgers are going to run the ball. A lot.

Owen Riese of SB Nation’s Wisconsin blog, Bucky’s 5th Quarter, says that the team will feature at least two 1,000-yard rushers in 2016 (Corey Clement and Dare Ogunbowale) with a third rusher (Taiwan Deal) almost reaching the milestone. Clement and Deal are coming back from injury and Ogunbowale is a converted walk-on cornerback, so we will see how it goes, but Wisconsin will be dependent, as they usually are, on the ground game.

More from Michigan State Spartans

As far as the passing game is concerned, we still do not know for sure who the quarterback will be. Bart Houston is the returning senior backup, but he is currently engaged in a position battle with redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook, who will likely be the future for the Badgers at the position. Either way, neither of them seem like particularly impressive options.

The defense has not changed much from last year’s unit except for the hiring of new coordinator Justin Wilcox. The linebackers seem solid, led by Vince Biegel, who was named third-team All-Big Ten and T.J. Edwards, who was the team’s leading tackler in 2015 and made the national All-Freshman team. Most of the starters return, and so does redshirt sophomore T.J. Watt, younger brother of, you know, that other guy.

Forecast:

Wisconsin visits East Lansing near the beginning of a brutal first-half schedule, including Louisiana State, at Michigan and at Ohio State. This is absolutely a classic trap game for Michigan State, especially if they are coming off a win against Notre Dame. The Badgers are a competent team whose record at the end of the season will not indicate how good they are, and they are built very similarly to the Spartans. I think the Spartans win a low-scoring field position battle, but it is no sure thing.

Final Prediction:

Michigan State: 3.8 yards per carry.

Wisconsin: 3.3 yards per carry.

Should I Watch It?: Yes, but a nap in the third quarter is acceptable.

Season Record: 3-0

Next: Week Four: @ Indiana

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