We’ve arrived at the official Week One start of the 2023 college football season (following "Week Zero") — and Michigan State gears up to face a familiar foe in Central Michigan.
The Spartans come off a hard-fought victory the last time these schools met in 2018, a game in which MSU leaned on its staunch defensive front to hold on for its smallest margin of victory in the series, 31-20, despite allowing 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
“We’re not good enough to take anybody lightly,” Tucker said at a presser early in the week. “We never have been. We never will be.”
The most recent case of losing to Central Michigan came in East Lansing in 2009, when the Chippewas topped MSU on last-second field goal for a 29-27 win. MSU has since won four-straight to bring its series advantage to 8-3 all time as we look ahead to the challenges CMU will bring this Friday.
At the Helm
Entering his fifth season in Mt. Pleasant, Jim McElwain holds a .500 record or above in every season but 2022. In 2019, McElwain inherited a one-win team following his three-year stint as head coach of Florida and a stop in Ann Arbor as Michigan's wide receivers coach. He orchestrated the best turnaround in the FBS that year with a seven-game improvement in CMU’s 8-4 campaign, good for a New Mexico Bowl appearance.
McElwain had an accomplished career as an assistant under pretty notable head coaches, all significant with respect to MSU : Nick Saban at Alabama, Jim Harbaugh at Michigan and John L. Smith at Michigan State.
In addition to Florida and Central Michigan, McElwain also had a stint as head coach of Colorado State from 2012 through 2014.
Overall, McElwain has a record of 68-48, including a 24-21 mark at CMU. Friday's matchup will be the first time McElwain has faced MSU as a head coach.
Under Center
CMU may roll out a dual-threat with two separate quarterbacks Friday night. Its leading signal-caller from last season, Daniel Richardson moved onto Florida Atlantic after nearly eclipsing 2,000 yards in 2022. That leaves redshirt sophomore Jase Bauer as the Chippewas’ most accomplished returning passer. Bauer passed for 435 yards and a touchdown last year, but also threw five interceptions.
Redshirt freshman Bert Emanuel Jr. finished with an impressive 7.4 yards per carry on 67 carries for 496 yards last year in just four games. He also had seven rushing touchdowns. Despite retaining his redshirt, Emanuel Jr. ended the season as CMU’s second-leading rusher. His effectiveness rushing the ball is more impressive when you consider the fact that Emmanuel Jr. did so on only eight pass attempts, as nearly every time he entered the game, he was expected to put it on the ground.
Bauer ran the ball well himself, gaining 312 yards and four touchdowns with his legs last year. Since Bauer appeared in just six games in his career, there’s very little tape between the two on what could be an interesting challenge for MSU’s second-level, particularly if redshirt junior Darius Snow is unavailable to hover in the nickel or linebacker spot.
Backfield and Defense
CMU’s previous rushing leader, Lew Nichols III, is now recovering from a shoulder injury on the Green Bay Packers’ injured reserve. The Chippewas will likely throw a host of running styles at MSU Friday night. Expect Emmanuel Jr. to get his opportunities on the ground, as CMU also works in its running backs with junior Marion Lukes, junior Myles Bailey and perhaps junior Missouri transfer B.J. Harris.
Defensively, Central Michigan returns most of its production from 2022. The unit's strength is likely in the front seven, which Adam Jaska, "Voice of the Chippewas," detailed on this week's episode of the "Red Cedar Radar" podcast.
A player to watch in the defensive backfield is Donte Kent, who was a first-team All-MAC selection in 2022 and is on the Bronko Nagurski watch list heading into the 2023 season.
Synopsis
MSU (-14.5) has remained as just over a two-touchdown favorite, so it seems this one is expected to go much like the last one went. The Spartans will have to make decisive plays down the stretch, particularly keeping contain of the quarterbacks, to pull away Friday night.