Michigan State picked up its first conference win of the season last weekend with a 20-17 win against Nebraska, and now will look to pull off one of the biggest shockers of the season as the Spartans travel to Columbus on Saturday afternoon to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Here's what you need to know about Saturday night's matchup in Horseshoe.

When: Saturday, Nov.11 - 7:30 p.m. ET

Where: Ohio Stadium (102,780) | Columbus, Ohio

TV: NBC | Noah Engle (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (analyst), Kathryn Tappen (reporter)

Radio: Spartan Media Network (FIND YOUR LOCAL STATION)

SiriusXM: 138/195/SiriusXM App

Ohio State - Ryan Day (fifth year at Ohio State; fifth overall)

- Career Record: 54-6

- Record at Ohio State: 54-6

- Record against Michigan State: 4-0

Michigan State- Harlon Barnett (first year at Michigan State; first overall)

- Career Record: 1-6

- Record against Ohio State: 0-0

Ohio State has dominated the all-time series between the two programs, winning 36 of 51 matchups. OSU has won each of the last seven matchups dating back to 2015, and nine of the last 12 contests since 2012.

Last season, the Buckeyes defeated the Spartans 49-20 in East Lansing. The Spartans' last win in the series came in 2015, a 17-14 win in Columbus.

Ohio State is a heavy favorite entering Friday morning, being favored in the game by nearly five touchdowns with the spread currently sitting at -31.5. The over/under for the game is currently sitting at 47.0.

Courtesy of the Michigan State Athletic Department:

Fresh off a 20-17 victory over Nebraska on senior day, Michigan State hits the road to take on No. 3/3/1 Ohio State in prime time on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 7:30 p.m. in Columbus. The game will be televised on NBC and streamed live on Peacock with Noah Eagle (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (analyst) and Kathryn Tappen (sidelines) on the call.

• Saturday’s game will be the 52nd meeting between Michigan State and Ohio State. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series, 36-15, including a 17-9 mark in Columbus. MSU is looking for its first win over Ohio State since 2015, when the Spartans beat the No. 2 Buckeyes, 17-14, at Ohio Stadium en route to winning the Big Ten Championship and earning a berth in the College Football Playoff.

• This marks the first time Michigan State has played a team ranked No. 1 in the College Football Playoff rankings. The Buckeyes (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) topped the initial CFP rankings last week and are ranked No. 3 in both the AP and Coaches Poll following a 35-16 road win at Rutgers last Saturday.

• The Spartans have toppled Ohio State 10 times when the Buckeyes entered the game ranked in the AP Top 25, including five times when the Buckeyes were ranked in the top five (No. 5 in 1972, No. 1 in 1974, No. 1 in 1998, No. 2 in 2013, No. 2 in 2015) and seven in the top 10 (previous five games listed plus No. 7 in 1951 and No. 9 in 1971).

• Secondary coach Harlon Barnett, who is in his 15th year overall on the Spartan coaching staff, was named acting head coach by MSU Vice President/Director of Athletics Alan Haller on Sunday, Sept. 10 and has since been appointed interim head coach. Barnett came back to East Lansing in 2020 after spending two seasons (2018-19) as the defensive coordinator at Florida State. He previously spent 11 seasons (2007-17) as the secondary coach at Michigan State, including three seasons as the co-defensive coordinator (2015- 17) and one as the associate head coach (2017), before departing for FSU. Barnett has coached in four New Year’s Six/BCS bowl games with the Spartans (2014 Rose, 2014 Cotton, 2015 CFP Semifinal, 2021 Peach) and has been on staff for three Big Ten Championship teams (2010, 2013, 2015). Barnett recorded his first victory as head coach of the Spartans with a 20-17 win over Nebraska on Nov. 4 in East Lansing.

The Spartans have defeated the Buckeyes three times since 2011, tied for the most of any team in the Big Ten. Michael Geiger hit a 41-yard field goal as time expired to give No. 9 Michigan State a 17-14 victory over No. 2 Ohio State in 2015 in Columbus to snap the Buckeyes’ 23-game winning streak. The Spartans held the Buckeyes to 132 yards of total offense in that game. In the 2013 Big Ten Championship Game, No. 10 MSU snapped No. 2 Ohio State’s school-record 24-game winning streak with a 34-24 win as the Spartans clinched their first Rose Bowl berth in 26 years. MSU also beat the Buckeyes in 2011, 10-7, in Ohio Stadium.

• Sophomore safety Jaden Mangham ranks tied for second in the Big Ten and tied for eighth in the FBS with four interceptions. Mangham has recorded a pick in back-to-back games (at Minnesota, vs. Nebraska), and also had interceptions against Washington and Rutgers. In addition, he has three pass break-ups and ranks seventh on the team with 39 tackles.

• Graduate senior J.D. Duplain, a native of Strongsville, Ohio, has started 39 consecutive games at left guard, the second-longest streak by an offensive lineman in school history (Shane Hannah with 44 from 1991-94). Duplain’s 44 starts overall are currently tied for second most in MSU history by an offensive lineman, along with Hannah and Tony Mandarich (record: Joel Foreman with 49 from 2008-11). The four-year letterwinner has played in a total of 50 career games for the Spartans from 2019-23; he started five games as a true freshman in 2019, then five more during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Duplain started all 13 games in 2021 and all 12 in 2022. He has earned honorable mention All-Big Ten accolades the past two seasons. Duplain’s starting streak dates back to Nov. 7, 2020, at Iowa.

• Michigan State’s defense tied a season high with seven sacks and had 12 tackles for loss, second most this season, in the 20-17 victory over Nebraska last Saturday in Spartan Stadium. The Spartans held the Huskers to 283 yards of total offense, marking the fifth time this season MSU has held its opponent under 300 yards of total offense (Central Michigan, Richmond, Iowa, Rutgers, Nebraska).

• Michigan State’s schedule currently ranks the second toughest in the FBS, according to the NCAA (opponents with a .708 winning percentage; 51-21 record). The Spartans have played two Top-10 teams (No. 2 Michigan, No. 5 Washington) and all nine opponents currently have winning records (Central Michigan, Richmond, Washington, Maryland, Iowa, Rutgers, Michigan, Minnesota)

►SUMMARY

• Freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Montorie Foster Jr. early in the fourth quarter and Michigan State held on to beat Nebraska, 20-17, on senior day at Spartan Stadium last Saturday afternoon. It marked the first Big Ten win of the season for the Spartans and snapped a six-game losing streak.

►OFFENSE • The Spartans scored on their opening possession for the second straight game and the first time at home this season . . . MSU scored on its opening possession for the third time in the last four games, also doing so at Rutgers (10/14) and at Minnesota (10/28).

• MSU combined to throw for 232 passing yards, the Spartans’ second-most in a Big Ten game and the most overall since 274 vs. Maryland (9/23) . . . redshirt freshman quarterback Katin Houser, who started his fourth consecutive game, threw for 165 yards, freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt threw for 25 yards, while senior wide receiver Alante Brown threw for 42 yards on a trick play . . . Houser was 13-of-20 passing for 165 yards with one TD, while Leavitt was 1-for-2 for 25 yards and one TD and Brown was 1-for-1 for 42 yards on a double pass play to fellow senior wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr.

• Houser tossed his third TD pass of the season on an 11-yard strike to Christian Fitzpatrick in the first quarter and is now 64-of-109 passing for 674 yards and three TDs this season . . . Houser has at 10 completions in each of his last four starts . . . he also had 10 rushes for 13 yards.

• Leavitt was 1-for-2 for a TD against Nebraska, and now has a TD pass in back-to-back games after throwing the first TD pass of his Spartan career last week at Minnesota . . . he played two series in the game.

• Brown completed not just the first pass of his MSU career, but his collegiate career, and it came against his old teammates, as Brown transferred to Michigan State from Nebraska during the offseason.

• Sophomore wide receiver Tyrell Henry made the first start of his Spartan career and went on to snag a career-high four catches for a career-best 54 yards, marking his second straight game with a career-high catches after last week’s previous career-high tying three receptions at Minnesota, along with three vs. Maryland (9/23) . . . Henry’s 54 yards betters his previous top mark of his career-best of 33 yards vs. Maryland.

• Redshirt junior wide receiver Christian Fitzpatrick snared the first TD catch of his career with the 11-yard TD catch from Houser in the second quarter . . . Fitzpatrick finished with two catches for 15 yards, his fourth game this season with multiple receptions.

• Senior wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr. had four catches for a career-high 94 yards with one TD catch in his final game in Spartan Stadium . . . Foster now has two TD receptions on the season, both coming in the last four games, also with a TD catch in the Rutgers game . . . the 94 yards betters Foster’s previous career-high of 79 yards vs. Iowa (9/30/23). • Redshirt sophomore running back Nate Carter had 50 yards on 15 carries, marking the fifth game this season with 50 or more rushing yards, as well as having 15-plus carries in eight of the nine games this season.

►DEFENSE

• MSU posted 7.0 sacks and 12.0 tackles for loss, which are both the most in a Big Ten game this season . . . the 7.0 sacks ties a season high, matching 7.0 vs. Richmond (9/9), while the 12.0 TFLs was the secondmost this season, behind 13.0 from the Richmond game.

• Michigan State held Nebraska to 283 yards of total offense, marking the fifth time this season MSU has held its opponents to under 300 yards of total offense (Central Michigan, Richmond, Iowa, Rutgers, Nebraska).

• With two interceptions and a fumble recovery, the Spartan defense had three takeaways for the second game in a row, tying a season high for the third time this season, all coming in the last four games, as MSU had three takeaways on two fumble recoveries and an interception last game at Minnesota (10/28) and also had three takeaways vs. Rutgers (10/14), also with two interceptions and a fumble recovery . . . the defense has had nine takeaways in the last four games as part of 15 total takeaways in nine games this season.

• The Spartans snared multiple interceptions in a game for the third time this season, also doing so in the Minnesota and Rutgers games . . . Michigan State’s defense has snagged at least one oskie in six of the last seven games as part of in total of seven of the nine games this season.

• Sophomore defensive back Jaden Mangham had a team and game-high tying seven tackles, including 1.0 tackle for loss and also snaring his team-leading fourth interception of the season, along with one pass break-up, his third PBU of the season . . . it was Mangham’s second straight game with an interception after one oskie last week at Minnesota . . . Mangham chalked up a pass defended in the fourth game in a row and it was his second game with both an INT and a PBU in the same game, also doing so in the Washington game . . . he now has a total of a team-leading seven passes defended with four INTs and three PBUs on the season.

• Graduate linebacker Aaron Brule matched not only his jersey number but also matched Mangham with seven tackles, adding 1.0 tackle for loss on a sack . . . Brule has 4.0 TFLs in his last five games as part of 6.5 total TFLs and 4.0 sacks on the season, leading the Spartan defense in both . . . Brule has logged five or more tackles in five of the nine games this season.

• Sophomore defensive back Dillon Tatum logged two career-highs with two pass break-ups and 2.0 tackles for loss, finishing with six total tackles . . . last Saturday was Tatum’s third straight game with at least one pass break-up as part now leading MSU with seven pass break-ups on the season . . . Tatum also now has 2.5 TFLs on the season, as the 2.0 tackles for loss Saturday were his fi rst since 0.5 TFL in the season-opener vs. Central Michigan (9/1).

►SPECIAL TEAMS

• Graduate senior placekicker Jonathan Kim split the uprights on a 35-yard field goal on MSU’s opening possession of the game to start the Spartans’ scoring, adding a 50-yarder in the third quarter . . . Kim has made at least one field goal in seven of the nine games and last Saturday’s two field goals was his second straight game with multiple field goals and the third time total this season, but the first time at home, as the previous two times were on the road, last week at Minnesota (10/28) and splitting the uprights a career-high three times at Iowa (9/30) . . . Kim is now 11-of-15 on the season, including 6-of-6 on field goals of 30-39 yards and 3-for-5 on 50+ yards . . . Kim added two PATs and is now 14-of-14 on the season.

• Redshirt freshman punter Ryan Eckley had a career-high tying seven punts for a 48.3 ypp average, his second-highest of his career behind 48.8 ypp at Iowa (9/30) . . . Eckley boomed a career-high five punts of 50+ yards, highlighted by a game-long 57-yarder, adding two 53-yarders, along with one of 51 yards and one 50-yarder . . . Eckley now has 15 punts this season of 50+ yards . . . he also had two inside the 20 on Saturday, with both going inside the 10, and now has 14 inside the 20 for the season, including seven inside the 10.

According to Accuweather, Saturday will be a cold night in Columbus with the temperatures dipping into the high 30s after sitting in the high 40s for most of the day. No precipitation is expected while wind gusts will be at around 10 miles per hour.

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