The Jonathan Smith era will begin on Friday night, as Michigan State hosts Florida Atlantic at Spartan Stadium.

Opening kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game can be watched on the Big Ten Network. The Spartans enter the game as around a two-touchdown favorite.

The Spartans Illustrated team breaks down the matchup, provides insight on which storylines to watch and gives score predictions.

Spartans Illustrated Content Review:

-Game Preview: Florida Atlantic vs. Michigan State

-Michigan State Football Visitors Preview: Week One versus Florida Atlantic

-MSU Uniforms: Classic Combo Revealed for First Game of Smith Era

-MSU's Nate Carter And Tanner Miller Reflect On Captaincy And Home Opener

-FAU vs. MSU 3-2-1 Preview: 3 Things We Want To See, 2 Key Stats, 1 Best Bet

-Projecting Michigan State's Depth Chart: Week One Versus Florida Atlantic

-Joe Rossi's MSU’s Defense Has a 'work Mentality' Ahead Of Opener vs. FAU

-Michigan State Football 2024 Preseason Watch List Tracker

-College Football And Michigan State Spartans Bad Betting Advice, 2024 Week One: Who?

-Red Cedar Radar: Michigan State 2024 Football Season Preview

-Red Cedar Radar: Michigan State versus Florida Atlantic Week One Preview

-MSU’s Brian Lindgren Discusses His Offense Days Before Opener vs. FAU

-Spartans Illustrated Staff Picks: Predicting Michigan State's Record

-Film Preview: What Can Michigan State Expect From FAU?

-Spartan Cheat Sheet: What You Need To Know Before The Season Kicks Off

-Michigan State Football: Three Things We Want To See Vs. Florida Atlantic

Michigan State gets the Jonathan Smith era off to a banging start. The reserves are in by the beginning of the fourth quarter and the Spartans cruise before an exuberant crowd at Spartan Stadium.

There is a new coaching staff in town as the Jonathan Smith era officially kicks off, but I predict this one plays out similarly to how Michigan State fans have grown accustomed to seeing with season openers under past regimes.

The offense will start slow as it eases into the playbook and doesn’t show too much too soon. The score is a little closer than expected at halftime. Quarterback Aidan Chiles may make a mistake or two before getting into a rhythm and putting together an impressive, multi-touchdown performance.

Running backs Nate Carter and Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams combine for more than 200 rushing yards. The defense has a solid showing, forcing at least one turnover and allowing just one touchdown and two field goals.

MSU eventually runs away with it.

The Spartans come into the season opener with more questions than usual and a bunch of new faces. The line on this game opened at 11 points and has been slowing creeping up all week. I expect the Spartans to look just a bit shaky in the early going as the new staff and new players get their sea legs.

After a tight first half, the Green and White use a big third quarter to gain a comfortable, three-touchdown margin. The Owls score a late touchdown on the second-string defense and the final margin ends up as a push for our friends in Vegas.

The Spartans have a few early jitters, but score early and often in the first half while a breakdown or two on defense keeps the Owls from going quietly.

Second half signs of a revamped roster result in a turnover or two, but overall MSU ends the night with a solid victory fans leave happy with.

The Spartans open the Jonathan Smith era with a win, and the offense shows flashes of greatness. The defense will struggle to get off the field, and the game will be tight early. Eventually, the Spartans will find their footing on defense and close out the game.

There might be some growing pains in game one for both teams because of all the transfers on the field. Michigan State will want to establish the run and get Aidan Chiles comfortable early in this game. The same might be true for FAU’s quarterback Cam Fancher.

The Spartans no doubt have more talent. While FAU will challenge Michigan State in some different ways, the Spartans should be able to handle the Owls. While I don’t have this as a blowout victory in favor of the Spartans, Michigan State won’t feel like it’s in any danger of losing this game. The Jonathan Smith era will get off to a solid start in East Lansing.

The Spartans will actually get out to good start on opening day due to a revived running game and new offensive line philosophy. Florida Atlantic head coach Tom Herman is too good of a coach to allow a blow out and will challenge his team to keep fighting, resulting in a couple mid to late-game scores. The Jonathan Smith Era will begin on a positive note, but he'll have a few loose ends to tie down before heading to Maryland.

MSU runs it on the ground with great success and showcases a running back tandem that can get enough on the ground to keep the ball away from FAU. Spartans cover and never really are under pressure late in the game. Backup quarterback Tommy Schuster gets a series.

MSU home openers have a script they usually follow relatively closely.

Early MSU lead, game tightens up, MSU extends lead, opponent makes a late push that falls short.

I expect some bumps for both squads as they both debut revamped lineups. But in the end, I see MSU’s talent and ability to control and dominate the trenches wearing on the Owls.

Michigan State will win and cover in its opening game of the 2024 season. FAU had a tough season last year, and the Spartans have a greatly revamped roster, with a new coaching staff, and some key new players. MSU gets a big first win to start things off.

Running back Nate Carter will be player of the game, as FAU's run defense has been pretty suspect in the past and I expect that to continue. Oregon State transfer tight end Jack Velling will also have a solid debut performance.

I envision the sort of game you would expect in first live action of the season, featuring two rosters with a fair amount of inexperience and in program rebuilds — messy.

FAU is young and less talented, but in his 88 games as a head coach, FAU’s Tom Herman has only lost 11games by double figures. Game one of the Jonathan Smith era looks to be a win, but without much comfort.

Michigan State comes out for game one with great energy in the air, and although this group is still learning how to play with each other, the talent difference from the Penn State game to close the 2023 season compared to what the Spartan Stadium crowd will see from the Green and White to kick off 2024 is contrastively different.

The Owls have a young team and come loaded with even more new faces in 2024 than the Spartans will deploy themselves.

Defense holds incoming Marshall transfer quarterback Cam Fancher in check all night and has him seeing boogeymen. And while the MSU offense isn’t exactly firing on all cylinders, it will do more than enough to allow some reps to second-stringers in the fourth quarter.

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