Staff Picks: Nebraska versus Michigan State

Michigan State is still in search of its first Big Ten victory, with Nebraska coming to East Lansing on Saturday. The Cornhuskers are in the hunt for the Big Ten West Title and are favored by three points.

Our Spartans Illustrated team breaks down the matchup and discusses if this is the week MSU finally breaks through.

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I don’t particularly buy that Nebraska is an upper echelon Big Ten team yet, but the Cornhuskers have turned it around as of the late.

The Huskers have the No. 1 rushing offense in the Big Ten and a top-five ranked rushing defense nationally.This formula has worked well for Nebraska, even though the Huskers aren’t scaring anybody in the passing game.

Michigan State keeps it close, but I won’t believe the Spartans will win again until I see it.

I would love to think that the final game of the 100th season in Spartan Stadium where the seniors are honored would be enough to catapult the Spartans to a much-needed win upset. However, it is simply hard to imagine the offense scoring enough points to win. The more likely scenario is exactly what Spartan fans saw last week in Minneapolis.

The Spartans will show some early spark and may even have the lead for the early portion of the game. But as the game wears on, the offense stalls, the three-and-outs mount, the defense spends too much time on the field, and eventually the damn breaks. The Huskers pull away late and Spartan fans remain sad.

Basketball season starts Monday. Our long autumn nightmare is almost over.

This game will follow a similar script to what we've seen recently. Michigan State will stick in the game for a little bit before starting to commit mind-blowing mistakes. That will cause the Spartans to lose another close game.

MSU rallies and finally gets Harlon Barnett his first victory as head coach. The fact that it happens in Spartan Stadium is a good story, for a good man.

Nebraska is one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten. After starting 0-2, the Cornhuskers have won five out of the team's last six games. They are tied for first in the Big Ten West and a win will get them bowl eligibility. Nebraska has a ton to play for, while Michigan State will be playing for pride on senior day.

The Spartans will struggle offensively against a stingy Nebraska defense. This will be a close game throughout, but Nebraska opens it up in the fourth quarter with a couple of touchdowns.

Tough, low scoring game, but Nebraska’s running game ekes out just enough to win.

Sam Leavitt gets the start at quarterback and has early success and a spark. But a team that is trudging through the end of an interim season can’t put together drives and falls to a team surging under a year-one coach.

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