Michigan State football picks vs Penn State: Will Spartans snap 6-game skid in league play?
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We’re almost two weeks from Thanksgiving, and yet Michigan State football is wrapping things up at Spartan Stadium, thanks to the regular-season finale at Ford Field in Detroit on Nov. 29.
It was a rough week for the Spartans, who managed to lose 14 games — or at least have 14 wins wiped off their 2022-24 record — for using ineligible players.
The good news for MSU? They’re facing the lone Big Ten team suffering nearly as much pain — we’ll let the folks in the stands argue who has it worse — in the Nittany Lions, who have lost all six games in conference play (three after firing long-time coach James Franklin) and need a win to keep their hopes of extending a 10-season bowl run (with a break for the coronavirus pandemic in 2020) still going.
The Spartans need a win to keep their hopes of their first bowl since 2021 going. Who’ll snap the slide and make sure they don’t repeat Purdue’s winless run in conference play from last season? Four Free Press sports writers have some thoughts:
Carlos Monarrez
The Nittany Lions gave Indiana a scare last week, but that was in Happy Valley. With a week off and an extra week to prepare, Spartans quarterback Alessio Milivojevic should be better, especially if he gets better protection from his offensive line. This game will say a lot about the winner, which will break its winless conference streak and keep its slim bowl hopes alive. The pick: Penn State 27, MSU 21.
Jeff Seidel
What a wild year it has been for Penn State. Super-high expectations. Crazy collapse. Fired coach. Injured quarterback. But you know what the Nittany Lions still have? Talent on their roster. That’s what Penn State proved against Indiana and that is what it will show again against the Spartans. The pick: Penn State 31, MSU 13.
Chris Solari
This comes down to whether the Spartans can sustain drives, something they have failed to do consistently all season. But the Nittany Lions have the nation's sixth-best time of possession and ride Kaytron Allen all day to keep MSU's offense off the field. The Spartans take a seventh straight loss with two games remaining, all but sealing a fourth straight year – and a fifth time in six seasons since Mark Dantonio retired – without a bowl trip in December. The pick: Penn State 24, MSU 14.
Shawn Windsor
The Nittany Lions showed why they were ranked so high to start the season by taking Indiana to the final minute last weekend. They are talented, and while they aren't playing for much, that talent will be the difference for a Spartans squad that still struggles to consistently compete at the line of scrimmage. If Alessio Milivojevic gets the start ahead of Aidan Chiles, this should come down to the end. The pick: Penn State 23, MSU 16.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football picks, predictions vs Penn State for Week 12
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