Penn State vs Michigan State NCAA Football Tips 10/26/2019

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Spartan Stadium

Brian Lewerke and the Michigan State Spartans host the Penn State Nittany Lions at Spartan Stadium on Saturday, October 26, 2019. Penn State opens this game as 6.5-point favorites. The Nittany Lions are 4-3-0 ATS and 3-4-0 when betting on the total. The Spartans are 3-4-0 when wagering on the over/under and 2-5-0 against the spread.

In their last game, the Penn State Nittany Lions faced the Michigan Wolverines and won by a score of 28-21. Running the show from under center for the Nittany Lions was Sean Clifford who went 14/25 with 182 yards passing and tossed 3 TD's. He walked away with no picks. Ricky Slade led the team on the ground for the game. He tore off a long run of 44 yards but he never crossed the endzone by way of the rush. He rushed for 48 yards by way of 3 carries which meant he averaged 16.0 yards per run. KJ Hamler led the team in receiving yardage with a tally of 108 yards on 6 receptions. He averaged 18.0 yards per catch for the game. The Nittany Lions rushed the ball a total of 26 times and earned a total of 111 yards earning them an average of 4.3 yards per rushing attempt. In the game, they totaled 51 plays which gave them a total of 293 yards. Overall, the Nittany Lions totaled 14 first downs and they totaled 5 penalties for 58 yards which tells us their heads weren't always in the game. In terms of defense, Penn State gave up 24 catches on 41 attempts for a total of 276 yards, and a completion percentage of 58.5%. For this contest, they conceded a total of 417 yards and earned 1 takeaway. On the ground, the Nittany Lions gave up 141 yards on 39 attempts which is an average of 3.6 yards per run allowed.

The Nittany Lions come into this matchup with a record of 7-0 for this year. For total yardage, they sit in 4th in the conference and 38th in the country with 3,088 yards. They are one of top scoring teams in the nation with an average of 40 points per contest, which has them at 11th in the country. As a unit, they have an average of 180.1 yards on the ground per contest which is 6th in the Big Ten Conference. The Nittany Lions have one of the best defenses in Division 1, giving up 10 points per game which has them at 3rd in the Big Ten Conference. In terms of rushing yards, Penn State is allowing 66.3 yards per game putting them 2nd in the conference and 4th in D-1. They are allowing teams to run for an average of 1.9 yards per rush which has them at 1st in the conference and 1st in Division 1 overall. Overall, they have conceded 464 yards rushing through 7 games. When it comes to passing yards, the Nittany Lions have conceded 1,827 yards. Opponents are completing 57.6% of the passes they throw against them and averaging 6.2 yards per attempt.

In their last game, the Michigan State Spartans played the Wisconsin Badgers and took the loss by a score of 38-0. Tyriq Thompson paced the team on the ground for the game. He tore off a long run of 20 yards but he wasn't able to rush for a TD on the day. He rushed for 20 yards by way of 2 carries which meant he was running for 10.0 yards per carry. Darrell Stewart Jr. led the team in receiving yardage by earning 59 yards on 5 receptions. He had an average of 11.8 yards per catch for the game. Leading the way at QB for the Spartans was Rocky Lombardi who went 5/14 with 66 yards passing but didn't get a passing TD in the game. He walked away with 1 interception on the day. The Spartans ended up running the ball 21 times and earned a total of 30 yards which earned them an average of 1.4 yards per rush. In the game, they ran 51 plays for a total of 149 yards. For the contest, the Spartans racked up a total of 7 first downs and they had a total of 5 penalties for 40 yards which is telling of how their week of practice went. In terms of defense, Michigan State allowed 18 completions on 21 tries totaling 180 yards, and a completion percentage of 85.7%. In the running game, the Spartans allowed 222 yards on 46 attempts which gave them an average of 4.8 yards per carry allowed. For the game, they allowed a total of 402 yards but went the whole game without forcing a turnover.

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The Spartans step onto the field holding a record of 4-3. Michigan State is having a year to forget in the ground game by averaging 118.3 rushing yards per contest, putting them 109th in college football. As a unit, they have a total of 828 yards rushing through 7 games, so they are going to want to make some changes to the ground game if they want to make teams respect them. The Spartans average 358.6 yards per game overall putting them 98th in Division 1 and 11th in the conference. The Spartans are allowing 21 points per game which puts them at 7th in the Big Ten and 33rd in the nation. In regard to points allowed, they have allowed 147 total points. When it comes to yards rushing, they are conceding 118.1 yards per contest ranking them 30th in the nation and 5th in the Big Ten Conference. For 2019, they have given up a total of 827 yards on the ground and 7.7 rushing TDs. Their passing defense is one of the best groups in the nation. They are conceding 196.6 passing yards per game. For yards through the air allowed per game, the Spartans are ranked 8th in the conference.

Who will win tonight's Nittany Lions/Spartans college football game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take the Spartans +6.5

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