Michigan State vs Western Michigan Betting Preview
In the seventh game of our Countdown to Kickoff series, Sportsmemo handicapper JM Sports takes a look at Michigan State vs Western Michigan on September 2. The Spartans came away with a Peach Bowl win to conclude last season while the Broncos won the Quick Lane Bowl against Nevada.
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Friday, September 2 | College Football Betting Notes |
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Point Spread: | Michigan State Spartans -19 vs Western Michigan Broncos |
Total: | 54.5 (Over -110 / Under -110) |
Kickoff: | 7:00pm ET / 4:00pm PT |
Venue: | Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, MI |
TV: | ESPN |
Michigan State vs Western Michigan Analysis
This exciting in state matchup features #14 Michigan State Spartans taking on a Western Michigan that is just 8-48 against current Big Ten teams.
That includes a 2-14 record against Michigan State, with the only two victories against the Spartans coming all the way back in 1917 & 1919, failing to secure a win in the last century! The last time these two teams faced off, in 2019, Western Michigan didn’t just lose, they were dominated, 51-17.
Broncos Bucking For An Upset
Western Michigan had one of the best offenses in the entire MAC conference last year, but now they are returning just four starters on that side of the ball. They lost their leading passer, Kaleb Eleby, and now their depth chart at QB contains just five combined pass attempts.
Redshirt freshman Jack Salopek takes over at QB, and unfortunately, a majority of the offensive starters they lost were the favorite targets of Eleby last season. The Broncos lost five of their top seven receivers from last year, although Corey Crooms will be back, he caught 44 passes for 768 yards last year and six TD’s.
Western Michigan also had one of the best defenses in the conference, and that is looking to stay strong. They did struggle preventing the opposition from scoring, but they never had an issue limiting the yard production. They return seven starters, including their three leading tacklers, and they added two power five safety transfers.
Spartan Pass Defense Looks To Improve
While this Western Michigan team was impressive, they weren’t impressive against MAC competition. Now they take on the 2nd best team in the state, and 14th ranked team in the county in Michigan State.
While the Spartans lost the Big Ten’s leading rusher Kenneth Walker, they have found a way to replace him with high potential, adding Jarek Broussard from Colorado in the transfer portal, filling the glaring hole in the offense. This team was 11-2 last season for a reason, and even though there are only five returning starters on offense, one of those includes their starting QB and two of their top three receivers.
Their offense was more impressive than their defense last year, but this season, there is a veteran presence on defense with nine returning starters, including seven of their top eight tacklers! While they were the worst team against the pass in the Big Ten last season, this year, all four players in their secondary are coming off a season with double digit starts.
Michigan State vs Western Michigan Prediction
Mel Tucker is 4-0 against the spread vs. non-conference teams as the coach of Michigan State and the team has won 12 straight games against the Broncos.
Western Michigan has kept three of the last four meetings close, as they are 2-2 ATS in the last four outings against the Spartans, losing by 13, 13, 14 and 34 points respectively in the last four games. I foresee another one heading Michigan State’s way with their improved defense against a young, unexperienced QB in week 1.
Prediction : Michigan State (-19)
Interested in placing a bet on this Michigan State vs Western Michigan Week 1 showdown? Caesars Sports is offering up to a $1,500 match bet for first-time deposits in New Jersey, West Virginia, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Virginia, Tennessee, Arizona, New York and Louisiana.
Sportsmemo Today | NFL Season Preview
JM Sports joins Dan Neubert and Dr Chuck on Sportsmemo Today to discuss the NFL futures market, and the Week 1 betting lines.
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Meet the Author
Jeff’s hunger for handicapping began at a young age being surrounded by parents that made sports betting a daily routine. Hoping to follow in the footsteps of other Cleveland handicappers like Marc Lawrence, Phil Steele, Ralph Michaels, Ed Meyer and Bryan Leonard, Jeff started his sports betting career working for both Northcoast Sports and Phil Steele Publications learning the intricacies of sports betting and becoming a profitable handicapper. Through out his college years, Jeff’s mathematical and analytical prowess helped him develop a betting strategy that turned sports betting into a profitable venture, where he focuses on the NFL, college football, NBA, college basketball and MLB while showing strong results in the WNBA.
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