Top 10 rematch: Michigan State hosts Oregon, Endure season, Marcus Mariota and Oregon rallied at home to abstain an agitated adjoin Michigan State, prevailing in an aboriginal antagonism of top-10 teams.
Saturday, the pregame Software will be flipped, as Michigan State is the home admired with the adept quarterback, as the seventh-ranked Ducks yield on the fifth-ranked Spartans in East Lansing.
Despite a two-score advance in the additional bisected endure season, Michigan State fell, 46-27 (though the bold was afterpiece than the final account indicates; the Spartans were aural 5 at the alpha of the fourth quarter).
Both schools accept playoff aspirations, with Michigan State searching to prove Ohio State is not the alone appellation adversary in the Big Ten, while Oregon is searching to acknowledgment to the clash in following of an ambiguous civic title.
What should we apprehend to see on Saturday?
When Michigan State Has the Ball
Michigan State’s aegis may get the aggregate of the attention, but its breach played an appropriately big (if not bigger) role in the school’s 11-2 advance endure year. The Spartans were third in the Big Ten in yards per play (6.55) and ranked fifth in yards accustomed per play (5.09). They aswell accomplished 10th nationally in abhorrent adeptness (by Bill Connelly’s S&P+ metric), while advancing in 22nd on defense.
Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook put himself on the Heisman alarm afterwards throwing for 3,214 yards and 24 touchdowns endure season, averaging 8.8 yards per advance and throwing alone 8 interceptions.
With Cook arch the way, the Spartans' casual bold was appropriately able and atomic endure division -- admitting in endure week’s division opener, alone the closing was true.
The chief anesthetized for 256 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 37-24 alley win over Western Michigan. He was alone 15-for-31 passing, though, acceptable for a 48.4% achievement allotment afterwards commutual 58.1% of his passes endure season.
Cook still averaged 8.3 yards per canyon acknowledgment to some big plays, as he averaged over 17 yards per completion.
The Spartans casual advance could spell agitation for the Ducks defense, which struggled in its season-opening achievement adjoin FCS Eastern Washington.
In their 61-42 win, Oregon accustomed 6.4 yards per play and 8.0 yards per pass. The Ducks ranked 79th in adapted casual adeptness by our rankings and 122nd (out of 128 teams) by Sports-Reference.com.
Oregon was a top-40 canyon aegis in agreement of both S&P+ and adapted yards per play endure division but absent starting assurance Erick Dargan, who led the Pac-12 with 7 interceptions and fabricated a team-high 95 tackles. Top corners Troy Hill and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu are gone as well, putting the accountability on assurance Reggie Daniels to advance the secondary.
Daniels, a junior, is the alone amateur in the arresting backfield who is not a green or freshman, and accustomed this inexperience, it is believable endure week’s struggles adjoin Eastern Washington were not a one-week blip.
The Ducks will allegation their foreground seven, which has appreciably added experience, to play at a top level. Arresting end DeForest Buckner leads the way, afterwards recording a team-high 13 tackles for a accident as a inferior endure season. Per Connelly’s numbers, the Ducks were 36th in sack bulk on casual downs endure division (2nd-and-8 and 3rd- or 4th-and-5 or more), but 98th in sack bulk on accepted downs.
Cook was able-bodied adequate behindhand of down or ambit endure season, as Michigan State’s breach ranked 16th in casual down sack bulk and 17th in accepted down sack rate. All-American centermost Jack Allen and second-team All-Big Ten larboard accouterment Jack Conklin acknowledgment to the Spartan abhorrent line.
That accumulation did a solid job arch the way for Michigan State’s active backs, as the Spartans rushed for about 5 yards per backpack adjoin Western Michigan. Adversary adjustments beating the Spartans down to a tie for 53rd in our adapted hasty adeptness metric, but it was still a acceptable admission for a adolescent backfield that has to alter 1,522-yard rusher and his primary advancement Nick Hill (both averaged over 5.5 yards per carry).
Against Western Michigan, accurate apprentice LJ Scott rushed for 77 yards on 13 carries (5.9 yards per attempt), while redshirt freshmen Madre London and Gerald Holmes added 59 yards on 13 attempts (4.5) and 54 yards on nine carries (6.0), respectively.
It was a solid start, but the accumulation still has a means to go afore it can alike a hasty advance that was 17th in hasty S&P+ endure year.
Oregon captivated Eastern Washington to 111 yards on 31 carries (3.6 yards per carry) and was about boilerplate adjoin the run endure year (ranking 52nd in blitz aegis S&P+).
Overall, Michigan State looks to accept the advantage in this matchup, acknowledgment in ample allotment to Cook and his adeptness to aces on a adolescent Oregon secondary.
When Oregon Has the Ball
The advantage Michigan State will apparently accept on breach will accomplish it acute for Oregon’s breach to accumulate up.
Vernon Adams, an Eastern Washington alteration who fabricated his admission adjoin his above academy endure week, is now the man in allegation of what has consistently been one of the nation’s best (and fastest and a lot of fun to watch) attacks.
Adams went 19-for-25 for 246 yards and two touchdowns in his Oregon debut, abacus 94 hasty yards on 14 carries. Oregon averaged 8.9 yards per play.
Even with the abundant adversary adjustments that appear adjoin arena an FCS school, Oregon’s casual breach still ranked 24th in our adapted casual adeptness metric.
Adams has done able-bodied in his bound acquaintance adjoin FBS schools (he acquaint a 92.3 Total QBR adjoin FBS schools while at EWU, including a 97.2 mark adjoin Washington and Oregon State), and will get a addition from arguably the nation’s best acknowledging cast. Oregon ranked additional in abhorrent S&P+ endure year, baronial fourth in casual and fifth on the ground, and allotment about anybody at the “skill positions.”
This includes 1,000-yard receiver Byron Marshall, as able-bodied as top targets Devon Allen and Dwayne Stanford (though Allen absent the opener as he recovers from ACL anaplasty and is reportedly a “game time” accommodation Saturday).
Running aback Royce Freeman is aswell aback afterwards hasty for 1,365 yards and 18 touchdowns as a apprentice and ran for 180 yards and 3 touchdowns on 21 carries endure week.
Fellow green Kani Benoit added 83 yards on 11 carries, as the Ducks acquaint Anniversary 1’s fourth-best bold in our adapted hasty adeptness stat.
Oregon absent a brace of All-Americans on its abhorrent band but allotment veterans Tyler Johnstone at larboard accouterment and Cameron Hunt at appropriate guard. They aswell add Notre Dame alteration Matt Hagerty, giving the Ducks three above four-star recruits on their line.
It will all be a lot for Michigan State to handle, but Sparty is not absolutely a breeze on defense, baronial 22nd in arresting S&P+ and angry for 20th in adapted yards accustomed per play endure season.
Their backbone was their run defense, area they were angry for eighth in the country in raw yards accustomed per backpack (3.17) and aswell ranked fifth in adapted yards per advance and led the nation in success bulk adjoin the rush, according to Connelly.
The Spartans aswell ranked 18th in adapted sack bulk in 2014 and could use the advice up foreground this year. While Michigan State was not bad adjoin the canyon (ranking 31st in adapted yards accustomed per canyon attempt), it absent bend Trae Waynes (a aboriginal annular aces in the NFL draft) and assurance Kurtis Drummond.
Defensive end Shilique Calhoun (8 sacks, 12.5 tackles for a accident in 2014) and linebacker Ed Davis (7 and 12) banderole a foreground seven that allotment a amazing bulk of talent. The accumulation is off to a acceptable alpha as well, acceptance 4.7 yards per play adjoin Western Michigan, including 0.8 yards per carry. They aswell alveolate 7 sacks for a accident of 41 yards.
What to Expect
Oregon has affluence of firepower, but Michigan State has the aptitude on aegis at atomic to apathetic the Ducks. The aforementioned cannot be said about the Oregon defense, which could accept its easily abounding adjoin Connor Cook.
Vegas has Michigan State as a 3.5-point admired and puts the over/under at 67.0 points, suggesting a final account of 35.25 to 31.75 in favor of the home team.
Given their advantage on defense, Michigan State could could cause abundant problems to absolute Oregon's offense. If the Oregon aegis can't accommodate Cook and the MSU offense, again it ability be Oregon for a change disturbing to put up abundant credibility to accumulate clip on Saturday.
Saturday, the pregame Software will be flipped, as Michigan State is the home admired with the adept quarterback, as the seventh-ranked Ducks yield on the fifth-ranked Spartans in East Lansing.
Despite a two-score advance in the additional bisected endure season, Michigan State fell, 46-27 (though the bold was afterpiece than the final account indicates; the Spartans were aural 5 at the alpha of the fourth quarter).
Both schools accept playoff aspirations, with Michigan State searching to prove Ohio State is not the alone appellation adversary in the Big Ten, while Oregon is searching to acknowledgment to the clash in following of an ambiguous civic title.What should we apprehend to see on Saturday?
When Michigan State Has the Ball
Michigan State’s aegis may get the aggregate of the attention, but its breach played an appropriately big (if not bigger) role in the school’s 11-2 advance endure year. The Spartans were third in the Big Ten in yards per play (6.55) and ranked fifth in yards accustomed per play (5.09). They aswell accomplished 10th nationally in abhorrent adeptness (by Bill Connelly’s S&P+ metric), while advancing in 22nd on defense.
Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook put himself on the Heisman alarm afterwards throwing for 3,214 yards and 24 touchdowns endure season, averaging 8.8 yards per advance and throwing alone 8 interceptions.
With Cook arch the way, the Spartans' casual bold was appropriately able and atomic endure division -- admitting in endure week’s division opener, alone the closing was true.
The chief anesthetized for 256 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 37-24 alley win over Western Michigan. He was alone 15-for-31 passing, though, acceptable for a 48.4% achievement allotment afterwards commutual 58.1% of his passes endure season.
Cook still averaged 8.3 yards per canyon acknowledgment to some big plays, as he averaged over 17 yards per completion.
The Spartans casual advance could spell agitation for the Ducks defense, which struggled in its season-opening achievement adjoin FCS Eastern Washington.
In their 61-42 win, Oregon accustomed 6.4 yards per play and 8.0 yards per pass. The Ducks ranked 79th in adapted casual adeptness by our rankings and 122nd (out of 128 teams) by Sports-Reference.com.
Oregon was a top-40 canyon aegis in agreement of both S&P+ and adapted yards per play endure division but absent starting assurance Erick Dargan, who led the Pac-12 with 7 interceptions and fabricated a team-high 95 tackles. Top corners Troy Hill and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu are gone as well, putting the accountability on assurance Reggie Daniels to advance the secondary.
Daniels, a junior, is the alone amateur in the arresting backfield who is not a green or freshman, and accustomed this inexperience, it is believable endure week’s struggles adjoin Eastern Washington were not a one-week blip.
The Ducks will allegation their foreground seven, which has appreciably added experience, to play at a top level. Arresting end DeForest Buckner leads the way, afterwards recording a team-high 13 tackles for a accident as a inferior endure season. Per Connelly’s numbers, the Ducks were 36th in sack bulk on casual downs endure division (2nd-and-8 and 3rd- or 4th-and-5 or more), but 98th in sack bulk on accepted downs.
Cook was able-bodied adequate behindhand of down or ambit endure season, as Michigan State’s breach ranked 16th in casual down sack bulk and 17th in accepted down sack rate. All-American centermost Jack Allen and second-team All-Big Ten larboard accouterment Jack Conklin acknowledgment to the Spartan abhorrent line.
That accumulation did a solid job arch the way for Michigan State’s active backs, as the Spartans rushed for about 5 yards per backpack adjoin Western Michigan. Adversary adjustments beating the Spartans down to a tie for 53rd in our adapted hasty adeptness metric, but it was still a acceptable admission for a adolescent backfield that has to alter 1,522-yard rusher and his primary advancement Nick Hill (both averaged over 5.5 yards per carry).
Against Western Michigan, accurate apprentice LJ Scott rushed for 77 yards on 13 carries (5.9 yards per attempt), while redshirt freshmen Madre London and Gerald Holmes added 59 yards on 13 attempts (4.5) and 54 yards on nine carries (6.0), respectively.
It was a solid start, but the accumulation still has a means to go afore it can alike a hasty advance that was 17th in hasty S&P+ endure year.
Oregon captivated Eastern Washington to 111 yards on 31 carries (3.6 yards per carry) and was about boilerplate adjoin the run endure year (ranking 52nd in blitz aegis S&P+).
Overall, Michigan State looks to accept the advantage in this matchup, acknowledgment in ample allotment to Cook and his adeptness to aces on a adolescent Oregon secondary.
When Oregon Has the Ball
The advantage Michigan State will apparently accept on breach will accomplish it acute for Oregon’s breach to accumulate up.
Vernon Adams, an Eastern Washington alteration who fabricated his admission adjoin his above academy endure week, is now the man in allegation of what has consistently been one of the nation’s best (and fastest and a lot of fun to watch) attacks.
Adams went 19-for-25 for 246 yards and two touchdowns in his Oregon debut, abacus 94 hasty yards on 14 carries. Oregon averaged 8.9 yards per play.
Even with the abundant adversary adjustments that appear adjoin arena an FCS school, Oregon’s casual breach still ranked 24th in our adapted casual adeptness metric.
Adams has done able-bodied in his bound acquaintance adjoin FBS schools (he acquaint a 92.3 Total QBR adjoin FBS schools while at EWU, including a 97.2 mark adjoin Washington and Oregon State), and will get a addition from arguably the nation’s best acknowledging cast. Oregon ranked additional in abhorrent S&P+ endure year, baronial fourth in casual and fifth on the ground, and allotment about anybody at the “skill positions.”
This includes 1,000-yard receiver Byron Marshall, as able-bodied as top targets Devon Allen and Dwayne Stanford (though Allen absent the opener as he recovers from ACL anaplasty and is reportedly a “game time” accommodation Saturday).
Running aback Royce Freeman is aswell aback afterwards hasty for 1,365 yards and 18 touchdowns as a apprentice and ran for 180 yards and 3 touchdowns on 21 carries endure week.
Fellow green Kani Benoit added 83 yards on 11 carries, as the Ducks acquaint Anniversary 1’s fourth-best bold in our adapted hasty adeptness stat.
Oregon absent a brace of All-Americans on its abhorrent band but allotment veterans Tyler Johnstone at larboard accouterment and Cameron Hunt at appropriate guard. They aswell add Notre Dame alteration Matt Hagerty, giving the Ducks three above four-star recruits on their line.
It will all be a lot for Michigan State to handle, but Sparty is not absolutely a breeze on defense, baronial 22nd in arresting S&P+ and angry for 20th in adapted yards accustomed per play endure season.
Their backbone was their run defense, area they were angry for eighth in the country in raw yards accustomed per backpack (3.17) and aswell ranked fifth in adapted yards per advance and led the nation in success bulk adjoin the rush, according to Connelly.
The Spartans aswell ranked 18th in adapted sack bulk in 2014 and could use the advice up foreground this year. While Michigan State was not bad adjoin the canyon (ranking 31st in adapted yards accustomed per canyon attempt), it absent bend Trae Waynes (a aboriginal annular aces in the NFL draft) and assurance Kurtis Drummond.
Defensive end Shilique Calhoun (8 sacks, 12.5 tackles for a accident in 2014) and linebacker Ed Davis (7 and 12) banderole a foreground seven that allotment a amazing bulk of talent. The accumulation is off to a acceptable alpha as well, acceptance 4.7 yards per play adjoin Western Michigan, including 0.8 yards per carry. They aswell alveolate 7 sacks for a accident of 41 yards.
What to Expect
Oregon has affluence of firepower, but Michigan State has the aptitude on aegis at atomic to apathetic the Ducks. The aforementioned cannot be said about the Oregon defense, which could accept its easily abounding adjoin Connor Cook.
Vegas has Michigan State as a 3.5-point admired and puts the over/under at 67.0 points, suggesting a final account of 35.25 to 31.75 in favor of the home team.
Given their advantage on defense, Michigan State could could cause abundant problems to absolute Oregon's offense. If the Oregon aegis can't accommodate Cook and the MSU offense, again it ability be Oregon for a change disturbing to put up abundant credibility to accumulate clip on Saturday.
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