Thursday Tidbits - Michigan St.
Happy Thursday - These are your Thursday Tidbits - Michigan State
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Notre Dame’s touchdown fourteen seconds into last Saturday’s game was the 8th fastest score in their history. Rice’s 128 total yards was the lowest total allowed since the Weis era (Washington - coached by Willingham). The game was the first shutout since 2022 against BC.
The Fighting Irish are totaling 414 yards of offense and 46.5 points per game through the first two weeks, while allowing just 206 yards and 6.5 points to its opponents.
Cause for Concern?
Despite the overall offensive production, ND only averaged 3.7 yards per carry on the ground against one of the worst teams to visit the stadium in recent memory. The team walked away from their home opener with 118 rushing yards after tallying 111 yards on the ground against Wisconsin.
Through two games, the Irish are only averaging 3.6 yards per carry. By comparison, they averaged 3.4 yards against Miami and aTm (both playoff teams) last year and averaged 5.7 per carry the entire season. Replacing Love and Price is impossible, however the drop-off in production shouldn’t be this pronounced.
While it is still early, one must wonder if the Irish will be exposed as being one dimensional against better competition.
This day in history
Saturday marks the 17th anniversary of Biletnikoff Award winner Golden Tate torching the Spartans for seven receptions for 127 yards and an iconic game-winning touchdown in the closing minutes where he celebrated by jumping into the MSU marching band section in the corner of the end zone, crushing a piccolo player.
That season, Tate finished with 93 receptions for 1,496 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns.
Given the state of college football these days, perhaps he has some eligibility left.
MSU
The Spartans visit Notre Dame with a 2-0 record, both over MAC opponents. Last Saturday they defeated Eastern Michigan 35-7.
Defensively, MSU has some solid linebackers and edge rushers who will test the offensive line. According to Pro Football Focus, they received an 80.7 overall defensive grade against E. Michigan, which was the highest for the program against an FBS team since a 2021 win over Indiana. They are coached by former ND linebackers coach Max Bullough who is their co-defensive coordinator.
Offensively, Sparty is led by QB Alessio Milivojevic who has thrown for three scores, no picks and completed over 70 percent of his passes this season. He is not mobile, having rushed for only nine yards this season. Running back Cam Edwards, who is fifth in the nation in rushing, scored two TD’s and ran for 152 yards on 21 carries, winning the player of the game honors against Eastern Michigan.
When founded, Michigan State served as the model for the entire national land-grant university system created by the Morrill Act of 1862. MSU was the first institution of higher education in the United States to teach scientific agriculture.
Their campus is also apparently haunted. The oldest residence hall is famously rumored to be haunted by a ghost moving furniture, flickering lights, and playing the piano. On foggy mornings, witnesses claim to see phantom couples in old-fashioned clothing and a man wandering around in a stovepipe hat walking the campus. The ghost of a little boy is said to be seen wandering through the seats of the university’s auditorium. The campus museum and other residence halls have stories of lights frequently turning on and off, windows and doors slamming, and elevators carrying mysterious passengers.
Sounds like a normal college campus to me.
The Game
Saturday night will mark the 80th time the Spartans and Irish have faced off against each other. The 79 meetings against Michigan State is the fourth-most prolific series in Irish football history. While the Irish hold a 49-29-1 advantage in the series, Michigan State ranks second among opponents in all-time victories (29) over Notre Dame and tied for first in wins (14) at Notre Dame Stadium, including six straight between 1997-2007. MSU has won 11 of the last 19 meetings in the series, and the last 64 meetings between the two have featured at least one Associated Press ranked team. The programs first met in 1887.
Since 1949, the winner of each installment of the rivalry earns the Megaphone Trophy, which the Irish currently hold. The megaphone is split, with one half decorated in blue with a gold Notre Dame monogram and the other half in green with Michigan State's block "S". All previous game scores are listed down the middle of the trophy in white on a bright red background.
THAT’S A MEGAPHONE!
Notre Dame is favored by 29.5 points with an over/under of 52.5.
MSU is the most well-rounded offensive team the Irish have faced this year, however they are going to have a challenge moving the ball as the QB will be stressed throughout. Defensively expect them to be similar, but not as good, to Wisconsin on how they attack the Irish. While they are better than they have been the last few years, Sparty is still a B1G bottom-feeder.
The Irish shouldn’t need the assistance of any ghosts to slam the door shut on the Spartans.
Those are your Thursday Tidbits - Michigan State
Stay thirsty, my friends.
Go Otters and Go Irish!
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