Michigan State vs Purdue: 5 potential breakout players
Sep 12, 2015; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans safety Montae Nicholson (9) gestures to the crowd during the 2nd half of a game at Spartan Stadium. MSU won 31-28. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
For Michigan State, Saturday’s Homecoming contest against Purdue has accrued a bit more meaning after Boilermakers’ head coach Darrell Hazell has opened his mouth to say he has a plan for upsetting the Spartans in East Lansing.
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Sure, Hazell’s squads have played the Spartans tough over the past two seasons despite not having nearly the same amount of talent, but Michigan State loves its bulletin board material, and this happens to fall in that category.
Like I said, Michigan State has been played tough by the Boilermakers over the past two seasons, winning in 2013 just 14-0 in a very ugly afternoon game near the end of the season at Spartan Stadium — which could be like tomorrow — and again last year 45-31 in a back-and-forth shootout, ended by a pick-six from Austin Appleby to Darien Harris to seal it.
Each year, the Michigan State vs Purdue matchup is expected to be a blowout, and that constantly falls short. Michigan State is a 22-point favorite in this one and the Boilermakers are coming off a home loss to Bowling Green, so the No. 2 team in the land looks pretty favorable to cover the spread.
However, the Spartans are 0-4 against the spread this season and that might just continue as this team seems to play top opponents tough while playing down to inferior ones.
The five guys mentioned in the next few pages are going to be ones to keep an eye out for on Saturday as they might end up becoming X-factors in the contest for both sides.
Let’s take a look at which five guys we need to be watching.
Next: 5. Darian Hicks