Michigan State Football: 5 reasons Spartans will beat Washington State

Michigan State football will take on Washington State on Thursday night and here’s why the Spartans will win the Holiday Bowl.

Bowl season is here for the first time since Dec. 31 of 2015 for Michigan State. The Spartans missed out on a bowl game last season and the last time they made the postseason, they were shut out by Alabama in the College Football Playoff.

Mark Dantonio is hoping for better luck on Thursday night against No. 18 Washington State. However, that won’t be easy as the Cougars have had an impressive season, also finishing 9-3 with wins over some top Pac-12 teams.

The Holiday Bowl matchup will be one of the better pre-New Year’s Day bowl games and the Spartans will be looking for win No. 10 just one year after going 3-9. If they can achieve a 10th win, Dantonio will be considered a magician for his turnaround — if he isn’t already.

Here’s why Michigan State will take down Washington State in the Holiday Bowl.

5. Washington State’s run game is non-existent

Washington State’s run game is nearly non-existent. Don’t believe me? The Cougars average about 72 rushing yards per game as a team which is 129th in college football. Yes, there’s just one team that’s worse at running the football than Washington State.

Leading rusher Jamal Morrow played well in the first two months of the season, but finished the final four games of the year with 30 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown. That’s just 4.0 yards per carry and one score in a month of action — not a great trend.

Moreover, Michigan State’s run defense is the second-best the Cougars will face all year, coming off a troubling performance against the nation’s top rushing defense, Washington, in the Apple Cup. The Cougars will rely heavily on the pass which will force Michigan State to worry only about that area of the offense as the run game will be easily contained.