Michigan State Football: 3 early predictions for the 2020 season

3. Elijah Collins will rush for 1,000 yards

I never claimed that these would be bold predictions. In fact, it would be somewhat of a let down if this one didn’t come true. That’s not to say that Elijah Collins has to break 1,000 yards rushing, but he’s the clear number one guy. He almost reached 1,000 last season and he didn’t even start the year as the go-to guy.

Collins finished 2019 with 988 yards on the ground, along with five touchdowns and 99 receiving yards. He left himself room to improve — that’s for sure. But he got off to better start than anyone expected. He created a strong foundation to build off of as Mel Tucker arrives.

If he can almost hit 1,000 behind the monstrosity of an offensive line that we witnessed last season, he’ll easily break it this coming season.

The one thing holding him back from this goal is the return of Connor Heyward. His return definitely isn’t a negative, but everybody is hoping he’s used a bit differently than he was by Brad Salem and Mark Dantonio. Depending on how Jay Johnson and Mel Tucker use Heyward in this system, Collins may not get as many carries as he’s expecting.