Michigan State football: 3 things I want to see vs. Washington

2. MSU asserting its dominance in the run game

Through two games against inferior opponents, Washington is allowing nearly 150 yards per game on the ground. That’s not great considering the Huskies have played a middle-of-the-pack MAC team and an FCS program.

Michigan State, on the other hand, hasn’t exactly faced top-tier competition either, but the Spartans are averaging nearly 230 yards per game on the ground. They’ve dedicated a lot of attention to the run game and even with all of that success, running backs coach Effrem Reed is not pleased with the talented duo leaving too many yards on the field.

Washington has been fairly soft up front against the run and Michigan State’s offensive line has exceeded expectations through two weeks and I’d like to see more of that.

Michigan State needs to assert its dominance in the trenches and control the line of scrimmage. That will open lanes for Jarek Broussard and Jalen Berger to pick up some easy yardage.

The Spartans average 5.7 yards per carry this season but even if they’re somewhere around 4.0-4.5 against Washington, I like their chances.