Michigan State is gearing up for one of its biggest battles of the season so far, heading back to the Rose Bowl to face No. 9 UCLA in a top-10 showdown.
But it’ll have to do so without its starting quarterback.
Alessio Milivojevic is unlikely to play against the Bruins and Cam Fancher is also out so that means true freshman Kayd Coffman will get the nod against a top-10 opponent in just his second career collegiate appearance and first start. This is a heck of a way to get baptized into college football.
Let’s get bold ahead of what’s sure to be an interesting first start for Coffman.
A freshman WR catches a TD pass
There are two freshman receivers than come to mind when I think of who could catch a touchdown pass from their fellow freshman on Saturday: Bryson Williams and Samson Gash. Both guys have shown a little something in recent weeks but the former has been much more productive. That might change with a youth movement beginning.
Williams has two catches for 51 yards and a touchdown over the past two weeks and Gash hasn’t caught a pass all year. That changes on Saturday against UCLA.
We’ll see a freshman receiver catch a touchdown pass from Coffman at some point and we’ll throw in Braylon Collier as a candidate to get this done, too. One of those three freshman wideouts will put Michigan State on the board.
Special teams touchdown
I don’t know what’s screaming this at me, but my brain keeps coming back to special teams for the second bold prediction for the UCLA game and I have to go with a touchdown.
LeVar Woods is one of the best special teams coordinators in America and he’s going to flex a little of that muscle in a game that Michigan State will need some special teams help the most. For a second year in a row, Michigan State will return a kick to the house as Kenneth Williams provides a huge spark to begin the second half.
One of the Big Ten’s best kick returners will strike when Michigan State needs it most.
Michigan State keeps it a one-score game
Saturday’s game feels almost unwinnable for a 2-5 team riding a five-game losing streak, down its starting quarterback on the road against a top-10 opponent, but we’re going to see a little Pat Fitzgerald magic in Pasadena.
UCLA is favored by 16.5 points which is just way too much even for a top-10 team against an unranked opponent on a lengthy losing streak, especially when you consider that Michigan State probably should have won its last two games. The Spartans could be sitting at 4-3 with all the momentum in the world, but two last-play losses crushed those hopes.
The team will come out fired up on Saturday to prove people wrong and playing with nothing to lose can often spell an upset. Michigan State will play free and it’ll result in a one-score game throughout with UCLA getting the last laugh with a touchdown late to make it 28-20.
Michigan State is knocking on the door of being relevant.
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