In case you haven’t heard yet, Michigan State football has a big game on Saturday night against No. 25 Michigan in Ann Arbor.
The Spartans are 3-4 and have lost four straight games while Michigan is 5-2 and just snuck back into the AP Top 25 after beating Washington 24-7 last weekend. Both teams are looking to stack momentum, and a win in a major rivalry game would do the trick.
Jonathan Smith is sitting on the hot seat while the fanbase is fully ready to have his back on Saturday night. A win over the Wolverines could legitimately save his job.
Michigan State could use a win on Saturday night to stop the bleeding, and the Spartans will get some help from key starters returning. Fortunately, the Spartans got some good news on Saturday afternoon, just hours before kickoff against Michigan.
Pete Thamel reported that Michigan State will likely get Stanton Ramil back at left tackle and Nikai Martinez at safety. That means two key starters are back.
Sources: Michigan State is set to get back to key players against Michigan, as veteran safety Nikai Martinez and starting left tackle Stanton Ramil are returning from injury. Both Martinez (undisclosed) and Ramil (undisclosed) have been out since Sept. 20. pic.twitter.com/FRRKSXrrcE
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 25, 2025
Both Martinez and Ramil have been out since that Sept. 20 battle at USC.
Michigan State can use all the help it can get on Saturday night, and getting a leader back in the secondary as well as another on the offensive line will be a great start. These guys have been working back for a month now, and returning for the big game is perfect timing.
The Spartans will be looking to pull off the upset, and having two veteran leaders and starters back will make it more likely.
I’m expecting the Spartans to come out more than prepared on Saturday night.