3 most important Michigan State football games in 2024

1. at Michigan (Oct. 26)

Are you really shocked to see this one come in at No. 1? You shouldn't be. This game should be circled on the calendar every year as the most important and especially with a new coach in charge.

We will be able to tell just how the Jonathan Smith era is going to go based on how prepared he has his team heading into the Michigan game. Plus, if the Spartans can give the Wolverines all they can handle, fans will buy in whether they win or lose in year one.

A major reason why so many bought in to Mel Tucker before his unfortunate demise was because he was able to take the Michigan rivalry so seriously and he even won his first two games against the Wolverines. That's an easy way to get all of Spartan Nation behind you.

While I'm not expecting Michigan State to go into Ann Arbor and beat the defending national champs this season, a close game without embarrassment will at least show us that this is different than the Tucker era at the end. We need to see some fight out of this team and the players need to make sure they take it seriously, too.

The Michigan game will always be the most important, in my eyes.