Only two games stand between Spartan fans and freedom from Saturday disappointments. The Michigan State vs Iowa game marks the second-to-last of the season, and it could also be one of the final times we see Jonathan Smith on the sidelines.
Michigan State has lost seven straight games while Iowa’s record is rather misleading. The Hawkeyes are just 6-4 on the season and 4-3 in Big Ten play, but they’ve been playing really well.
Iowa’s only losses have come against ranked teams as it’s had a brutal schedule. And it’s not like the Hawkeyes have been blown out — they’ve lost all four of their games by five or fewer points. They lost to No. 16 Iowa State by three, to No. 11 Indiana by five, to No. 9 Oregon by two, and to No.17 USC by five. They really should be more like 8-2 or 9-1, but the bounces haven’t gone their way.
Michigan State, on the other hand, has been lifeless since early September. The Spartans have seen the defense improve slightly, but not enough to mask the offense’s rapid decline. They haven’t won a game since mid-September when they took down Youngstown State to improve to 3-0.
Yet Vegas somehow doesn’t believe this game will be as lopsided as most others do. The opening odds are a little surprising, especially since MSU is on the road.
Odds courtesy of DraftKings as of Tuesday, Nov. 18.
Line: Iowa -16.5
Over/Under: 42.5
Moneyline: Iowa -800 | Michigan State +550
Surprisingly, the line has moved in Michigan State’s direction. It opened at -17.5 in favor of Iowa (which is still not as lopsided as I’d expect), and now it’s down a point. Still, I probably wouldn’t take the Spartans to cover considering Iowa has pretty much dominated every unranked team on its schedule outside of Penn State — the team that just beat MSU by 18.
I don’t really see the Spartans covering, but hey, maybe they’ll be more motivated to try and save Smith’s job.