Jonathan Smith has had some tough questions to answer this week after a complete meltdown in the second half against Nebraska — and he didn’t do a great job of answering them. He knows that his team has to be prepared for this weekend’s Michigan State vs. UCLA showdown which happens to be the Spartans’ homecoming.
Prepared is the key word because the Spartans looked rather unprepared in Lincoln last weekend, outside of a burst of effectiveness in the third quarter.
What does Vegas think about this weekend’s battle in East Lansing? It believes the Spartans should win, even after UCLA beat one of the top contenders in the Big Ten in shocking fashion.
Betting odds for Michigan State vs. UCLA
Note: The latest odds are courtesy of DraftKings.
Line: Michigan State -8.5
Over/Under: 55.5
Moneyline: Michigan State -298 | UCLA +240
These odds are a little surprising considering Michigan State just lost in excruciating fashion last weekend at Nebraska while UCLA is fresh off a big win over a top-10 Penn State team. The Bruins have a ton of juice after that first win of the season, especially since the offense looked completely different and competent for the first time this year against No. 7 Penn State.
Michigan State should win this game and a loss would be a critical hit to Smith’s tenure, and it could open up legitimate talks about a coaching change.
To me, it feels like Michigan State is a bigger favorite than it should be after how the Spartans looked in the fourth quarter at Nebraska and how UCLA looked against Penn State for four quarters.