Good News for Michigan State Football; They are getting receiver Jalen Naylor back from injury. In late October, Naylor suffered a hand injury during the Spartans' victory over the Wolverines.
His other standout receiver in No. 10 Michigan State football, Jaden Reed, will also be active and ready to rock against No. 1 in the Peach Bowl. 12 Pittsburgh Thursday Night.
The bad news, of course, is the retreat of the superstar and a potential first-round pick Kenneth Walker III will not be a good fit for the Spartans. Pittsburgh would be without their Heisman Trophy Finals quarterback, Kenny Pickett, who would still be sitting outside while preparing for the NFL Draft. It's unfortunate, but you really can't blame a player for making the business decision to sit out of this glorified exhibition game.
I would say this; These games serve the purpose of fringe draft picks; Players who can now go without a draft can play themselves in later rounds, players who are expected to be substitutes for later rounds can perform well enough to be mid-round or day two picks. Huh. The more drafts a player receives, the more money they earn as a rookie, so not only does this 'glorified show' generate millions for universities, it also allows players to sell their draft stock on day two and beyond. It also gives an opportunity to increase.
Walker ran for 1,646 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2021 during his one season with the Spartans after being transferred from Walker One. The Spartans will rely on Jordan Simmons in this one and even mix in Elijah Collins, who played a football just 12 times in 2021 for a total of 87 yards; That after leading the program two years ago. Simmons covered a total of 255 yards on 54 hats in '21. In 2019, Collins scored five rushing touchdowns on 222 carries for 988 yards.
There is a clear connection between these two programs. The Panthers are led by head coach Pat Narduzzi who served as Michigan State football's defensive coordinator for seven seasons between 2007 and 2014.
The Panthers are expected to start Nick Patti at quarterback. Pickett is scheduled for first-round mid-selection, but without a quarterback qualified to be a top choice, his stock could climb into the top ten as the draft approaches in the draft class. Piquet scored 42 touchdowns and 4,319 yards last season.
I hope the Spartans get used to seeing more than just their passing game, as Peyton Thorne is often on the hunt for his trio of talented pass-catchers. Thorne had a total of 2,886 yards and 24 touchdowns with nine interceptions to go.
Reid led the Spartans on 53 catches for 946 yards and received a total of eight touchdowns. Reid is also a dynamic returner and has a total of 376 return yards this past season.
Reid played his part in becoming a finalist for the Paul Hornung Award, which goes to the most versatile player in the country. Naylor made 31 grabs and scored a total of 587 receiving yards in 2021 with an average of 18.9 yards per catch, a total of six receiving touchdowns. Trey Mosley is the third member of the dynamic trio; He scored 472 yards and three touchdowns in 30 balls.
Michigan State football betting odds and prediction
The Spartans were open as dogs in this matchup until word broke that Kenny Pickett would opt-out to prepare for the NFL Draft.
WynnBET now has Michigan Football as the 2.5 favorite. Under/over is currently set at 56.0 with an odds of -110. The moneyline is -135 for the state of Michigan and +115 for Pittsburgh.
Although I think losing Walker III would be a significant loss to the Spartans' offense, they would generate points with their experienced backfield and trio of receivers.
Even knowing the Spartan secondary is atrocious, Piquet's loss at quarterback would be too much for the Panthers. I've got Michigan State with 2.5 points.