MSU v. BSU Prediction

Friday night ligths.  Or the start of college football season.  Here I am, at my friends house in Lansing, MI.  It's 11:33 am and I have David Guetta jammin, my lady friend is happy.  I need some whiskey.  I have been the Meijer and the cooler is packed.  It is about time for a drink, but first I need to make a prediction.

OFFENSE:  This is fairly obviously the biggest question mark for MSU.  With a new QB and mostly new WRs the MSU offense will need to limit turnover and control the clock.  The key here will be making most of your possessions.  Field goals are cool with me, and I LOVE touchdowns.  What will kill us are turnovers.  I am looking at you Maxwell.  Today in the Lansing area it is very windy. This is supposed to continue through the day, so I expect MSU to pound the ball on the ground  Though I expected that anyways.  Today is one of those game where Bell will get his number called a lot and then to change the pace we will see Caper and Hill.  With Caper and Hill in expect to see screen passes and tosses outside.  Once that is established for these runners, expect that out of Bell as well.  This will open up shots down the middle.  That is where I expect Maxwell to start out passing.  Sims figures to have a big game.  There will be limited shots down field with this wind.  For BSU, I expect to "trick" plays as they will be called by the announcers but it will be mostly misdirection.  BSU is also starting a new QB who has been effective in his time as a backup.  We might see some halfback options and into a pass.  I am not sure.  What I do know is that BSU has about 5,000 offensive plays so the defense needs to be ready for all of them. 

DEFENSE:  The strength of this MSU squad and the basically the only reason, as far as I can tell, why we are getting any hype is the defense.  It will be necessary for the Spartan defense to limit its pursuit.  With the misdirection that I am expecting, becoming an over zealous tackler will lead to massive gains and massive scores for BSU.  The defense will need to stay home and then attack quickly. In my head it will be similar to how they have played Michigan.  Over pursuing Denard is a death sentence, same with the BSU offense. I expect a lot of disruption from Gholston and Allen.  This should keep the BSU offense out of sync.  Our defensive line needs to have a good game push that BSU offensive line back on each snap.  Anything to overpower and deflate BSU will be crucial.

PREDICTION:  The crowd is going to be electric.  It is a beautiful day out today with temps in the high 80s/low 90s and a strong breeze making it feel cooler.  The night game allows plenty of time for people to get pre lubed.  I am seeing a lot of older(my aged) Spartan fans in and around town.  This is good thing since I am mostly critical of our student section and its ability to be lackluster.  Expect a few shots early from both teams until they settle into a groove.  The MSU defense will come on strong as the game ends and I see this swinging MSU's way.  Though it should be noted that last home openers BSU has won (Oregon, Georgia*, VaTech).  I think this defense is going to flex a lot of muscle.  31-21 MSU