Michigan State-Nebraska Prediction

Week 4 of the college football season provides a key test for one of the surprise teams from the Big Ten, and BetRivers.com is here to provide its Michigan State-Nebraska prediction for Saturday night. Michigan State enters Week 4 undefeated with a 28-point win over Youngstown State (FCS) and two road wins over Power-5 schools in Northwestern and then-No. 24 Miami. In fact, the Spartans are outscoring opponents 118-52 through the first three weeks. Not much what expected from Michigan State this season, which makes their first game as a ranked team all the more important, especially since it comes against a Nebraska team that is poised to set the trap.

Nebraska has been one of the most polarizing teams in the country, and a Week 1 loss at bottomfeeder Illinois did not help things. But the Huskers bet back Fordham and Buffalo in its next two games, before putting up a good fight against No. 3 Oklahoma in Norman. Nebraska is not good, but it’s possible that Scott Frost is beginning to right the ship, and Saturday night has all the makings of a trap game.

Longtime college sports writer Rob Dauster, the co-founder of The Field of 68 and The Field of 12 Network is here to break down the tantalizing matchup and provide his Michigan State-Nebraska prediction for Week 4 of the college football season.

WEEK 4: WEEKEND GUIDE |BAYLOR-ISU | WISCONSIN-ND | MICHIGAN-RUTGERS

MICHIGAN STATE-NEBRASKA PREDICTION:

#20 MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS (3-0) vs. NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS (2-2)
GAME: 7:00 p.m. ET, FS1
MONEYLINE: Michigan State -225 ML, Nebraska +170 ML
SPREAD: Michigan State -5
TOTAL: 51.5 points

MICHIGAN STATE-NEBRASKA PUBLIC TRENDS:
Michigan State ML: 89% handle, 58% bets
Michigan State Spread: 70% handle, 75% bets
Over: 91% handle, 67% bets

Michigan State’s offense is clicking right now. They’ve scored 118 points through three games. Their running back, Kenneth Walker III, has been as impressive as any back through the first three weeks of the season. They beat up on (a bad) Northwestern, (a bad) Youngstown State and (a probably bad) Miami, with two of those games coming on the road.

Nebraska, on the other hand, looked like a dumpster fire against Illinois, but they’ve seemingly worked out some of the kinks the last two weeks against Fordham and at Oklahoma. So I think the question that needs to be answered here is two-fold: Do you trust that Michigan State is #actuallygood, and do you think that Nebraska is going to be able to move the ball against them?

I believe the answer to both of those questions is yes. The Spartans are rolling. Nothing I’ve seen out of Nebraska’s defense has been overly impressive, but I do think that Adrien Martinez is one of the most explosive players in the Big Ten. He’s got 75-yard house calls in his legs, and he can move the ball through the air when needed … at least in theory.

So I think the play here is the over. Points, points, points. After all, life is too short to bet the under.