We have finally made it to the final three games of our season schedule primer. With a tough game agains the Nittany Lions followed by a trip to Iowa and the Ford Field game against Maryland. The Iowa and Maryland matchups very well could be the deciding games on whether the Spartans can make the post season or we all spend another off season complaining about the missed opportunities. Let’s kick it off with Penn State.
November 15- Penn State
November 22- @ Iowa
November 29- Maryland
Penn State
Penn
State heads into East Lansing late in the season, like always. This year, the Nittany Lions have a lot on the line. With their most promising team on paper in some time, the expectations are Natty or bust for James Franklin and company. Penn State has arguably one of the best offensive lines in the country if not the best. They are also very deep and many of these guys will be seeing NFL rosters. Vega Ioane leads the unit and is one of the biggest and most dynamic offensive lineman in the B1G. Senior tight end, Khalil Dinkins is also one of the best blocking tight ends in the nation. With that being said, third year starting QB, Drew Allar should have all day and plenty of weapons to get things done. Penn State’s tandem backfield of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen will guarantee fresh feet and likely offensive dominance.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Nittany Lions have plenty of names to be excited about. Edge rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton will wreck havoc and Zuriah Fisher returns to Jim Knowles’ defense after missing all of last season. A.J. Harris and Elliot Washington III lead the cornerbacks with Audavion Collins pushing for time and could probably start on most B1G teams.
Penn State is likely to take care of business this year against Oregon and I think they will also take down OSU. I do not think they will go undefeated though. There is always that one game that an underdog plays inspired, finds a way and the ball just bounces right. This is MSU’s only hope in this matchup. If the Spartans can shock the world with the big upset of a possible number one PSU in mid-November, then we may have something brewing in East Lansing. However, I think that the PSU offense is going to be way to much for the Spartans as the defensive line gets dominated by an NFL ready offensive line making this a potential blow out.
Iowa
The weekend before Thanksgiving has the Spartans traveling on their final road game of the year into Hawkeye territory. MSU and Iowa have quite a history of back and forth and big moments on each side. Obviously most Hawkeye fans still get nauseous at the words LJ Scott. Iowa landed a big get in the transfer portal when South Dakota State QB Mark Gronowski decided on the Hawkeyes. It immediately made him the best player on their roster and upgraded their passing game. Iowa receivers are actually quite deep and Jacob Gill is their number one but there is no Nick Marsh lining up. The running attack is a bit of a question mark as the highly productive Kaleb Johnson will be playing on Sundays. Kamari Moulton and Jazium Patterson will look to be the quintessential Iowa run attack and don’t sleep on Gronowski’s ability to run. The offensive line is not quite the Iowa tradition it usually is. There is talent there, like center Logan Jones, but it is perhaps an area that could be exploited. Iowa is tight end U and Addison Ostrenga and Zach Ortworth will be utilized as such.
Defensively, Iowa comes in looking to replace nearly 900 tackles from the linebacking corps of Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson. Jaden Harrell and Karson Sharar look to take that leap for the linebackers. The Hawkeye line had a lot of turnover and will be interesting to see how they come together and gel. In the secondary, Iowa has a pair of solid corners in TJ Hall and Deshaun Lee, but the safeties are any area that could cause some trouble. All in all, Iowa should have a fairly solid defense and do well at stopping the run.
MSU is going to have some opportunities in this matchup. Chiles has a ton of weapons and I could see Velling having a banner day in the middle and Iowa perhaps over compensating to leave a big play open on the outside. Iowa’s pass rush is not that strong and should Chiles have the time, he should be able to find someone open. This game is definitely a coin flip as is usual with a lot of these meetings the past 15 years. The Iowa game can also be just a hideous grudge match. In fact, my first ever Spartan game was a 10-10 tie against Iowa in 1988. So, this matchup can be an ugly game. I do think the Spartans have a chance in this one.
Maryland
The new tradition of the Ford Field game that MSU has done to win favor with B1G commissioner and “expand the brand” brings the Terrapins to town. This very likely could be the game for the bowl berth. There is no Jonathan Kim stepping out to make a last second go ahead field goal this year. Maryland has some substantial changes to its coaching staff and team which makes for an intriguing matchup.
On offense the strong suit is definitely the receiving corps. Octavian Smith Jr returns along with Oklahoma transfer Jalil Farooq and Tennessee transfer Kaleb Webb. The problem? Well, the offensive line is returning only two starters and is projected to have a couple freshman starting. The other question mark is the QB position. As of this articles post Maryland has yet to name a starter. UCLA transfer Justyn Martin is expected to be the play caller due to his experience but it seems that four-star freshman Malik Washington will also get playing time. A two QB system and a raw offensive line will give new offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton everything he can handle.
Maryland also has a new defensive coordinator in Ted Monachino. Both coordinators have NFL experience and Monachino is known for his pass rush attack. Maryland lost its entire front line and then had a pair of linebackers, Kellan Wyatt and Caleb Wheatland, enter the transfer portal. The secondary also has had lots of movement but looks to have hit with Arkansas State transfer Dontay Joyner.
The Terrapins have all sorts of uncertainties but the benefit for Maryland is they will most likely have most of the questions answered by the time they face the Spartans. This is one of the few games this season where I feel confident in saying MSU should take this. They will have much more experience, should have the stronger lines and the ability to exploit the linebackers and secondary.
After the weeks 7-9 gut check games, MSU will head into weeks 10-12 with a punch in the face and the ability to close out with a couple of wins. What do you see happening in the final three of 2025?
