The Tulsa Golden Hurricane have hit the road and are looking to make a monumental upset happen against the Michigan State Spartans.
Michigan State underachieved in 2018 after a solid 2017 campaign. That’s fair to say given how good the Spartans were on defense last year. Had Mark Dantonio’s team had a halfway decent offense, there’s a real chance that the Spartans could have won 9-10 games last season.
But Dantonio has a plan to fix that offense of his: give his assistant coaches new positions. Rather than releasing existing coaches and bringing new ones in, Dantonio shuffled things around. The Spartans have to hope that the shuffling pans out to make a productive offense.
They also have to hope that Brian Lewerke returns to his 2017 level of success, rather that continuing to struggle at the level that he did in 2018.
Tulsa improved from 2017 to 2018, but that doesn’t mean much. In the past two seasons, the Golden Hurricane has won a combined 5 games. So, it’s fair to say that Tulsa has underachieved as well. That’s especially true when one considers the fact that the Golden Hurricane literally won twice as many games in 2016 than in 2017 and 2018 combined.
And to start 2019, both of these teams are likely hoping to prove that this year is different and that they put last season behind them. In addition to that, Michigan State and Tulsa are both probably hoping that their opponent is going to struggle more than they are.
How to bet on and watch Michigan State vs. Tulsa
- Date: Friday, Aug. 30
- Start Time: 6 p.m. CT
- Location: East Lansing, Michigan
- Stadium: Spartan Stadium
- TV Info: FS1
- Odds: Michigan State –23.5
- Over/Under: 48
- Live Stream: fubo.tv
Prediction
Michigan State has a much higher ceiling than Tulsa does coming into 2019. That’s not necessarily a knack on Tulsa, it’s just that the Spartans have a very real path to winning 9 games this season. Michigan State also has a much higher floor than Tulsa does entering this season.
Well, it could be a knock on Tulsa given the fact that the Golden Hurricane isn’t all that great this year. In fact, Michigan State’s floor might be higher than Tulsa’s ceiling this year.
There’s not much else to say about this. This game shouldn’t be close. Michigan State’s defense should smother Tulsa’s offense, propelling the Spartans to victory. Even a mediocre showing from MSU’s offense should be enough to overwhelm Tulsa, especially when combined with a solid defensive performance.
Score: Michigan State 38, Tulsa 10