Opposing Players to Note For Michigan State's Matchup With Rutgers
Michigan State got a big win over the Purdue Boilermakers to keep its Bowl hopes alive, but it must land one last victory over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights to make it happen.
Here are some Rutgers players MSU must maintain if they look to land the victory:
To start, MSU must find a way to make Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis unsuccessful with managing the football to his offense. Kaliakmanis has been the only quarterback for Rutgers this season, throwing for 2,302 passing yards.
Kaliakmanis has averaged 209.3 passing yards in the 11 games for Rutgers this season. Luckily for MS, Kaliakmanis's completion rate is just over 50%, at 54.5%. That could spell well for the MSU defense when blocking wide receivers in crucial game moments.
Another crucial part of the Rutgers game is their rushing. Currently sitting ranked fourth in the Big Ten Conference in team rushing yards, Rutger's rushing team leader, Kyle Monangai, could be a thorn in MSU's side.
Monangai leads the Scarlet Knights with 1,150 rushing yards. When Rutgers runs the ball, more times than not, Monangai will be the ball handler. Averaging 5.1 yards per carry, Monangai has broken free multiple times this season to advance Rutgers down the field.
Monangai averages 115 rushing yards per game, a part of MSU's game that has been weakened this season has been their rushing defense. On average this season, MSU has allowed 117.5 rushing yards per game, a stat that fits nicely for Monangai and the average rushing yards he gets per game.
Two defensive players MSU must note when they are on offense are linebacker Dariel Djabome and defensive lineman Kyonte Hamilton.
Djabome will head into the game against MSU, leading Rutgers in team tackles with 95. Of the 95 total tackles, 46 of them are solos, which is also leading the team. His tackle numbers stand out from the rest because he can get solo tackles and even make his way to the quarterback, recording two sacks this season.
Hamilton may be the best quarterback sacker on Rutgers, though, powering through for 3.5 quarterback sacks and forcing 26 sack yards while he is at it. Hamiltons recorded 30 total tackles this season, 18 of them being assists.
A victory against Rutgers will send MSU to a bowl game for the first time since 2021.
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Dominic Minchella holds a communications degree from Eastern Michigan University. He is a former MLB writer and joins our team ad an NFL/College team reporter on Sports Illustrated