Where MSU Stands in College Football Bowl Projections

With the college football season nearing a close, where does Michigan State stand in some bowl projections?

Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith looks on during the fourth quarter in the game against Iowa on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While Michigan State football has had a rough season, coming in at 4-6 through 10 games, closer to the bottom of the standings than the top, some still anticipate the Spartans to make a bowl game.

Let's take a look at where some experts have Michigan State projected to play.

*All projections came before Week 13 kicked off on Tuesday.

CBS Sports

CBS Sports' Jerry Palm has Michigan State currently projected to play in the GameAbove Sports Bowl, formerly the Quick Lane Bowl, and its opponents are projected to be the Miami (OH) RedHawks. The RedHawks are 7-4 this season and coming off a recent victory over Northern Illinois.

Michigan State has not played the RedHawks since 1994. Over their history of matchups, Michigan State has won three of four games when facing Miami. In their last matchup, Michigan State was victorious, defeating the RedHawks, 45-10.

The GameAbove Sports Bowl will be held on Dec. 26 and is set to be played at 2 p.m. in Detroit.

247Sports

247Sports' Brad Crawford has Michigan State projected to play Eastern Michigan in the same bowl. EMU's football team ranks eighth in the MAC and has a record of 5-5. Its senior quarterback, Cole Snyder, has 2,242 passing yards this season.

Michigan State has not played EMU in a decade. The last matchup between the two teams came back in 2014 and saw Michigan State walk out victorious. In fact, in the 10 matchups EMU and Michigan State have played each other, EMU has yet to come away with a victory.

USA Today

USA Today's Erick Smith has Michigan State projected to land in the Rate Bowl, where their projected opponents would be Texas Tech. The matchup would pin a Big 12 team against a Big Ten team.

In the only matchup between Texas Tech and Michigan State, the Spartans fell short, losing to Texas Tech 41-31 back in 2010. The teams have not seen each other since. The Rate Bowl is set to be contested on Dec 26 in Phoenix at Chase Field (home of the Arizona Diamondbacks).

While these are all projections, Michigan State still has two more games in its regular season. Its next matchup will be against Purdue on Friday.

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