Tip-Off Marathon Update/ In Season Tournament Preview

After nearly 31 hours of nonstop basketball, I completed my third Tip-Off Marathon in a row. Without a doubt nothing was better than the finale between Michigan State and Kansas as my Spartans emerged victorious behind a triple double by Denzel Valentine and clutch shooting from freshman Matt McQuaid. With that being said here are in my opinion the top 5 games of this year's marathon and a couple notes for the games you all probably slept/worked through:
1- Michigan State over Kansas (Great game and Denzel had a triple double, MSU came back down 13 in the first half)

2- Nevada over Hawaii (Two coast to coast finishes in 10 seconds and a 41 point performance by Nevada's Marqueze Coleman; he made everything in last 10 minutes but the last half court shot)

3- Valpo over Rhode Island (After 38 combined 1H points, scoring picked up but RI missed 2 game tying threes at the buzzer after clawing back)

4-George Washington over Virginia (The Colonials upset UVA, and this is why I love the Marathon, you get to see college hoops environments that are not usually nationally televised full of energy)

5-Utah over SDSU (This game was back and forth the whole way and Utah emerged late)

So to recap the selections of my panel of experts, here is the final standings (in order of tiebreakers):
Sam Tuori 12-4
Caleb Sleeman 10-6
Nick Tuori 8-8
Zach Tuori 8-8
Eric Tuori 7-9

Congrats to Sam Tuori for winning the Tip-Off Marathon pick challenge. I will say that myself and Eric Tuori were a product of bad luck as we both lost 5 of the 6 games decided by a possession or less, but that is the craziness of the Marathon.

So for Sam's reward for winning the Marathon, he decided that we should pick the winner's of all of the in-season tournaments as they start November 19 and last through November 29 and then there is also the Diamond Head Classic over Christmas.

For complete brackets I recommend you visit this link here.

So without further ado, here is Sam and I's picks for the finalists and champions of each tournament

Tournament	Date		Nick		Sambo
Puerto Rico	Nov 19-22		Utah over Butler		Utah over Butler
Charleston	Nov 19-22		Virginia over GMason		Virginia over OleMiss
2K Classic	Nov 13-22		Duke over Wisconsin		Duke over GTOWN
Paradise Jam	Nov 20-23		Ohio over FloridaSt		FloridaSt over Tulsa
HOF TipOff(N)	Nov 21-22		Purdue over Florida		Purdue over St Joes
Gulf Coast SC	Nov 23-25		MurraySt over CMU		CentralMI over MurraySt
Maui	Nov 23-25		Kansas over Indiana		Kansas over Indiana
Legends	Nov 23-24		LSU over NCState		LSU over NCState
Main Event(H)	Nov23-25		UMASS over Creighton		Clemson over Creighton
CBE HOF Classic	Nov23-24		UNC over Missouri		UNC over KState
Cancun (Riv)	Nov 24-25		Maryland over RIsland		Maryland over RIsland
Battle4Atlantis	Nov 25-27		Gonzaga over Michigan		Gonzaga over Michigan
Great Alaska	Nov 25-28		Toledo over Drexel		Toledo over Drexel
Advocare Invtl	Nov 26-29		Wichita over NotreDame		Wichita over Dayton
Wooden Legacy	Nov 26-29		MichiganSt over Arizona		MichiganSt over Arizona
NIT Tipoff	Nov 26-27		Villanova over GATech		Villanova over Arkansas
Las Vegas Invtl	Nov 26-27		California over WestVA		California over WestVA
Emerald Coast H	Nov 27-28		Iowa State over UAB		IowaState over UAB
Corpus Christi H	Nov 27-28		S.Illinois over Portland		UTEP over Portland
Barclays Center	Nov 27-28		Cincinnati over Tennessee		Washington ovr Cincinnati
Global Sports	Nov 21-22		G. Canyon over Wyoming		Houston over Marshall
Las Vegas Classic	Nov 22-23		SMU over Colorado		SMU over Colorado
Diamond Head	Dec 22-25		BYU over Oklahoma		Oklahoma over BYU

College Hoops Tip Off Marathon!

        The single greatest day (well 31 hours) of the season is just a few hours away. College Hoops Tip Off Marathon Day, ESPN's greatest TV achievement by giving all college basketball fans wall to wall basketball! It allows the high school student to wake up in the morning and instead of dreading your usual routine breakfast, on this one day you get to watch Wisconsin Green Bay at East Tennessee State. What more can you possibly need?

        I love this day so much that starting at 7 PM, I will be attempting my third consecutive marathon. This feat is getting more and more challenging each year with age, but thanks to my fortunate college schedule I am not even missing a class tomorrow (thank you Fred Jacobs for posting tomorrow's lecture online so I can learn during halftime of a game.)  So to add some extra motivation to this year's contest I called in my panel of college basketball experts (my dad, brother, cousin and my roommate) to predict this year's Tip Off Marathon games to determine the Marathon Champion (even though I automatically win by getting to watch 31 hours of wall to wall college basketball while they all have class or work). So without further ado, here are our selections:

Panel:
Nick Tuori: Freshman Michigan State- isportsweb MSU beat writer/Actuarial Science Major
Sam Tuori: 7th grade Forest Hills Central, Spartan and College Basketball Fanatic
Zach Tuori: 9th Grade Caledonia, Spartan and College Basketball Fanatic
Caleb Sleeman: Freshman Michigan State- Michigan State Pitcher/Engineering Major
Eric Tuori: Cal Thunder Basketball Coach/Founder, Spartan Alumni

Picks:                                                     Nick       Sam   Zach      Caleb    Eric
UCONN/Ohio State (Women) 5:30 ESPN2- UCONN UCONN UCONN UCONN UCONN
Virginia/George Washington 7:30 ESPN2-   UVA      UVA       UVA       UVA      UVA
LSU/Kennesaw State 9:00 ESPNU-               LSU       LSU        LSU        LSU       LSU
San Diego State/Utah 9:30 ESPN2-               UTAH    UTAH    UTAH    SDSU    SDSU
Baylor/Oregon 11:30 ESPN2-                        BAY      BAY       BAY      OREG     BAY
***TUESDAY***
BYU/Long Beach State 1:45a ESPN2-          BYU      LBSU     BYU       BYU       BYU
Nevada/Hawaii 4a ESPN2-                            NEV      HAW      HAW      NEV       HAW
UWGB /East Tennessee St 6a ESPN2-         ETSU    ETSU      ETSU     ETSU     UWGB
Steven F Austin/N. Iowa 8a ESPN2-             SFA       NIWA     SFA        NIWA    SFA
Valparaiso/Rhode Island 10a ESPN2-           RI          VALPO   RI           VALPO  RI
Alabama/Dayton 1:00 ESPN-                        DAY     DAY        BAMA   BAMA   BAMA
Colorado/Auburn 3:00 ESPN-                       COLO   AUB       COLO     COLO    COLO
Oklahoma/Memphis 5:00 ESPN-                  MEM     OKL       OKL        OKL      OKL
Kentucky/Duke 7:30 ESPN-                         DUKE   DUKE     DUKE     DUKE   DUKE
Georgetown/Maryland 9:00 ESPN2-            MARY  MARY    GTWN    MARY  MARY
Kansas/Michigan State 10:00 ESPN-           MSU      MSU       MSU       MSU      MSU
***TIE BREAKERS***
Harvard/UMASS 7:00                                  HARV   UMASS  HARV    HARV    HARV
La Salle/Rider 7:00                                       LAS      LAS         LAS        RID        LAS

So I will be tweeting thoughts and other tidbits not only for you pleasure, but to also keep me awake so refer back to this article to also check in on our pick standings. Hopefully you all enjoy the College Hoops Tip Off Marathon as much as I do, I already know that I will be watching these along with other games. Thankfully there is the ability to stream 4 games at a time on the WatchESPN app. Enjoy your marathon everyone. Also, if you need some reading material before the Michigan State game tomorrow night, check out all of the work the isportsMSU team has done at isportsmsu.com. My latest article on Gavin Schilling and Alvin Ellis is here.

Terrible Ten 10/29

Last Week Recap: I picked New Mexico State to defeat Troy, and I was not even close. The Aggies lost by 45 points, and their ranking in this poll is reflected below as a result. Texas State defeated South Alabama and Troy defeated NMSU, and so they got to the two win plateau and are off of the list. 13 teams remain in the 1 win or less threshold, and Kansas, New Mexico State, North Texas and UCF are still without a win on the season. Without further ado, here is this week's terrible ten:

TERRIBLE TEN (Last Result) (LW Rank)
10- SMU 1-6 (Loss to USF by 24) (NR)
9-FAU 1-6 (Loss to UTEP by 10) (9)
8-Wyoming 1-7 (Loss to Boise State by 20) (8)
7-Miami OH 1-7 (Loss to Western MI by 22) (7)
6-Eastern MI 1-7 (Loss to Northern Illinois by 28) (6)
5-UL Monroe 1-6 (Loss to Idaho by 14) (4)
4-Kansas 0-7 (Loss to Oklahoma St by 48) (5)
3-North Texas 0-7 (Loss to Marshall by 17) (1)
2-UCF 0-8 (Loss to Houston by 49) (3)
1-New Mexico State (Loss to Troy by 45) (2)

Other one win teams not ranked: UTSA, Purdue, UMASS

Predictions Current Record to date (16-3):
SMU v Tulsa-The teams are 1-9 in their combined last 10 games, but SMU lost to JMU, so Tulsa.
FAU v FIU-The Shula Bowl, I will TAKE FAU in the rivalry game at home to get off my list.
Wyoming @ Utah State- Friday night 10:15. Ill take Utah State, the 28pt favorite at home.
Miami OH v Buffalo-Thursday night MACtion, which is always wild. Ill TAKE MIAMI at home.
Eastern MI v Western MI-Another MACtion tonight, EMU allows 45ppg, look for that tonight again.
UL Monroe @ UL-Lafayette-UL Monroe is 1-10 on the road the last 2Y, don't expect change.
Kansas v Oklahoma-Oklahoma is #14 in the polls, Kansas may get to 14 points. Oklahoma big.
North Texas v UTSA-Both teams are on the 13 team list, check below for the prediction.
UCF @ Cincinnati-It doesn't matter who plays QB at Cincy this week, UCF's coach just retired.
New Mexico State v Idaho- The Vandals spent time on the list, but NMSU is awful. Idaho wins.

Turn off the TV Battle- This week the UTSA Roadrunners, who just got out of the Terrible Ten by simply having a bye week last week, travels to Denton to take on the North Texas Mean Green who also moved 2 spots in the right direction by losing by only 17 points. Even though UTSA only has 1 more win than North Texas, the results are glaringly different. North Texas' closest loss is to Rice by 14, and have lost by almost 31 points per game. UTSA however, has had three losses decided by 10 points or less, so they are much closer to being successful this year. Larry Coker will lead his UTSA Roadrunners to a victory in Denton Saturday against a North Texas team that is improving but is reeling to find a new coach and turn this mess around.

By the way, in case you did not know I took a job to write for isportsweb. I will write about the baseball, basketball and football teams at Michigan State University. I will continue this blog sparingly but also go to isportsmsu.com to check out my other work. My latest article is http://isportsweb.com/2015/10/29/michigan-state-basketball-matt-van-dyk-player-profile/ to read my latest article on Matt Van Dyk.

Top Finishes/ MSU 10/24 Preview

After the greatest block punt return in college football history, and one of the single greatest finishes in the history of the game (see my rankings below), the Michigan State Spartans return to East Lansing to take on the Indiana Hoosiers. The Hoosiers are victim to the other side of the emotional rollercoaster, allowing 28 consecutive points to lose 55-52 to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. My breakdown for the Old Brass Spittoon, which MSU leads the all time series 44-15-2:

QB- This is a matchup of two of the most prolific passers in the Big Ten. Connor Cook is 30-3 as a starter, and has thrown 13TD-2INT. He is averaging 239 yards per game, and is coming off a game in which he threw for 328 and should have had more. Indiana's Nate Sudfeld leads the Big Ten in QBR, and averages 290 yards per contest. He was injured in the Ohio State game and missed the Penn State game also, so his numbers should be even better. EDGE: MSU, just because Cook is for sure healthy.

RB-Michigan State was held to 58 yards rushing last week, but LJ Scott did rush for 2 touchdowns. Madre London's health is still an issue, and the offensive line shuffling has obviously hindered the MSU running game. For Indiana, they have Jordan Howard who led the FBS in rushing yards until he got injured against Ohio State, but he is expected to return strong. If he isn't able to play, Devine Redding has 7 rushing touchdowns on the year and is a proven runner. EDGE: IU

WR- It is a battle of the Big Ten's top WRs as Michigan State's Aaron Burbridge, the Big Ten leader with 702 yards goes up against IU's Ricky Jones who has the next highest total with 624. Macgarret Kings Jr. has been impressive the last two weeks, even though he had a huge drop at Michigan last week. MSU also looks for the return of Josiah Price, who has played limited action the past month. Simmie Cobbs Jr and Mitchell Paige are also top 15 in the Big Ten in yards for IU. EDGE: Even

OL- Michigan State has had all sorts of different OL combinations but Connor Cook has been sacked only 7 times, and the offensive line looks for the return of Jack Allen this week. Meanwhile, a healthy IU line has allowed their QB's to be sacked 7 times also. A healthy MSU line would be triumphant, but the injury question marks are still prevalent. EDGE: Even

Defense: Michigan State has defensive injuries galore. They started Grayson Miller and Khari Willis, both true freshman at safety last week and they both are great tacklers so they performed excellent against the run heavy Wolverines. They will be tested tremendously against a potent IU offense that had 627 total yards of offense, including 464 in the air. The front 7 got home to sack Jake Rudock 3 times last week, and held De'Veon Smith and the rushing attack to 62 yards. Meanwhile, Indiana does not have a defense. They have allowed 600 yards to Rutgers, 450 to Penn State and 525 to Ohio State so far in Big Ten play, so expect the Spartans to be able to do whatever they desire. EDGE: MSU

Special Teams: The Spartans obviously had the special teams play of the year last week, but Jalen Watts-Jackson is out for the year, and other than that play, Michigan had totally dominated the special teams game. Meanwhile, Mitchell Paige for IU did return a punt 91 yards for a score earlier in the year, so the field possession could be swung in IU's favor often if the MSU punt team does not improve from last week. EDGE: IU

Intangibles: The Spartans have won 6 in a row in this rivalry, and 11 overall games in a row. Riding an emotional high from last week, compared to the Hoosiers emotional low will be an interesting factor. With both teams having explosive offenses, scores should come a plenty and neither team can avoid a hangover from last week. I expect Mark Dantonio to have the Spartans focused and ready, and unfortunately for Kevin Wilson his 4-0 start will become 4-4. PREDICTION: MSU 48 IU 34

TOP SINGLE PLAY FINISHES:
In honor of Jalen Watts-Jackson's legendary finish last week at the Big House, I decided to rank the top end of game plays in NCAA history. I decided that the team had to win the game for it to be considered, so I am sorry Central Michigan even though this was awesome. Without further ado, here is the top 10.

10-Trinity College One of the best lateral plays you've never seen.
9-The Kick is Blocked!One of College Football's Greatest Upsets Ever
8-Little Giants-Coach D with one of the great fake FG calls
7-Doug Flutie Remarkable throw, but overplayed in NCAA lore..
6-Bluegrass Miracle- This is why you never Gatorade shower your coach with 11 seconds left..
5-Miracle at Michigan- Kordell Stewart and Colorado..the Original Miracle at Michigan
4-Statue of Liberty- Boise State wins one for the little guy
3-The Kick Six Auburn/Alabama 109 Yards, to win the SEC West
2- Michigan State/Michigan Jalen Watts-Jackson, the new found hero
1- Stanford/ Cal: The Band is on the Field...

Look back this weekend for an MSU recap and other sports surprises. On a last side note, a shoutout to the MSU Volleyball team for upsetting #6 Ohio State at home in straight sets last night, they are only one game back in the Big Ten and host #5 Penn State Saturday night.

College Football Terrible Ten 10/20

Last Week's Recap: I picked Fresno State to defeat UNLV and get off of my list, and if you went to bed like a normal person Friday night you missed a great 17 point comeback that lead to the Fresno State Bulldogs getting the win number 2 of the season, officially eliminating them from the chase of worst football team in the FBS. Idaho defeated Troy in last week's "Turn off the TV Battle" so they also are off of the list. Georgia State defeated Ball State, Virginia defeated Syracuse and Army defeated Bucknell putting all 3 teams at the 2 win plateau. The only other team to win was Wyoming, who defeated Nevada for their first win of the season, however they still remain on this shameful list. 15 teams remain, 4 of them have zero wins . Here is this week's Terrible Ten, and my predictions for their games.

TERRIBLE TEN (Last Result) (Last Week's Rank):

10-UTSA 1-6 (Lost to Southern Miss by 22) (10)
9-Florida Atlantic 1-5 (Lost to Marshall by 16) (NR)
8-Wyoming 1-6 (Win over Nevada) (3)
7-Miami Ohio 1-6 (Lost to Northern Illinois by 33) (8)
6-Eastern Michigan 1-6 (Lost to Toledo by 43) (9)
5-Kansas 0-6 (Lost to Texas Tech by 10) (6)
4-UL Monroe 1-5 (Lost to Appalachian State by 45) (NR)
3-UCF 0-7 (Lost to Temple by 14) (5)
2-New Mexico State 0-6 (Lost to Georgia Southern by 30) (2)
1-North Texas 0-6(Lost to WKU by 27) (1)

Other 1 win teams not ranked: Purdue, SMU, Texas State, Troy, Massachusetts

Predictions:
UTSA is idle this week.
Florida Atlantic @ UTEP: I call for FAU, a 6.5pt favorite to win this week against the Miners.
Wyoming @ Boise: Boise State on the blue turf is a 35 point favorite, and easily defeats Wyoming.
Miami Ohio @ Western MI: WMU looked good against MSU/Ohio State, Miami is an easy W.
Eastern MI @ Northern Ill: EMU hasn't won a road MAC game since 2012, this wont change this wk
Kansas @ Oklahoma St: Another tough road Big Twelve game for Kansas, another blowout loss.
UL Monroe @ Idaho: The Kibbie Dome is not intimidating, but Idaho will get a home win over ULM
UCF v Houston: Houston has a zero in their record, the loss column. Expect #21 Houston in a big W
New Mexico State v Troy: Look at Turn off TV Battle below for prediction.
North Texas @ Marshall: No Rakeem Cato, but Marshall beat Purdue and is 6-1, should beat NT.

This week's Turn off the TV Battle involves Troy yet again, as the 1-5 Trojans, fresh off a loss in this game will travel to Las Cruces to play the 0-6 New Mexico State Aggies (2). Troy is coming off the tough loss to the Vandals last week, and New Mexico State is coming off a loss to the reigning Sun Belt Champions. New Mexico State has averaged 33.5 points on everyone not named Florida and Ole Miss, and for this reason and the fact they are at home, I will take the Aggies to earn win number 1, snapping a 16 game streak dating back to last year.

There will be an another post later this week previewing MSU and Indiana, and will include another new weekly ranking that hopefully everyone will enjoy. Thanks for all of the immediate support and following I gained rather quickly in this new blog, it makes it a lot more fun to write.

Michigan/Michigan State Thoughts

Michigan/ Michigan State
What an incredible night at Michigan Stadium. On Friday, I was watching old highlights of top moments in the Paul Bunyan rivalry, whether it was Desmond's dropped 2 point conversion in 1990, TJ Duckett scoring at the last second in 2001, Michigan's 3OT win in 2005, Michigan's 17 point comeback in 2007 (Little Brother game), or any of the recent victories by the Spartans, just to pump myself up even more for the trip to Ann Arbor Saturday. Little did I know that I was going to witness perhaps the best finish to any game in the rivalry, and one of the best finishing plays in college football history. For those who did not see the game, the game was a very typical MSU/UM game with the teams trying to grind out yards on the ground, but neither team could quite do that successfully (Michigan led with 62 yards). 

The Wolverines took advantage of poor MSU special teams play, including a failed fake punt, shanked punts, and poor kick/punt coverage to keep themselves in front all game long. When Connor Cook's pass fell incomplete with just about 2 minutes left, the stadium went into absolute pandemonium, because everyone thought they had finally gotten the win that put them back into relevancy. All they needed was one first down to put the Spartans away. 

Facing a fourth and 2, the Wolverines elected to call a timeout and sent the punting unit out there. When the Spartans had 11 guys on the line, all gunning to block the punt, Blake O'Neill simply had to get the punt off and they would win. 

One thought for an improvement on Jim Harbaugh's side, why didn't he move the gunners in and give the punter more blockers? They didn't need to go down the ball or cover a returner because with nobody out there it was going to be game over. 

However, the Spartans rushed through the line and as O'Neill muffed the punt, Jalen Watts-Jackson fielded the ball and took it 37 yards for the win. Now I don't believe in the ESPN FPI (it is very inaccurate) but they had MSU's win probability at 0.2% before that play, and the Spartans had not lead for a single second in this game, but as the guy two rows below me said "all that matters is the top line of the stat sheet" MSU 27 UM 23. 

The reaction in Michigan Stadium was stunning. There was no announcement by the PA that MSU scored a touchdown. No replay shown on the jumbotron. Everyone just sat there in disbelief or grabbed their stuff and left silently. Well, except the Spartan fans. After having our band drowned out by the stadium music all day, and being very vastly outnumbered, Spartan Nation went crazy and to be completely honest I had no idea how to handle myself. There was a 70 year old woman sitting next to me. She was a State fan, the only one in my section, and she immediately started hugging me and we were screaming and yelling. Clapping along to the fight song, watching Paul Bunyan getting carried around by the Spartan players in a dead silent Michigan Stadium was such a great feeling. 

The only downside to yesterday is that Jalen Watts-Jackson, the hero and new Spartan Legend, was injured and will have to undergo surgery and miss the rest of the season. A prayer goes out to him that the surgery goes well, and he can play again healthy next year.

Final Quick Thoughts

1) I absolutely loved the throw to Pendleton. Playing in the wishbone my whole life, I love when they reward the fullback and to see the big fella rumble for 74 yards was great.

2) Jabril Peppers is a freak athlete. He makes a few mistakes in coverage, but his athleticism gives him a chance on every play, and his potential threat offensively and in the special teams game may be a scary development over the next few years.

3) To my section usher who threw a hot dog wrapper at me, I am glad you really do your job to make sure that the fans enjoy the game, I really enjoyed that while celebrating the victory. Classless.

4) The call helped MSU, but I think the targeting rule is ludicrous. As my friend at Michigan Nick Grygiel put it, "it's like communism, great in theory but terrible when put into action." The rule has a great purpose, but after losing Chris Frey last year, Bullough against AFA and they lost Bolden this year, it just takes the best players out of the game too often.

5) This win shows the strength of MSU as a program because despite all of the injuries, and setbacks, we have pushed through and gotten to 7-0 and are still control our ultimate destiny and have a chance to achieve our goals of a Big Ten championship, and the trip to the CFP. The Spartans just cannot afford a setback due to emotional hangover against IU next week.

Look for an update on the Terrible Ten and other things this week, GO GREEN.

Top Big Ten Rivalry Trophies/MSU 10/17 Preview

The greatest week of the football season for Michigan State fans is finally here once again. "Little Brother" finally gets another chance to assert his dominance. For the first time in 3 years, the Spartans will be traveling to Ann Arbor to take on the team from Ann Arbor. Despite being ranked higher, the 7th ranked Spartans are the 7.5 underdog. This is another example that preseason rankings are very pointless because at this point MSU has had injuries and close calls, while Michigan has shutout their last 3 opponents. This will be the first game vs Michigan State for "college football god" Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh has to overcome the curse that has fallen on Michigan coaches in their debuts against the Spartans. The last 6 head coaches lost their debut games against the Spartans. Without further ado, here is the game breakdown.

QB: Connor Cook is 29-3 as a starter and has a tendency to show up huge in big games. The Spartans will need him to show up big time to counter the Michigan front 7 shutting the run game down. On the other side, Jake Rudock has 8 turnovers but has became an effective game manager for the Wolverines. EDGE: MSU

RB: The Spartans have had three previously unproven RBs take the bulk of the carries this year, with redshirt freshman Gerald Holmes and true freshman Madre London and LJ Scott. With health concerns for London and Scott, expect Delton Williams to have to contribute this week too. Michigan has had a relatively easy time running the ball this season with a speed/power combo of De'Veon Smith and Ty Isaac. EDGE: UM

WR/TE: Michigan State's Aaron Burbridge is coming off of a career game against Rutgers, and has put up solid numbers all year. The Spartans expect to get Josiah Price back, who when healthy has a 5 game TD streak with Connor Cook. Also, Macgarret Kings Jr. and RJ Shelton can provide speed on the edge for the Spartans. The Wolverines have Amarah Darboh and Jake Butt as consistent recievers but I just see Rudock's throwing struggles giving MSU the edge. EDGE: MSU

OL: The Spartans have a better OL, but the injury bug has been brutal. EVEN

DEFENSE: The Spartans have had a top 10 defense the past 3 seasons, but right now with a lot of secondary injuries, there is a lot of pressure on Shilique Calhoun and the front 7 to get home early and often against Rudock to slow down the Wolverine passing attack. Michigan has the top 10 defense this year, allowing only 181.3 yards per game. Jordan Lewis has emerged as one of the top DBs in America. EDGE: UM

SPECIAL TEAMS: Wow, has MSU even fielded a special teams unit this season? Blocked field goals, blocked punts, missed field goals, kicks out of bounds, kick return and punt return TDs, the Spartans have had one of America's worst special teams units this season. We don't even need analysis on UM's special teams other than Chesson took a kick back last week, so don't be surprised if it happens again against this MSU kick unit, assuming the kick stays in bounds. EDGE: UM

COACHING/INTAGIBLES: MSU's Mark Dantonio has been remarkably successful at MSU posting a 6-2 record against Michigan, and has won 2 Big Ten Titles, and 2 BCS bowls. Jim Harbaugh has turned things around matching last years win total already, but no big game wins yet at UM. Michigan State can yet again play with chip on shoulder mentality they love. EDGE: MSU

PREDICTION: 42 of last 45 winners have won the rushing battle, but I don't expect that to happen this season. MSU will struggle to run the ball, a depleted OL and injured RB going against a strong front 7 could put this whole game on the shoulders of Connor Cook. A 29-3 5th year starter, Cook is definitely ready to carry the Spartans much like he did last week with 367 passing yards. As long as Cook can avoid turnovers, I see the Paul Bunyan staying in EL for another year, but in one of the all time great games of the rivalry. MSU 28 UM 24

TOP TEN BIG TEN RIVALRY TROPHIES
With the Paul Bunyan Trophy on the line, the Big Ten's best rivalry trophy, I decided I would rank the top 10 trophies fought for in the Big Ten Conference. (Link for photo/history)

10- Old Oaken Bucket (Purdue/Indiana) Perhaps better if the game was ever meaningful.
9- Old Brass Spittoon (MSU/Indiana) A really random trophy, hardly a rivalry lately.
8- $5 Bits of Broken Chair (Minnesota/Nebraska) A product of social media, great read.
7- Little Brown Jug (Michigan/Minnesota) The most regularly exchanged rivalry trophy in NCAA.
6- Heartland Trophy (Iowa/Wisconsin) Iowa plays for a pig/bull...only in the Midwest.
5- Floyd of Rosedale (Iowa/Minnesota) It's ranked above the bull because it is the original animal.
4- Illibuck (Ohio State/Illinois) It's too bad they don't play for a real turtle anymore.
3- Land of Lincoln (NW/Illinois) A new trophy, but what's cooler than Lincoln's hat?
2-Paul Bunyan Axe/Slab of Bacon (Wisconsin/Minnesota) A slab of bacon and a giant axe? Yes.
1-Paul Bunyan Trophy (MSU/Michigan) Only thing better than his axe? 5ft Paul Bunyan himself.