Senior day festivities are always an emotional time, whether it is at the high school or college level. It can also serve as a distraction.

I don't expect MSU to be distracted Saturday. The goal of playing in a New Year's Day bowl is firmly in sight, and Rutgers stands in their way.

I expect New Jersey native Shilique Calhoun to play well against his hometown team, and for seniors Jeremy Langford and Nick Hill to be effective running the ball in weather that would be considered less than optimal. 

Quarterback Gary Nova for Rutgers does present a running threat, which has hurt MSU when they played Oregon and Ohio State. Of course it didn't seem to matter that C.J. Brown was mobile against Maryland when MSU's defense dominated.

I think Nova will fall more into the category of Brown and be less of a Marcus Mariota or Braxton Miller type. Nova has also struggled with consistency during his time at Rutgers, so look for MSU to take advantage of turnover opportunities when they present themselves. MSU-40 Rutgers-19

Bondy’s Bets

What can I say about this week’s matchup against Rutgers? It’s senior day, so there’s that. But if you take that away, this game is an extremely dry matchup.

No. 10 MSU enters the matchup favored by 22 points and I see that simply not being enough this week. Rutgers is bowl eligible, but who have they beaten? They’re 2-4 in Big Ten play with their two wins coming against Michigan and Indiana. Outside of that the Scarlet Knights have victories against Washington State, Howard, Tulane and Navy.

So with all that being said, this one is going to be a blowout. It’s going to be cold outside so expect MSU to establish the run on the ground, with senior running back Jeremy Langford rushing for nearly 150 yards in his final game in Spartan Stadium.

The Spartan defense will put fierce pressure on Rutgers senior quarterback Gary Nova and force three interceptions out of the inconsistent Scarlet Knight signal caller. That’s three too many turnovers Rutgers can afford to pull off this upset. MSU-38 Rutgers-13