Nothing easy for Indiana football against Michigan State in Week 11

Just one week after battling Ohio State in Columbus, Indiana football travels to East Lansing to take on the Michigan State Spartans in Week 11. The Hoosiers battled the Spartans in 2021, losing 20-15 in Bloomington, coming up just short against then-ranked #10 Michigan State. Indiana football has lost seven of its last eight matchups in East Lansing and will be facing a likely top 25 team in the Spartans when Week 11 rolls around.

Examining Indiana football facing the Michigan State Spartans in Week 11:

Opponent: Michigan State Spartans
Date/Time: Saturday, November 19th at TBD
TV: TBD
Location: Spartan Stadium – East Lansing, Michigan
All-time Head-to-Head Record: 15-50-2 (.239)

Offensive Key Player(s)

Jayden Reed – #1 – WR

Reed might be the most explosive player in college football, as he’s shown his abilities to return punts to the house and make exciting plays at wide receiver. Reed seems to be in line to be WR1 for Payton Thorne and the Spartans in 2022, especially after leading the team in receptions (59) and receiving yards (1,026) in 2021.

The Western Michigan transfer is entering his third year with the Spartans and, despite being held to just four receptions and 70 yards against Indiana football last season, Reed should be the primary focus for the Hoosiers’ secondary as he is a big play waiting to happen on every snap.

Payton Thorne – #10 – QB

Talk about an underrated player in the Big Ten, Payton Thorne ranked in the top five among Big Ten quarterbacks in passing yards (3,232), pass completions (235), passing yards per attempt (8.3), and passing touchdowns (27) in 2021. Even with a dominant running back like Kenneth Walker II, who stole the show most of the time last season, Thorne impressed and threw the most touchdown passes in school history in a single season, passing Kirk Cousins, who threw for 25 touchdowns in 2011.

The Naperville, Illinois native comes into this season looking to drive up his draft stock and prove that he doesn’t need a dominant running back to flourish on the offensive side of the ball. Watch out for many games like this (below) for Thorne this season:

Defensive Key Player(s)

Xavier Henderson – #3 – S

Henderson finished the 2021 season tied for the most tackles (96) on the team and second-most tackles for loss (10.0) on the team. The senior is going to be the leader of the defense for the Spartans and will always make the smart play. Against Indiana football in his career, Henderson has 18 total tackles and 1.0 tackle for loss in four games played, but has played a larger role around the field in each of those games.

Overall Outlook

Look for the Hoosiers to come in after a big loss against top-ranked Ohio State in Week 10 and trying to upset a Michigan State football program that has high hopes for this season. I don’t give Indiana football and Tom Allen a chance in this game on the road, but you never know what the Hoosiers have in store for the end of the 2022 season. This game will be riding on what happens early on in the season for Indiana.