MSU Spartans (4-4/2-3) vs Illinois Fighting Illini (5-4/3-3)
Spartan Stadium
East Lansing, MI.  3:30 pm ET.
November 9, 2019

Weather: 41 partly cloudy.  Winds: 11 ssw.

Vegas Line:  MSU by 14-1/2 (yes, they are smoking crack in Sin City)
Sagarin Ratings: MSU #23, Illinois #77 (Jeff Sagarin in high on the pipe, too)

A mantra of football is that your team is supposed to get better as the season goes along.  That certainly is happening with Illinois; but the Spartans are going in the complete opposite direction, dropping like a rock.

Bum Phillips gave the ultimate compliment to good coaching: 

"He can beat his'n with your'n.  And he can beat your'n with his'n."

The one and only Bum Phillips, telling it like it is

Well, Bum certainly was not talking about coach Dantonio, who can't beat anyone with anyone's talent.  It has been a very disappointing season of playcalling on both sides of the ball, missed assignments, lack of a pass rush, dropped passes, poor quarterbacking.

Expect that to continue today vs the Illini:  until things fundamentally change, don't expect any Spartan improvement.  FYI: Illinois beat Wisconsin.  MSU lost to Wisconsin, 38-0.  'Nuff said.

Prognostications:

CHock:  MSU 12-10
Keith: MSU loses
Big Bob:  ILL 17-10
Sloth: 40,000 empty seats, and a lot of boos. 27-6, tRed Granges.
RGM3: 27-10 MSU. We somehow cover.
Big Joe and Phantom 309: 14-6. The defense remains stout and the offense manages to score one TD.
GVSU Gregger: MSU 21-17
Queen Kat:  MSU 17-10

ES sez:  Illinois 21, MSU 17.