Michigan State Spartans @ Florida Atlantic Owls Football Preview

Unofficially, this Saturday’s game is an opportunity for Michigan State to get better as Big Ten play approaches. Yet, it is indeed worth looking back at the last time Michigan State played Florida Atlantic on the gridiron.

In 2008, MSU hosted Florida Atlantic on the Spartans’ campus in East Lansing. The weather was rainy and the field quickly turned into a swamp, but Michigan State star running back Javon Ringer posted a career-high 282 rushing yards and scored two touchdowns to carry Sparty 17-0 win that was far more ugly and precarious than the final score suggested.

The MSU lead was just 7-0 after two and a half quarters, and had Florida Atlantic made just a handful of plays on offense, the event could have been a nail-biter heading into crunch time.

FAU marched to the Michigan State 26 in the first quarter and scored nothing. The Owls later penetrated the Spartans’ red zone and botched the hold on a 24-yard field-goal attempt. A third drive reached the MSU 32, but FAU quarterback Rusty Smith fumbled on second-and-five. Later, when trailing 17-0 midway through the fourth quarter, Smith couldn't handle a snap inside the Michigan State 5-yard line. The fumble was recovered by Sparty and the nightmare was complete for FAU.

Smith was 8-for-34 for 143 yards. Michigan State quarterback Brian Hoyer completed 5-of-15 passes for a paltry 88 yards with an interception. Anyone could have won the game; FAU simply imploded more in Michigan State’s own third of the field.

Now, let’s turn our attention to this week’s reunion between the two schools. Michigan State ran for 297 yards in a 38-14 win over Western Michigan in its 2010 opener.  Running backs Le’Veon Bell and Edwin Baker combined for 260 yards and four touchdowns.  Kirk Cousins completed 13 of 21 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown despite the windy conditions.

The Spartans’ running game should be cranked up again this week when Michigan State takes on Florida Atlantic at Ford Field in Detroit.  Last week, FAU gave up 345 rushing yards in a 32-31 win over UAB.

The Owls debuted a brand-new offensive line last week, and that could be trouble against a deep, talented Michigan State defensive front.  The Spartans rotate five defensive tackles.

FAU quarterback Jeff Van Camp is a fifth-year senior who is in his first year as a starter after backing up Tennessee Titans draft pick Rusty Smith for most of his career.  Van Camp threw for 254 yards and three touchdowns against UAB.

Michigan State hasn’t played in Detroit since 1944.  This will technically be a home game for FAU, which was unable to host the Spartans because its new stadium is not yet ready.  Given its choice of where to play the game, FAU picked Ford Field.

Some home game.

Then again, Florida Atlantic does have fond memories of the football stadium. The Owls defeated Central Michigan inside that cavernous dome to win the 2008 Motor City Bowl (now known as the Little Ceasars Pizza Bowl), 24-21. Maybe Florida Atlantic has some more Ford Field magic in the bag; after all, very few people expected FAU to win what was a de facto road game against Central Michigan on that late-December night in Motown roughly 21 months ago.

If Florida Atlantic handles the red zone a lot better than it did in East Lansing in 2008, this game could be different. And after all, there won’t be rain this time… not inside a dome.

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