Michigan State vs Indiana: Which Underdog Will Shake Up the Big Ten in Week 8?

Is it already time to switch gears from fall gridiron to winter hardwood? That question’s been echoing louder than a Spartan cheer, especially when Michigan State takes on Indiana for the Old Brass Spittoon — a trophy that’s usually headed to a team not clad in green and white. Lately though, the Spartans have been stumbling through a tough patch, scraped raw by three consecutive Big Ten defeats, with the last one against UCLA stinging more than a wasp’s nest. You can bet there’s a part of East Lansing dreaming of Tom Izzo guiding their team onto the court rather than Jonathan Smith calling plays on the turf. Meanwhile, Indiana, flush with a hefty $93 million deal for their coach, seems firmly planted in football’s fast lane, lighting up scoreboards like it’s March Madness all over again. The matchup looms not just as a battle for a trophy but as a crossroads where persistence meets powerhouse — will the Spartans find a spark or will the Hoosiers keep rolling? Let’s dive into the showdown and see whose story will headline. LEARN MORE

Is it basketball season yet?

That’s usually what we’re hearing from at least one fanbase when Michigan State football and Indiana face off for the Old Brass Spittoon — and it’s usually not the one wearing green and white.

But after three straight Big Ten losses — with the last one an especially dispiriting affair against UCLA (really, them?) — the Spartans have to be wishing Tom Izzo was leading his squad onto the court, rather than Jonathan Smith on the grass.

Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith, left, talks with Indiana's head coach Curt Cignetti before the game on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.

The Hoosiers, meanwhile, can put off hoops season for a bit longer, they seem to think. Handing your football coach $93 million (over eight years) sure makes you a football school, or at least one cosplaying as one for as long as you can run up 40 points a game. (Are we sure we’re not talking about hoops?)

Will Indiana cover the 27½-point spread — and, look, we’ve seen years the Hoosiers didn’t score 27 points in Big Ten play over the full season — and further turn MSU eyes toward Izzo (but not as football coach, we promise), or will the Spartans pull off one of the biggest upsets of the season? Four Free Press sports writers have some thoughts:

Chris Solari

Between the injury issues and the growing calls for change from outside the program, it’s hard to see the Spartans taking a step forward against their toughest opponent to date – and maybe all season. Curt Cignetti likes to hang big numbers on the scoreboard and show little mercy, sending wounded and fragile MSU into next week’s rivalry game against Michigan with Smith’s future in significant peril. The pick: Indiana 48, MSU 6.

Carlos Monarrez

The third-ranked Hoosiers just knocked off Oregon … in Oregon. Meanwhile, Jonathan Smith’s chances to win one more game and keep his job seem to be running out. The Spartans’ defense looks like it has no answer, which means Hoosiers QB Fernando Mendoza will probably cook someone else’s spread again this week. The pick: Indiana 52, MSU 13.

Jeff Seidel

Indiana might just be the best team in the country, at least, based on their résumé. The Hoosiers went out to Oregon and looked like a serious national contender. I have a feeling Indiana is gonna go for style points in this one, unafraid to run it up. Because all Indiana coach Curt Cignetti does is win. Yep, I Googled it. The pick: Indiana 48, MSU 10.

Shawn Windsor

Maybe the Spartans keep it close for a moment after their dispiriting performance against UCLA. Maybe the boos motivate them. Maybe the Hoosiers overlook them. Imagine that? Even saying that? But this is where Indiana football is after knocking off Oregon, and this is the gulf between these programs, where one coach is the toast of the sport for his quick turnaround, and the other coach — hired at the same time — is fighting for his job. The pick: Indiana 37, MSU 13.