It's a de facto quarterfinal and an awesome prequel to the upcoming College Football Playoff. The Big Ten Championship Game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Iowa Hawkeyes will see two teams fight it out for just one spot in the playoff and the right to win a conference which was just downright zany all year long.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Michigan State Spartans -3
Iowa Hawkeyes +3
Over/Under 52.5
ODDS ANALYSIS
It's still early in the week as of the publication of this article, but all signs point to Michigan State getting the attention of the betting public. The Spartans opened up at -3 and have since risen to -3.5 with over 70 percent of the betting action on their side.
The total has held firm over the course of the first 24 hours of betting at 52.5.
WHEN THE MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS HAVE THE BALL
Connor Cook might legitimately be the only thing that separates these two teams. These defenses are both ferocious, and the offenses both have great ground games, but Cook is the reason why this team is still here fighting for its life in the playoff.
Cook is excellent against the blitz and sturdy when he isn't under pressure. His completion percentage isn't great, but what you need to know is that he's averaging nearly 14 yards every time he completes a pass. Aaron Burbridge is the man who really has to stay involved. If you're not hearing No. 16 all that often, Michigan State could be stagnant offensively, and that could be the cue to live bet against it.
Burbridge had a combined seven catches for 89 yards against Ohio State and Maryland. In a related story, the MSU offense tallied a total of just 41 points in those games. Burbridge also had just one catch for nine yards in a dismal 24-point effort against Purdue and four catches for 31 yards while helping Sparty score 30 against Central Michigan.
In all other games, Burbridge has averaged 127.4 receiving yards per game, and the Spartans have averaged 38.3 points per game.
WHEN THE IOWA HAWKEYES HAVE THE BALL
Iowa isn't going to be all fancy with its offense, but this is a team which takes care of the football and does its job. That's about all you can ask out of an offense which probably doesn't have a single NFL player on it.
The Hawkeyes have gotten just enough production this year from C.J. Beathard, who has just three picks on 303 throws.
The wide receivers aren't great. The running backs are good, yet not spectacular, particularly behind Jordan Canzeri. But what the Hawkeyes do is just consistently pound you and move the ball, albeit often just a few yards at a time.
Michigan State has to create negative plays. If the Spartans are getting into the backfield and causing problems for Beathard and Canzeri, this could be the beginning of the end for a team which hasn't faced a defense anywhere near this good all season long.
That said, Iowa has been magical at times, and it would be foolish to count this team out of any situation, even if it's way behind. The Hawkeyes have already won five games this year decided by a single score, and though MSU has been known as the team full of miracles this season, live bettors should remember that Iowa has gone through the whole gamut without a blunder, unlike Sparty.
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The matchup between the Michigan State Spartans and Iowa Hawkeyes will take place Saturday, December 5, 2015 at 8:00 p.m. ET at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Big Ten Championship Game will be televised nationally on FOX.
