Oregon Ducks vs. Michigan State Spartans: 2024 summer preview and prediction

It's a little early, but let's start previewing the Michigan State Spartans and let's make some predictions for what the Ducks can accomplish this season.
Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith looks on during the Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.
Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith looks on during the Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
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In the first season of Big Ten football for Dan Lanning’s Oregon Ducks football team, the Michigan State Spartans (a traditional member of the Big Ten) will be leaving East Lansing to compete against the Oregon Ducks in Autzen Stadium.

It may not be the most highly anticipated Big Ten matchup ever as one of these programs is currently in much better shape than the other, but it’s the first Big Ten conference home game for Oregon. So, there is a bit of intrigue and history being made with this contest.

Oregon football vs. Michigan State historical context

So far, up to this point in time, the Ducks and Spartans actually haven’t met more than a couple handfuls of times. The Ducks and Spartans met only seven times prior to their current matchup. Thankfully, Oregon has managed to win four times to put the Ducks ahead in this all time series. 

The first time the Ducks and Spartans faced each other was back in 1979 as the Spartans were able to claim a 41-17 victory over Oregon. But, after that, the Ducks got a bit of revenge as they took down the Spartans 35-7 in Eugene. 

In 1998 and 1999, the two teams got back together to face off, but once again they ended up splitting the home games. The most recent on-campus meetings happened back in 2014 and 2015 and each team managed to defend their home turf once more.

Current Program Trajectories: Ducks Soaring, Spartans Rebuilding

The Ducks enter the 2024 Oregon football season with much higher aspirations than the Michigan State Spartans. Oregon enters this contest with national title aspirations with Dan Lanning at the helm. They’re looking at building upon the momentum they have as a program to finally break through at the highest level. We’ll see if Oregon is at that point just yet, but the Ducks have a high-powered offense and an improved defense. 

On the other hand, Michigan Stats is still in a period of transition. After the abrupt way the Mel Tucker era ended, the Spartans hired Jonathan Smith away from Oregon State and has a unique chance to lead their program towards some wins moving forward. 

Game Preview and Prediction

We’re getting a primetime Friday matchup. While it isn’t exactly the sort of time that will allow for everyone out on the East Coast and in Central Time Zones to be something that enables them to go and watch the full game, folks out on the West Coast won’t have that issue.

And this primetime Friday night game at Autzen will present a great opportunity for Oregon to demonstrate just how good the Ducks are on a national stage. With a high-octane offense led by folks like Dillon Gabriel and Tez Johnson, we’ll likely see a Michigan State defense that has been inconsistent in recent years truly struggle in this one. 

Score Prediction: Oregon Ducks 45, Michigan State Spartans 17

More than likely, this game will result in the Ducks’ offensive firepower and improved defense thriving in a way that Michigan State just isn’t quite ready for at this point in time. Expect a lot of points in a hurry in this one.