While they don’t deserve to go bowling, there’s a slim chance we could see Michigan State football play in the postseason this year.
The Spartans dropped their final two games of the regular season to finish 5-7, one game short of gaining bowl eligibility. Losing this past Saturday at Penn State was an expected result after Michigan State let a 17-point lead slip away against lousy Indiana the week prior.
Despite not earning six wins, there is an outside chance Michigan State could find itself in a bowl game should it want to accept a bid if offered. At the moment, three unfilled spots (only 79 teams finished 6-6 or better and there are 82 bowl spots) will go to 5-7 teams as determined by the Academic Progress Report (APR) rankings. Michigan State is near the top of that list among the 5-7 teams.
Here’s the relatively unlikely path to a bowl game for Michigan State:
Buffalo loses to Akron
Buffalo will host Akron this week in a game postponed from earlier this month. Buffalo is 5-6, so a victory over the Zips would make it bowl eligible and secure one of the three open spots.
Buffalo is favored by nearly two touchdowns, so a Bulls victory is likely. This game will kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Friday, and can be seen by CBS Sports Network.
NCAA denies New Mexico State bowl waiver
Brett McMurphy of Action Network reported on Monday that New Mexico State has filed a bowl waiver to become bowl eligible at 5-6. Earlier this year, its game with San Jose State was canceled due to a tragic death within the Spartans’ program. New Mexico State is looking to see if the NCAA will grant it a bowl waiver, essentially moving ahead of the 5-7 teams for a bowl bid.
With bowl bids being handed out this week and knowing how slow the NCAA operates, it seems unlikely the Aggies’ waiver will be granted. But I also have truly no idea which way the NCAA will go here, so this is something to keep an eye on throughout the week.
Rice, UNLV and/or Auburn turn down bowl bid
Depending on the results of the Buffalo-Akron matchup and New Mexico State’s bowl waiver bid, there could be as few as one or as many as three bowl spots available for 5-7 teams. Michigan State is fourth behind Rice, UNLV and Auburn (in that order) among those teams. So, if the outcomes break the Spartans’ way, it would only take one of those three teams turning down the bowl bid for Michigan State to have the opportunity to go bowling. If Buffalo wins and New Mexico State is granted its bowl waiver, all three of those teams would need to turn down bids for Michigan State to have the opportunity.
UNLV parted ways with head coach Marcus Arroyo on Monday, but McMurphy is reporting the Rebels would still accept a bowl bid if offered. So if that’s true, it may come down to Auburn, who made their coaching hire this week and could decline a bowl bid to begin looking ahead to the future under head coach Hugh Freeze.
Final Thoughts
When outlining the conditions, it seems unlikely Michigan State will be playing in a bowl game this year. It’s not impossible, but a lot of things would need to break the Spartans’ way AND they’d also need to accept the bowl bid should it be offered to them. I wouldn’t be surprised if Michigan State were to turn down a bowl bid if offered since it has been battling injuries for weeks and may be ready to just move on to the offseason.
So, while there’s still an outside chance that we’ll be getting one more Michigan State game this year, I wouldn’t bank on it. It’s time to turn our focus to the offseason and how Michigan State can get things back on track for next year.
Bowl game matchups will be leaked throughout this week and officially announced by Sunday at the latest. Stay with Spartans Wire for updates throughout the week as more details become available on whether or not Michigan State could end up bowling this year.
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