What: Jacksonville State Gamecocks vs. No. 8 Michigan State Spartans

When: Friday, August 29 at 7:30PM ET

Where: Spartan Stadium (MI), East Lansing, MI

TV Schedule: Big Ten Network

Live Stream: BTN

Where They Stand:
No. 8 Michigan State Spartans (-30.5) (0-0, 0-0 Big Ten)
Jacksonville St. Gamecocks (0-0, 0-0 OVC)

No. 8 Michigan State starts it’s Big Ten defense against the high tempo Jacksonville State and their dangerous offense.

Michigan State comes in with six new starters from their top ranked 2013 defense and coach Mark Dantonio spoke about the challenge of matching and improving on that 2013 unit.

"We had one of the top defenses in America last year with the rules as they are," Dantonio said. "I do think people tend to get hurt when they're tired. But you've got to sub them out and figure out some way to do that.”

"We've got certain guys playing new positions," Dantonio said. "You basically want to see guys bend their knees and play in space and tackle and play the ball in the deep part of the field. There are certain things you can do schematically. Then, it comes down to making plays.”

The Gamecocks of Jacksonville State won’t just lay over and die against the Spartans as they return 18 starters from an 11-4 team that broke 49 school records in 2013. The Gamecocks are the favorite to win the Ohio Valley Conference so they should give the Spartans’ defense a solid run.

Michigan State plays No. 3 Oregon next week in a highly anticipated matchup that could be a potential Rose Bowl preview.

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