If you had to pick one or two games Michigan State football must win this season, which ones would you choose? Well, I’ve came up with five.
Michigan State will be kicking off the 2025 season in late August so we are less than two months away from Spartans football returning to our lives. Some may say that isn’t necessarily a great thing, but all jokes aside, this is a massive year for Michigan State and the future of the program.
In preparing for the upcoming season, I have taken a look over the schedule and pegged the top five games I believe are critical for the Spartans to experience success on the field. Each of these games have implications for this specific season and getting back to a bowl game for the first time since 2021, and also for the overall future of the program under head coach Jonathan Smith.
So with all of that being said, let’s check out my ranking of the five most important games on the Spartans’ 2025 schedule, and significance they would mean for Michigan State to come out on top.
No. 5 – Penn State
When: November 15
Where: Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich.
Reasoning: The first one on my list is probably the game Michigan State is least likely to win on the entire schedule, but it’s included for one reason: this is a measuring stick game. If things go as expected, Penn State will come to Spartan Stadium in the midst of a Big Ten title chase and looking to lockup a spot in the College Football Playoff. With this being a home matchup, the expectation from fans should be that Michigan State is at least in the game in the second half and not getting their doors blown off by the Nittany Lions like we saw two years ago. I’m not going to say Michigan State should win this game but it should be close and certainly carries a ton of importance in the national realm of where the Spartans’ program sits as we near the end of year two under Smith.
No. 4 – Iowa
When: November 22
Where: Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa
Reasoning: Where this game falls on the schedule is the main reason for why I’m including this tough road game at Iowa. The Spartans head to Kinnick Stadium in late November off a tough stretch of games that includes at Indiana, Michigan, at Minnesota and Penn State. There’s a chance Michigan State loses all four of those games (not what I’m predicting but certainly a chance) and in need of a win over the Hawkeyes to stop the bleeding and remain alive to reach the bowl season. Michigan State plays a very winnable game against Maryland in the season finale so if they can steal this one at Iowa ahead of that, then I would confidently say the Spartans are going bowling assuming they’ve already picked up at least four wins up to that point.
No. 3 – UCLA
When: October 11
Where: Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich.
Reasoning: Michigan State comes into this game after a pair of tough road games to open Big Ten play at USC and Nebraska. So that, combined with a tough-ish home non-conference game against Boston College before those, and we could be looking at Michigan State ts anywhere from 2-3 to 5-0 when UCLA comes to Spartan Stadium. My guess is Michigan State will be either 3-2 or 4-1 at this point, meaning a win over the Bruins would go a long way in reaching bowl eligibility or even push the Spartans into the top 25 at the midway mark of the season. This game will have a ton of significance for where Michigan State ends up in 2025.
No. 2 – Boston College
When: September 6
Where: Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich.
Reasoning: To me, this is a game that will be extremely telling for the 2025 season and potentially the entire Smith tenure at Michigan State. At home under the lights of Spartan Stadium in a week two matchup vs. Boston College will result in plenty of juice from the fanbase, and is simply a must-win for Michigan State this year. If the Spartans win this game, they’ll almost certainly be 3-0 when they head out west to USC in late September to open Big Ten play — which makes that a very intriguing game on the national level. If they lose to Boston College, the wheels could come off very quickly and Michigan State could find themselves below .500 and out of bowl contention before we hit the halfway point of the season. This feels like a massive swing game in a critical season for the program.
No. 1 – Michigan
When: October 25
Where: Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich.
Reasoning: It’s pretty simple why this game is at the top of the list, but even more than the rivalry itself, the result of this year’s matchup against the Wolverines will carry ramifications beyond just 2025. It felt like Michigan State let one go in last year’s game at Michigan Stadium, and would have put the rebuild so much farther ahead had they held on against the Wolverines. Now, Michigan State is looking at another great opportunity to beat the Wolverines with an anticipated true freshman starting at quarterback in Bryce Underwood. If Michigan State can’t beat the five-star quarterback this year as a true freshman, then I’m not sure when will be the next time they do beat their in-state rivals. It’s already been three years since Kenneth Walker III carried Michigan State to the win over Michigan, and if they don’t get them this year, then it may be another three more years before Paul Bunyan returns to East Lansing, Mich.
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This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Five most important games on Michigan State football’s schedule in 2025
Reporting by Robert Bondy, Spartans Wire / Spartans Wire
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