MSU vs. Oregon Redbox Bowl Pick
Monday won’t be Justin Herbert’s final game with the Oregon Ducks, as the signal-caller announced last week that he will return to Eugene for his senior season. Will Herbert lead Oregon to victory over Michigan State in Saturday’s Redbox Bowl?
Game Snapshot
261 Michigan State vs. 262 Oregon Ducks
3:00 p.m. ET, Monday, December 31, 2018
Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, California
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Ducks are 2-point favorites to beat the Spartans. The total, meanwhile, sits at 57.5 points. As of this writing, 67% of the public betting tickets wagered on this matchup are on the Ducks.
Michigan State Spartans
Michigan State redshirt junior QB Brian Lewerke (shoulder) is starting at QB for the Redbox Bowl against Oregon on Monday. Lewerke has been banged up as of late for the Spartans, and has missed two of the last five games for Michigan State. He’s also struggled when on the field with a completion percentage just over 54 percent and an 8/10 TD/INT ratio. Still, Lewerke gives the Spartans their best chance to win against a tough Oregon club.
Oregon Ducks
Oregon junior QB Justin Herbert will return to school for the 2019 season. There was plenty of smoke during the season regarding Herbert’s potential return to Eugene for his senior year of ball. It’s official, now. With the 6-foot-6, 233-pounder heading back to school for one more season, an already thin quarterback position for the draft becomes that much more thin. Herbert was considered by many parties to be the top draft-eligible signal-caller for the spring. With him out of the picture, Ohio State QB Dwayne Haskins (who has not yet declared), Missouri QB Drew Lock and West Virginia QB Will Grier are now the top options available. We have questions about all three of those signal-callers, especially if we’re talking about a quarterback being drafted in the top-15.
Betting Trends
Michigan State
The Spartans are 5-0 against the spread in their last five bowl games and are 7-1-1 ATS in their last nine neutral site games.
Oregon
The Ducks have failed to cover the spread in nine of their last 13 games overall and are 5-15-1 ATS in their last 21 games coming off a win.
Prediction
Michigan State’s offense ground to a halt when Brian Lewerke was dealing with a shoulder injury for the second half of the season. That said, the Spartans held opponents to 18 points and 311.5 yards per contest, including 81.3 rushing yards per game, which was tops in the nation. Herbert and the Oregon offense will be a challenge but it’s one MSU should be up for. Hopefully, the return of a healthy Lewerke will also spark the Spartan offense.
Redbox Bowl Prediction: Michigan State Spartans +2