Northwestern Wildcats at Michigan State Spartans preview: October 17, 2026
The Northwestern Wildcats (4-1) visit the Michigan State Spartans (2-4) at Spartan Stadium on October 17, 2026. Recent form, both teams’ figures with College football ranks, earlier meetings and the players to research, from StatsNext’s stored box scores.
Records
| Team | Record (2026) | Last 5 | Away (2026) | Home (2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwestern Wildcats | 4-1 | 4-1 (35.4-16.2) | 0-1 (23-29) | 4-0 (38.5-13) |
| Michigan State Spartans | 2-4 | 1-4 (19.6-26.8) | 0-2 (6.5-29) | 2-2 (28.8-24) |
Record, Away and Home cover the complete 2026 regular season. Last 5 is the 5 most recent 2026 regular-season games. In parentheses: points for and against per game.
Team comparison
2026 regular-season figures; the rank in parentheses is among 136 College football teams (1st = the most).
| NU | MSU | |
|---|---|---|
| Points per game | 35.4 (37th) | 21.3 (111th) |
| Points allowed per game | 16.2 (115th) | 25.7 (48th) |
| Passing yards per game | 234.4 (65th) | 185.8 (107th) |
| Passing yards allowed per game | 233.4 (37th) | 193.7 (87th) |
| Rushing yards per game | 203 (33rd) | 121.7 (114th) |
| Rushing yards allowed per game | 147.2 (58th) | 146.3 (60th) |
| Rushing attempts per game | 39.4 (34th) | 37.2 (56th) |
| Rushing attempts allowed per game | 33.8 (87th) | 34.5 (72nd) |
| Completions per game | 16 (104th) | 18.2 (85th) |
| Completions allowed per game | 23.8 (7th) | 15.8 (111th) |
Recent form
Northwestern Wildcats
- Oct 10, 2026: W 45-14 vs BALL
- Oct 2, 2026: W 34-13 vs PSU
- Sep 25, 2026: L 23-29 at IU
- Sep 19, 2026: W 41-7 vs COLO
- Sep 5, 2026: W 34-18 vs SDST
Michigan State Spartans
Head-to-head
No earlier meeting between these teams is stored in StatsNext.
Players to research
| Player | Pos | Games | 2026 per game | Last 5 | Prop research |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aidan Chiles | QB | 5 | 234.4 Pass yds/g, 1.8 Pass TD/g, 14.6 Rush yds/g | 234.4 Pass yds/g | Passing yards, passing touchdowns |
| Caleb Komolafe | RB | 5 | 66.8 Rush yds/g, 12 Car/g, 16.2 Rec yds/g | 66.8 Rush yds/g | Rushing yards |
| Joseph Himon II | RB | 5 | 63.8 Rush yds/g, 4.6 Car/g, 12.2 Rec yds/g | 63.8 Rush yds/g | Rushing yards |
| Griffin Wilde | WR | 5 | 85 Rec yds/g, 4.8 Rec/g, 0.6 Rec TD/g | 85 Rec yds/g | Receiving yards |
| Alex Honig | TE | 4 | 36.3 Rec yds/g, 2.3 Rec/g, 0.5 Rec TD/g | 37.8 Rec yds/g | |
| Drew Wagner | WR | 5 | 31.6 Rec yds/g, 3.2 Rec/g, 0.2 Rec TD/g | 31.6 Rec yds/g |
| Player | Pos | Games | 2026 per game | Last 5 | Prop research |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alessio Milivojevic | QB | 6 | 172.8 Pass yds/g, 0.8 Pass TD/g, -5 Rush yds/g | 158 Pass yds/g | |
| Cam Edwards | RB | 4 | 76 Rush yds/g, 16 Car/g, 8.8 Rec yds/g | 82.4 Rush yds/g | Rushing yards |
| Jaziun Patterson | RB | 5 | 49.8 Rush yds/g, 12 Car/g, 5.8 Rec yds/g | 49.8 Rush yds/g | |
| Rodney Bullard Jr. | WR | 6 | 40.3 Rec yds/g, 3 Rec/g, 0.2 Rec TD/g | 30.4 Rec yds/g | |
| Jayden Savoury | TE | 6 | 38 Rec yds/g, 3.8 Rec/g, 0 Rec TD/g | 38.4 Rec yds/g | |
| Chrishon McCray | WR | 6 | 28.8 Rec yds/g, 3.7 Rec/g, 0 Rec TD/g | 20.8 Rec yds/g |
Players with a StatsNext page, the leaders in each position group's main statistic. Games and per-game figures are the 2026 regular season; last 5 is the player's last five regular-season games. Prop research links open the player's StatsNext prop pages: how often statistical thresholds were reached, never sportsbook lines or prices. No prop page means too few regular-season games with the statistic at a typical market level so far; the player page still has every stored statistic.
About this preview
- Everything here is a stored statistic or result with its sample; nothing is a prediction, pick or projection.
- Injuries, lineups and current sportsbook markets change through the day and are not on this page: they are in the app, with Matchup Research for this game.
This page contains no sportsbook prices or betting lines.