The latest College Football Playoff rankings released on Tuesday night show the committee regards Michigan State as a better team than Ohio State. Following the Spartans' 27-24 win over Penn State and the Buckeyes' 55-24 destruction at Iowa, the CFP ranks Michigan State at No. 12 and Ohio State at No. 13.
The folks in Vegas, though, don't agree. Ohio State is regarded as a 2-touchdown favorite ahead of the two sides' game in Columbus on Saturday (noon ET, Fox).
Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio was asked about the spread at his weekly press conference, and the man was completely overjoyed. You can tell that because he smiled. A press conference smile from Dantonio is the equivalent of a backflip by Dabo Swinney.
Michigan State is a *big* underdog this week at Ohio State.
Thoughts, @MSU_Football coach @DantonioMark? pic.twitter.com/GrTmcxJcbu
— Michigan St. on BTN (@MichiganStOnBTN) November 7, 2017
Lest we forget, it was two years ago this week that Michigan State also went to Columbus as a massive underdog. The ninth-ranked Spartans visited No. 3 Ohio State, who were the defending national champions at the time, riding a 23-game winning streak and boasted a roster of 19 NFL Draft picks and eight first-round selections. Michigan State was playing without starting quarterback Connor Cook.
Final score: Spartans 17, Buckeyes 14.
Those Spartans would go on to win the Big Ten East, defeat undefeated Iowa in the Big Ten Championship and reach the College Football Playoff.
These Spartans will all but clinch the Big Ten East with a win on Saturday, and there's an undefeated team looming in the Big Ten West.
Will history repeat itself on Saturday? Dantonio likes his chances.