Michigan State vs. Pittsburgh 12/30/21 - Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Picks & Predictions

Last Updated: 12/15/2021 at 6:20 PM ET

On Thursday December 30, the No. 12 ranked Pittsburgh Panthers play the No. 10 ranked Michigan State Spartans in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Pitt ended its regular season 11-2 overall and 7-1 in the ACC and defeated Wake Forest 45-21 in the ACC Championship game. Pitt has had an explosive offense all season as the Panthers are scoring an average of 43.0 points per game which is 9th in the nation and Pittsburgh allows an average of only 23.1 points per game. Pitt averaged 350.2 yards passing which was fifth in the country.

Kenny Pickett passed for 4,319 yards with 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The leading rusher was Israel Abanikanda with 635 yards and seven touchdowns, while the leading receiver was Jordan Addison with 1,479 yards and 17 touchdown receptions. On defense, SirVocea Dennis was the leading tackler with 76 and Calijah Kancey was the leader in quarterback sacks with 7.0.

Michigan State ended its regular season 10-2 overall and 7-2 in the Big Ten Conference. Michigan State defeated Penn State 30-27 in the final game of the regular season. Michigan State scored an average of 31.9 points per game and allowed an average of 25.7 points per game. Michigan State’s leading rusher All-American Kenneth Walker is an uncertainty for the bowl game due to an ankle injury that has plagued the runner all season.

Payton Thorne passed for 2,886 yards with 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions. The leading rusher for Michigan State was Kenneth Walker III with 1,636 yards and 18 touchdowns, while the leading receiver was Jayden Reed with 946 yards and eight touchdown receptions. On defense, Xavier Henderson was the leading tackler with 94 and Jacub Panasiuk was the leader in quarterback sacks with 6.0.

Expect plenty of points to be scored in this matchup and the OVER is a solid pick, but the play here is Pitt. One advantage Pitt will have is that head coach Pat Narduzzi was a defensive coordinator for several years with Michigan State. Pittsburgh also has one of the best quarterbacks in the nation in Kenny Pickett who passed for 4,319 yards and 42 touchdowns. Michigan State's leader on offense, Kenneth Walker III is questionable with an ankle injury that has plagued the running back all season. The winner of this bowl could be the one with the final possession as it will be close throughout. Final Score Prediction, Pittsburgh Panthers win and cover ATS 35-31.

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