Cotton Bowl Preview: Michigan State vs. Alabama
Thursday, Dec. 31 at 8 p.m. ET
AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Michigan State overcame a trio of top-10 teams this year, but the Spartans will have to take down their toughest challenger yet if they are to play for a national championship.
Alabama comes into the Cotton Bowl on as dominant a stretch as any team in college football. Since dropping the third game of the season to Ole Miss, Nick Saban's squad has won all but one contest by at least two touchdowns.
The national spotlight is nothing new for Alabama, but the Crimson Tide have lost back-to-back bowl games. For all the winning the team has done, only a few players remain from the 2012 unit that won it all, and none of them were starters that season.
Michigan State returns to the Cotton Bowl a year after winning it over Baylor, though it wasn't a part of the College Football Playoff last season. Overall, the Spartans are riding a four-game bowl winning streak heading into Arlington.
HOW THEY STACK UP
Michigan State
Record: 12-1
College Football Playoff ranking: No. 3
Points per game: 32.1 (T-49th)
Points against per game: 20.5 (T-20th)
Total offense: 396.8 yards per game (68th)
Passing yards: 236.1 (52nd)
Rushing yards: 160.7 (78th)
Total defense: 342.9 (26th)
Passing yards allowed: 229.8 (73rd)
Rushing yards allowed: 113.1 (8th)
Turnover differential: +16 (4th)
Alabama
Record: 12-1
College Football Playoff ranking: No. 2
Points per game: 34.1 (33rd)
Points against per game: 14.4 (3rd)
Total offense: 422.5 yards per game (48th)
Passing yards: 214.3 (72nd)
Rushing yards: 208.2 (26th)
Total defense: 258.2 (2nd)
Passing yards allowed: 184.2 (17th)
Rushing yards allowed: 74 (1st)
Turnover differential: +7 (28th)
WHY MICHIGAN STATE COULD WIN: The Spartans weren't supposed to beat Michigan, but they did. They also weren't supposed to beat Ohio State, but they did that, too. Based on the College Football Playoff committee's rankings, the Spartans weren't supposed to beat Iowa, but they did so anyways. While Alabama has the No. 2 defense in the country, the Tide haven't faced a quarterback as good as Connor Cook. With an 8 p.m. start time, Cinderella should still have time to do her thing before the clock strikes midnight.
WHY ALABAMA COULD WIN: Alabama has a Heisman Trophy winner in the backfield that no team has been able to stop. Only Arkansas could hold Derrick Henry below 4.3 yards per carry in a game this year, and the tailback still registered 95 yards and a touchdown that day. Jake Coker has developed from a quarterback that was being pulled from games early in the season to a steady presence behind center. Coker has thrown only two picks in his last seven games, while showing better accuracy and instincts in the pocket. Oh yeah, 'Bama also boasts the most talented defense in the nation.
IMPACT PLAYER TO WATCH: CYRUS JONES, CB, ALABAMA
Cyrus Jones intercepted just one pass this year, but that's mostly due to a lack of targets in his direction. If Alabama's top-ranked run defense shuts down the Michigan State running game, Cook will need to throw the ball. Spartans wideout Aaron Burbridge, who has 80 receptions for 1,219 yards and eight scores, is the only Michigan State receiver with more than 500 yards this year. Surely, then, Jones will draw the assignment of shutting him down. Jones can also be a factor on special teams. The senior has three punt return touchdowns this year, and ranks eighth in the country in punt return average.