Michigan State's Aidan Chiles looks to throw against Boston College during the first quarter on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

How Wind Impacts Michigan State's Game at Nebraska

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Jacob Cotsonika | Last updated Oct 4, 2025 9:00 AM ET

There's a good chance that the weather will have some impact on Michigan State's game at Nebraska.

As of Friday, according to AccuWeather, the wind on Saturday afternoon in Lincoln is forecasted to be traveling southward at 20 miles per hour. There's also going to be wind gusts of up to 35 miles per hour. Temperatures are expected to be up in the high-80s and the chance of precipitation is only 1%.

The Spartans (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) kick off against the Cornhuskers (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) at 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT on FS1.

Why it Matters

What the high wind amounts do is further incentivize teams to run the ball more often. It can be very difficult for quarterbacks, especially ones in college, to be able to throw the ball downfield with accuracy when the wind can alter the ball's flight. Sometimes, that becomes the difference between a completion and a tipped ball and an interception.

It will be interesting to see how both teams play it. Both Michigan State and Nebraska have good quarterbacks in Aidan Chiles and Dylan Raiola, respectively, but both are also younger at 20 years old. The Cornhuskers do like the air the ball out more than the Spartans --- Raiola has 135 pass attempts this season to Chiles' 102.

Neither team has been fantastic at running the ball this season. Nebraska averages 4.3 yards per carry, and MSU averages 4.4.

The Spartans do have an advantage at stopping the run, though. Michigan State allows 120.5 yards per game on the ground (47th in FBS), while the Cornhuskers allow 173.5 yards a game (109th in FBS). Both of these squads' run defenses are looking to bounce back from their previous performances two weeks ago. MSU allowed 289 rushing yards against USC. Nebraska gave up 302 versus Michigan.

Overall, the run game seems to favor Michigan State, which is a promising sign. Another factor is that the Spartans have three different players who can reliably carry the ball and get yards: Chiles and running backs Makhi Frazier and Brandon Tullis. All three of them have at least 25 carries this year, while Nebraska only has one such player: running back Emmett Johnson, who has 71 carries. MSU's depth at that spot will allow it to have a fresher ball carrier later in the game, while Johnson is going to get more worn out from all the other carries he had earlier in the contest.