Penn State and Michigan State will kickoff at 4 on FS1 next Saturday afternoon.
One more go in Beaver Stadium! 🦁 pic.twitter.com/QIkVREgaa9
— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) November 20, 2022
This is the first time Penn State has played a 4:00 game this year, and it’s not a normal occurrence.
Usually, Penn State’s games are either at noon, at 3:30 or in prime time.
The Michigan State game will fit none of those descriptions. But although the start time is unusual, the teams are familiar Big Ten foes. The teams have played every year but three (2011-13) since Penn State started playing in the Big Ten in 1993, and met 10 times prior. The series has been evenly matched, too, with Michigan State holding a slim lead, 18-17-1.
Since the teams became Big Ten opponents, Penn State is 16-10 against Sparty.
The teams play for a trophy, too. The Land-Grant Trophy is named in homage to both schools and their heritage as important land-grant institutions.
A land-grant institution is one that falls under the Morrill Act of 1862. Both schools were already up and running by then.
”Each school was founded in 1855,” Penn State explanation for the trophy says, “Michigan State on Feb. 12 and Penn State on Feb. 22. The school were the prototypes after which the land-grant system was patterned. Each institution brought to American education the new dimensions of service.”
Last year’s rivalry game in East Lansing was memorable but disappointing for the visitors. The snow that covered the field made for quite the visual, but Penn State ended up losing, 30-27. Penn State beat Michigan State in 2020 before an empty Beaver Stadium.
The last time the two teams play in a full Beaver Stadium was in 2018. Michigan State’s Felton Davis II caught a 25-yard pass from Brian Lewerke with 19 seconds left for the winning touchdown in a 21-17 Spartan triumph.
Penn State (9-2, 6-2 Big Ten) is hoping for a better result this year, and will be favored over Michigan State (5-6, 3-5).
