We're back with another prediction and pick for Week 7 of the 2023 College Football season as we head over to the Big Ten Conference for a matchup between two struggling rivals. The Michigan State Spartans (2-3) will take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (4-2) from Piscataway, New Jersey. Check out our College Football odds series for our Michigan State-Rutgers prediction and pick.

The Michigan State Spartans are currently last in the Big Ten East and are still looking for their first conference win after bad losses to Maryland and Iowa. After a strong 2-0 start, the Spartans have lost their last three games and have been outscored 98-32 over that stretch. They've seen an 8-2 record against Rutgers over their last 10 meetings, but the roles could be reversed this time around given the betting odds.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are currently fifth in the Big Ten East and have their lone conference win over Northwestern from their first game of the season. At 4-2, this marks the Scarlet Knights' best start through six games of the season since they went 5-1 back in 2014. Having already faced No. 2 Michigan and Wisconsin, Rutgers was able to keep those games manageable and will see their first time as favorites over the Spartans in quite some time.

Here are the college football odds, courtesy of BetRivers. 

College Football Odds: Michigan State-Rutgers Odds

Michigan State: +4.5 (-110) (+165 ML)

Rutgers: -4.5 (-110) (-200 ML)

Over: 39.5 (-110)

Under: 39.5 (-110)

How to Watch Michigan State vs. Rutgers Week 7

Time: 12:00 p.m. ET/ 9:00 a.m. PT

TV: BIG Ten Network

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why Michigan State Will Cover The Spread

Things continue to go from bad to worse for Michigan State and they can't seem to get their footing under them. With their BYE week already behind them, the Spartans will have an extremely tough rough to improve on their record with No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Ohio State, and No. 6 Penn State still awaiting them. We're only halfway through the season, but this feels like a must-win game for Michigan State if they want to have any chance at a respectable rest of the season. After seeing success with their offense early in the season, quarterback Noah Kim has seen a huge dip in his production and while running back Nathan Carter's efforts have been impressive, it just hasn't been enough to keep MSU competitive late in games.

MSU's offense was almost exclusively ran through Noah Kim and Nathan Carter against Iowa. Kim threw the ball 44 times and only converted on 25 of those attempts. It came out to a measly 193 yards as the Spartans have struggled to find big plays downfield through the air. It doesn't help that Kim also threw three interceptions as the Iowa Hawkeyes capitalized on each one of his mistakes. Michigan State also lead in time of possession by eight minutes but only managed 16 points in the poor showing. It's not clear where they're going to find answers on the offensive end, but it begins under center and Noah Kim's ability to conduct this offense.

Why Rutgers Will Cover The Spread

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are finally seeing some success after a number of very down years and they've looked like a team that can cause some noise in the Big Ten with their defense. Through their first three games, Rutgers outscored opponents 95-30 and were firing on all cylinders from both ends of the football. While they dropped a bad 31-7 loss against Michigan, Rutgers was actually able to keep the game close through the first half with their gritty play on defense. They had a similar story to Michigan State's last week as they struggled on offense and lost the game on a costly interception. Still, they're fresh off a 52-point outburst from their offense and should feel confident against the porous Michigan State defense.

To win this game, The Scarlet Knights will have to be the stronger team on defense and make the bigger plays with their receivers. Michigan State hasn't been able to get down the field in a hurry despite controlling time of possession, so the Scarlet Knights should look to capitalize on offense each time and hope their defense can force stops and turnovers. They already have five interceptions and six forced fumbles as a defense, so expect the Scarlet Knights to win this game if they can take the ball away from MSU.

Final Michigan State-Rutgers Prediction & Pick

Michigan State is in a serious rut heading into this game and another consecutive loss could spell disaster for the Spartans as their schedule only continues to become more difficult from here on out. Rutgers, on the other hand, seem to be playing with a ton of confidence and they often have their defense to fall back on in making critical plays down the stretch. This game may be a matter of which team can make fewer mistakes and with the total set so low, it's clear that each turnover will prove to be crucial in deciding this low-scoring game. With points hard to come by, we have to side with the better defense in Rutgers and the fact that they'll be at home. Until Michigan State can show some kind of production on the offensive end, it'll be hard to back them against the tougher Big Ten defenses.

Final Michigan State-Rutgers Prediction & Pick: Rutgers Scarlet Knights ML (-200)