Wk 3 · 2026
Michigan State Spartans at Notre Dame Fighting Irish — Sat, Sep 19
Sat, Sep 19 ·
Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, IN
· NBC
Weather
No forecast yet. This one is 20 days away. Forecasts reach about 16 days ahead, so this fills in nearer the game. A seasonal average printed here would look exactly like a forecast, which is why there is not one.
Big Ten · no games yet
at
7:30pET
no line posted yet
Ratings differential ND by 23.9
FBS Indep. · no games yet
What is at stake
Megaphone Trophy. A green-and-blue megaphone that has changed hands since 1949, and with the USC series now paused this is one of the few old Notre Dame rivalries still on the books. They play for the Megaphone Trophy. A non-conference game. It moves both overall records but neither conference race. Notre Dame is ranked #4 (AP Top 25 · 2026-08-17).
What the ratings imply
The differential above is arithmetic on two published numbers:
The CFB King’s 2026 final efficiency ratings, plus
2.4 points of home field.
It is not a projection, a value, an edge or a lean, and nothing on this site
compares it with the betting line to tell you one is better. Until 2026
games are played it is last season’s measurement of two teams that have
changed.
Efficiency · 2026 ratings
Efficiency margin
Offense (pts/100)
Defense (pts/100)
Pace (plays/g)
Yards / play
Yards / play allowed
Opponent-adjusted ratings from The College
King's 2026 final numbers. Bars share a scale within each row, so
the two lengths are comparable; the brighter side is the better of the two, and a
longer bar is the better number — including the rows where a lower figure is the
good one. Pace is the exception: it is how fast a team plays, not how well, so
neither side is lit and a longer bar there means only more plays.
Team stats · 2026 per game
Points / game
Points allowed
Yards / game
Yards allowed
Pass yds allowed
Rush yds allowed
Turnovers / game
From completed 2026 box scores;
defensive yardage covers the regular season and conference championships.
Michigan St form
No completed games on record.
Notre Dame form
No completed games on record.
Michigan St this season
No graded games yet this season. Lines are captured before kickoff and graded when a game goes final, so these records start at Week 1.
Notre Dame this season
No graded games yet this season. Lines are captured before kickoff and graded when a game goes final, so these records start at Week 1.
Lines are captured from ESPN's board before kickoff and locked at kickoff, so an in-play price cannot overwrite the number a game is graded against.
Common opponents · 1
Open these two in the
comparison tool for every shared and unshared opponent.
Series history · 2006–2026
Since 2006, Notre Dame leads 6–4 · Notre Dame won the last one
10 meetings
in 2006–2026 · average margin
2.1 points toward Notre Dame
| Yr | Date | Result | Site | Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2017-09-23 | Notre Dame 38 — 18 Michigan St | at MSU | Notre Dame |
| 2016 | 2016-09-17 | Michigan St 36 — 28 Notre Dame | at ND | Michigan St |
| 2013 | 2013-09-21 | Michigan St 13 — 17 Notre Dame | at ND | Notre Dame |
| 2012 | 2012-09-15 | Notre Dame 20 — 3 Michigan St | at MSU | Notre Dame |
| 2011 | 2011-09-17 | Michigan St 13 — 31 Notre Dame | at ND | Notre Dame |
| 2010 | 2010-09-18 | Notre Dame 31 — 34 Michigan St | at MSU | Michigan St |
| 2009 | 2009-09-19 | Michigan St 30 — 33 Notre Dame | at ND | Notre Dame |
| 2008 | 2008-09-20 | Notre Dame 7 — 23 Michigan St | at MSU | Michigan St |
| 2007 | 2007-09-22 | Michigan St 31 — 14 Notre Dame | at ND | Michigan St |
| 2006 | 2006-09-23 | Notre Dame 40 — 37 Michigan St | at MSU | Notre Dame |
Michigan St leaders 2025 regular season
| Passing | Aidan Chiles QB #0 | 128/203, 1392 YDS, 10 TD, 3 INT |
| Alessio Milivojevic QB #11 | 111/173, 1267 YDS, 10 TD, 3 INT | |
| Rushing | Makhi Frazier RB #25 | 116 CAR, 520 YDS, 2 TD |
| Elijah Tau-Tolliver RB #4 | 72 CAR, 428 YDS, 2 TD | |
| Brandon Tullis RB #7 | 69 CAR, 301 YDS, 4 TD | |
| Receiving | Nick Marsh WR #11 | 59 REC, 662 YDS, 6 TD |
| Omari Kelly WR #1 | 47 REC, 626 YDS, 2 TD | |
| Jack Velling TE #12 | 36 REC, 359 YDS, 3 TD | |
| Chrishon McCray WR #13 | 24 REC, 330 YDS, 3 TD |
Defense
| Tackles | Jordan Hall LB #5 | 88 |
| Wayne Matthews III LB #10 | 73 | |
| Alex VanSumeren DT #91 | 52 | |
| Sacks | Quindarius Dunnigan DL #99 | 2.5 |
| Jordan Hall LB #5 | 2.5 | |
| Jalen Thompson DL #9 | 2.5 | |
| Interceptions | Armorion Smith S #7 | 1 |
| Wayne Matthews III LB #10 | 1 | |
| Aveon Grose S #30 | 1 |
Notre Dame leaders 2025 regular season
| Passing | CJ Carr QB #13 | 195/293, 2741 YDS, 24 TD, 6 INT |
| Kenny Minchey QB #3 | 20/26, 196 YDS | |
| Rushing | Jeremiyah Love RB #4 | 199 CAR, 1372 YDS, 18 TD |
| Jadarian Price RB #24 | 113 CAR, 674 YDS, 11 TD | |
| Aneyas Williams RB #22 | 24 CAR, 224 YDS, 5 TD | |
| Receiving | Jordan Faison WR #6 | 49 REC, 640 YDS, 4 TD |
| Malachi Fields WR #0 | 36 REC, 630 YDS, 5 TD | |
| Eli Raridon TE #9 | 32 REC, 482 YDS | |
| Will Pauling WR #2 | 26 REC, 381 YDS, 6 TD |
Defense
| Tackles | Drayk Bowen LB #34 | 67 |
| Adon Shuler S #8 | 53 | |
| Jaiden Ausberry LB #4 | 51 | |
| Sacks | Boubacar Traore DL #5 | 7.5 |
| Drayk Bowen LB #34 | 3.5 | |
| Josh Burnham DL #8 | 3 | |
| Interceptions | Leonard Moore CB #15 | 5 |
| Brauntae Johnson S #9 | 4 | |
| Luke Talich S #28 | 3 |
These are regular-season totals for
the season named on each card — the players who led that team that year,
taken from ESPN's team leaders. That list is keyed to the season, not to today's
roster, so a leader who has since transferred or run out of eligibility still
appears against the year he earned it; the
roster
pages and the depth chart on each team page are where the current squad is.
A team switches to this season's numbers once it has played a game. The roster
pages count bowl games too, so a player's two lines can differ by a game.