Husker Film Room

Week 4Road trip to East Lansing

NebraskaatMichigan State

Sat., Sept. 26, 2026 · 4:00 PM CT · BTN · Spartan Stadium, East Lansing

The bottom line

Michigan State's offense, 192 plays from the ESPN play-by-play over 3 games (2026 games before Nebraska: Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Notre Dame): 55% run, 5.0 yards a play, 49% success and 16 explosives (run 10+, pass 20+). [2]

Open the interactive fieldFull report (PDF)

The film room

Michigan State offense, 192 plays, ESPN play-by-play in 3 games, 2026 games before Nebraska: Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Notre Dame. Tap a zone on the field, pick a down & distance, and read what they like. [2]

Down & distance
Field zone (or tap the field)
QB on the field
NEBRASKANEBRASKA101020203030404050504040303020201010

Replays show the ball path from the snap spot to the charted spot; no formation or routes are drawn (none charted).

Success = 40% of the yards needed on 1st down, 60% on 2nd, all of it on 3rd and 4th. Explosive = a run of 10+ or a pass play of 20+ yards (the play-by-play definitions; Week 7's film grids use 12+ / 16+). Source: the ESPN play-by-play, scrimmage plays only. There is no result column (touchdown, interception, fumble), so results are not shown. Formation, personnel, motion, coverage, front, blitz and hash were not charted for this week, so replays show only the ball path and those sections are hidden. [2]

What they are

192
Plays
3 games · ESPN play-by-play [2]
55%
Run rate
106 run / 86 pass (of 192) [2]
5.0
Yards per play
run 4.6 · pass 5.5 (incl. sacks) [2]
49%
Success rate
95 of 192 · 40/60/100 rule [2]
16
Explosive plays
of 192 · run 10+, pass 20+ [2]

Top tendencies

  • 1st & 10: 44 runs, 32 passes (58% run, 76 plays).
  • 3rd & 5+: pass on 15 of 20 (75%); 5 hit the success bar.
  • Red zone (20-in): run on 19 of 29 (66%).
  • Top ball carrier: C.Edwards, 57 of 106 runs, 5.0 a carry.
  • Top target: R.Bullard Jr., 19 of 86 pass plays, 9.6 a target.

Sources: [2]

Sources

Stats through kickoff: Michigan State's 2026 games before Sept. 26 (Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Notre Dame). Every number on this page ties to one of these. Film charting is our own work from broadcast-angle cut-ups; no film or broadcast images are published here.

  1. [1] ESPN: Nebraska 2026 football schedule (date, kickoff, TV, venue)
  2. [2] ESPN play-by-play: Michigan State offense, scrimmage plays only, Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Notre Dame. Down, distance, spot, gain, ball carrier/target, direction; success and explosive flags computed by the Husker Film Room scouting desk