Ohio State Buckeyes vs Michigan State Betting Preview: Big Test at Home for the Buckeyes

The Ohio State Buckeyes will host the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday for a noon kickoff on ABC. College Gameday will come to Columbus for this top ten game of the week as Ohio State comes into this game ranked No. 4 and Michigan State No. 7. 

The Buckeyes are 9-1 and perfect in the conference with a 7-0 record. Michigan State is also 9-1 but have lost one conference game a week after defeating Michigan a week prior. Both teams are fighting for a spot in the Big Ten Championship game which should be very important to determine who makes it into the College Football Playoff.

Ohio State is currently in sole possession of the first place in the Big Ten East, but Michigan State is right behind them and will overtake them with a win on Saturday. Michigan is also lurking, tied for second place with Michigan State. They will face Maryland on Saturday.

Odds

Ohio State is a whopping 19 point favorite at home against the No. 7 team in the country. Their odds to win at that spread is -110. The odds for Michigan to cover at +19 is also -110. The over/under for the game is at 68.5 total points with odds of -110 to bet the over or under.

Ohio State has been favored by double digits in every Big Ten matchup that they’ve had this season. They were 4-3 against the spread in their seven Big Ten games. Michigan State is 3-0 against the spread and straight-up as an underdog this season.

Keys to the Game

For Ohio State, the key will be to start their attack early. If they can put the Spartans away early, then they don’t have to worry as much about a comeback. The Ohio State offense has been great all season. It will come down to whether the defense can continue the success that they’ve been having against a great Michigan State team.

For Michigan State, their defense has been giving up way too many yards to be reliable against this potent Ohio State offense. The Michigan State defense ranking 111th in yards given up per game at 460 yards per game. Their offense will need to produce to make this a high scoring shootout.

It will really come down to takeaways whether that be offensive mistakes or defensive magic. Whichever team can stay consistent throughout the game, will be the team who is victorious and in the driver’s seat going into the last game of the season.

Expected Outcome

Maybe the oddsmakers know something that I don’t, but both teams will be coming to play on Saturday. I would be very surprised if Ohio State wins by 19 or more. With that being said, Ohio State is more talented on both sides of the ball and should win this game. If they are able to win by more than 19, it would be a great confidence booster going into their biggest game of the season in Ann Arbor.