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1. Gunther Gorny (500 PTS)
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5. madcadd***@aol.com (500 PTS)

Overview:

On Saturday, November 25^th, the (9-2) Ohio State Buckeyes will be on the road to take on the (8-3) Michigan Wolverines.

The Crowd:

“The Crowd” projects a final score of Ohio State 34.0 – Michigan 23.6 with an over/under of 57.6.

2017-18 Statistics (130 total teams):

Passing offense: Ohio State 293.6 YPG > Michigan 166.2 YPG

Rushing offense: Ohio State 252.5 YPG > Michigan 194.2 YPG

Scoring offense: Ohio State 44.9 PPG > Michigan 26.3 PPG

Scoring defense: Michigan 17.1 PPG > Ohio State 19.8 PPG

Passing defense: Michigan 144.4 YPG > Ohio State 177.5 YPG

Rushing defense: Ohio State 114.0 YPG > Michigan 116.8 YPG

Turnover Margin Per Game: Ohio State +0.2 > Michigan -0.1

Strength of schedule:

Ohio State is (9-2) with wins over Indiana, Army, UNLV, Rutgers, Maryland, Nebraska, Penn State, Michigan State, and Illinois.  They were defeated by Oklahoma and Iowa.  Michigan is (8-3) with wins over Florida, Cincinnati, Air Force, Purdue, Indiana, Rutgers, Minnesota, and Maryland.  They were defeated by Wisconsin, Penn State, and Michigan State.

Summary:

Ohio State is surprisingly still in the playoff hunt despite having two losses.  The Buckeyes thrashed Illinois 52-14 at home and led 28-0 after the first quarter.  Ohio State outgained Illinois 543-105 in total yardage.  J.T. Barrett was 11-19 for 141 yards and two touchdowns.  Mike Weber carried the ball 11 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns.  The Buckeyes, as a team, totaled 325 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 59 carries (5.5 average).  The Buckeyes defense pitched a shutout in the first half and held Illinois to just 105 total yards.  Ohio State ranks 4^th in total offense (546.0 YPG) and 3^rd in points per game (44.9).  The Buckeyes rank 22^nd in scoring defense (19.8 PPG).

Michigan is coming off a tough 24-10 road loss at Wisconsin.  The game was tied at halftime but Wisconsin eventually wore down the Wolverines who were unable to do anything offensively.  Wisconsin outgained Michigan 325-234 in total yardage.  Brandon Peters was just 9-18 for 157 yards.  Michigan had little success running the football totaling 58 yards and a touchdown on 37 carries (1.6 average).  Michigan’s season took a turn for the worse when they lost their starting quarterback Wilton Speight to a serious injury.  Without Speight, Michigan’s offense has really struggled, and now backup Brandon Peters is questionable with a concussion.  John O’Korn would start in Peters’ place against Ohio State.  Michigan ranks 102^nd in total offense (360.0 YPG) and 82^nd in points per game (26.3).  The Wolverines rank 11^th in scoring defense (17.1 PPG).

Bottom Line:

Ohio State is on a mission to not only win but to make a statement to the playoff committee.  Urban Meyer is 5-0 against Michigan but four of those five games have been decided by five points or fewer.  Jim Harbaugh is still looking for a signature win at Michigan but I don’t think it will come with his third string quarterback starting.  I like Ohio State to cover the spread but I don’t think it will be a blowout.

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