The No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes (10-1) travel to meet the No. 12 Michigan Wolverines (9-2) this week in what has the makings of a pivotal matchup. The Big 10’s top rusher, Ezekiel Elliott (1,458 yards, 17 TDs), will be key to the outcome of this matchup. It will begin Saturday, Nov 28 at 12:00 p.m. ET and can be seen on ABC.
Michigan beat Penn State 28-16 last week. Jake Butt had a solid outing in the win, totaling five receptions for 66 yards and one TD. Amara Darboh added 68 receiving yards and a TD on seven receptions. Ohio State didn’t have the same success as Michigan, losing a close one to Michigan State 17-14. Jalin Marshall had a solid game for the Buckeyes, racking up 22 total yards and a TD.
The Wolverines are slight underdogs with Ohio State favored by two in the game. For this contest, the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable.
The Wolverines enter the game with records of 9-2 Straight Up (SU) and 6-5 Against The Spread (ATS) this season. In the past five games, Michigan is 4-1 SU and 2-3 ATS. The Wolverines have performed better than their season average of 227.7 passing yards, averaging 274.0 yards over the last five games. Transitioning to the Michigan defense, there are some things to keep in mind when it is on the field. The Buckeyes could have a difficult time throwing the ball against the fourth-best pass defense in the nation. The Wolverines give up 162.7 yards per game through the air. Michigan can top most teams in terms of time of possession. The Wolverines have an average time of possession of 33:19 per game for 21st-highest in the nation.
On the other side, the Buckeyes have been a poor bet so far this season, with a disappointing record of 4-7 ATS. Their SU record, 10-1, hasn’t been quite as bad. In the previous five games, Ohio State has a record of 4-1 SU and 3-2 ATS. Ohio State’s running backs and offensive linemen look to keep their rushing attack rolling. Over the past five games, they’ve managed an impressive 230.8 rushing yards per game. The Buckeyes are also playing better defense than they have all year, only allowing 10 PPG over their last five games, which is well under their season average of 14.1 points. Opponents have had headaches with Ohio State’s sixth-ranked pass defense, which gives up just 164.3 passing yards per game.
Predictions: SU Winner – Ohio State, ATS Winner – Michigan
Notes
Michigan is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Michigan’s last 5 games.
Michigan is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Michigan’s last 9 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Michigan’s last 12 games when playing Ohio State.
Michigan is 1-10 SU in its last 11 games when playing Ohio State.
Michigan is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Ohio State.
Michigan is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Ohio State.
Michigan is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Ohio State.
Ohio State is 7-0 SU when leading at the half this season. Michigan is 8-1 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
This season, Ohio State is undefeated (4-0 SU) in games where it wins the turnover battle, and 3-1 SU in games where it loses the turnover battle.
Dating back to last season, Ohio State is 15-1 SU against Big 10 opponents, while Michigan is 9-6 SU against in-conference foes.
The Ohio State run defense is ranked 30th in the nation, and will look to contain the 82nd-ranked rushing attack of Michigan.
