The No. 9 Washington Huskies are entering the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual as underdogs against the No. 5 Ohio State Buckeyes. ESPN will televise the action and this Tuesday game is scheduled to start at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Washington Huskies at Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Preview
In this early-week game, Ohio State has been tabbed as the favorite and is currently giving up 7 points. The Huskies are also receiving +210 moneyline odds while the Buckeyes are -270. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 58 points. There should be multiple solid live betting scenarios for this game.
This game’s line initially opened at -5 and the over/under was originally 58.5, so it seems that the sharp action appears to be siding with the Buckeyes.
The Huskies are 4-9 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 0.1 units this season. They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an O/U record of 3-10. The Buckeyes are up 2.4 units for moneyline bettors this year. They’re 6-6-1 ATS and own an O/U record of 7-6.
The Huskies are 10-3 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Buckeyes are 12-1 SU.
The Huskies are coming off a 10-3 victory over Utah on November 30. Jake Browning completed 21 passes for just 187 yards and one interception. Myles Gaskin (just 71 rushing yards on 23 attempts) led the ground attack in the win while Andre Baccellia (eight receptions, 65 yards) and Ahmed (three catches, 21 yards) handled the receiving duties.
Ohio State enters this one having just earned a sound 45-24 win over Northwestern. The defense let the Wildcats rush for 151 yards on 24 attempts, including two rush TDs. Isaiah Bowser had a productive showing in the loss, posting 60 rushing yards on 13 attempts for Northwestern. For Ohio State, Dwayne Haskins completed 34-of-41 passes for 499 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Mike Weber (51 rushing yards on 17 attempts) and J.K. Dobbins (68 yards on 17 carries, one TD) spearheaded the ground game in the win as Johnnie Dixon (seven receptions, 129 yards, one TD) and Parris Campbell (seven catches, 89 yards) led the receiving attack.
Washington has run the ball on 60.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Ohio State has an overall rush percentage of 50.7 percent. The Huskies have rushed for 180 yards/game and have 24 touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Buckeyes are putting up 176 rush yards per game and have 22 total rushing TDs.
If the numbers so far this season are any indication, then it’s looking like the Huskies should own an advantage in terms of effectiveness in the ground game. Their backfield has logged 4.4 yards per carry while their defense is allowing a YPC of 3.6 to opponents. The Buckeyes have registered 4.2 yards per carry and given up a YPC of 4.6 to opponents.
The Huskies offensive scheme has tallied 232 yards per contest in the air overall and has 18 passing TDs so far. The Buckeyes have put up an astonishing 373 pass yards per game and have 48 total pass scores.
Defensively, Washington should have the upper hand in both phases. The team has allowed 118 rush yards and 187 pass yards per game. The Ohio State defense has allowed 239.8 yards per game to opposing passers and 160.5 yards per game on the ground. The Huskies are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 4.40 to opponents, while the Buckeyes have given up a 5.71 ANY/A.
Passing-wise, Browning has put up 2,672 yards this season. The signal-caller has connected on 206-of-320 attempts with 16 passing scores and nine interceptions. He has a 7.22 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 5.69 over the past two outings.
The Huskies have tried to control the pace by feeding their running backs early and often. Andre Baccellia (386 yards) has contributed in the receiving game lately, but the RB tandem of Myles Gaskin (977 rush yards, seven rush TDs, one receiving TD) and Salvon Ahmed (517 rush yards, seven rush TDs, 126 receiving yards) have been big focal points in the Washington offensive scheme.
For the home team, Dwayne Haskins has completed 328-of-465 passes for 4,184 yards, 41 TDs and eight INTs. Haskins’ ANY/A sits at 9.45 for the year and 13.75 across his past two games.
The Buckeyes should also look to control the clock by turning to their backfield. In addition to Parris Campbell (800 receiving yards, nine receiving TDs), Mike Weber (762 rush yards, four rush TDs, one receiving TD) and J.K. Dobbins (983 rush yards, nine rush TDs, 247 receiving yards, two TDs) have seen a multitude of touches lately.
Free Pick: Washington Huskies vs. Ohio State Buckeyes
SU Winner – Ohio State, ATS Winner – Ohio State, O/U – Under
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Notes
Team Betting Notes
The Ohio State defensive unit has created 39 sacks on the year while Washington has just 21.
Ohio State has lost nine fumbles this season while the Washington offense has lost five.
The Huskies offense has registered nine pass plays of 40 yards or more, while the Buckeyes have put up 14 such plays.
The Washington defense has allowed zero pass plays of 40+ yards, while Ohio State has given up 11 such plays.
The Washington offense has created 19 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Ohio State has created 15 such runs.
The Huskies defense has allowed seven rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Buckeyes have given up 23 such runs.
As a team, Washington has rushed for 5.2 yards per attempt over its past three outings and 4.5 over its last two.
Ohio State has averaged 4.1 yards per carry over its last three contests and 3.4 over its past two.
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