The Michigan Wolverines are on the road to face the No. 2-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday at noon ET. The game can be seen on FOX.
Both teams are coming off wins as Michigan (6-5, 4-4 Big Ten) won 50-6 over Northwestern, while Ohio State (10-1, 7-1) recorded a 38-15 victory against then-No. 5-ranked Indiana.
Michigan vs Ohio State: Preview
Michigan is a massive +20.5-point road underdog and the over/under set at 43 points.
The Wolverines are the reigning national champions but are having a disappointing season. However, they have circled this matchup as Michigan offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell said that they have some things in their back pocket.
“Going into the game plan, we’ve studied them 365 days a year,” Campbell said on Tuesday, via the 'Inside Michigan' radio show. “We’ve watched them. The GAs, the analysts always break them down, so we have a good feel of what they’re going to do and how they want to do it.
“We meticulously put plays in the game plan throughout the season to try to play off them for when we play them. So it’s going to be part of what we do, part of what they don’t think we can do, and what we’re going to be able to execute really well that we’ve had in our back pocket for a while.”
Michigan is led by Davis Warren who has thrown for 1,064 for six touchdowns and seven interceptions. Kalel Mullings has rushed for 832 yards and 11 TDs.
Defensively, Will Johnson has two interceptions, Josaiah Stewart has 8.5 sacks and Ernest Hausmann has 74 tackles.
Meanwhile, Ohio State will punch their ticket to the Big Ten Championship with a win on Saturday. The Buckeyes have lost this rivalry game three years in a row and have a chip on their shoulder.
“Just seeing all the hardships that people who I love have had to go through, including my teammates, my head coach, and (Michigan) fans being nasty to my parents as we’re leaving the stadium,” Buckeyes wide receiver Emeka Egbuka said on Tuesday, via SpectrumNews. "There’s a lot of emotions I feel towards this moment, so I’m trying to harness those and just let it all rip on the field on Saturday.”
Ohio State coach Ryan Day talked about what beating Michigan means to him.
“I think you know what it means [in Ohio],” Day said on Tuesday, via On3. “It means the world. It’s everything here.”
The Buckeyes should be able to cruise to a lopsided win. Ohio State will run up the score to get revenge for the last three years while Michigan will have a hard time scoring.
Prediction: Ohio State 41, Michigan 10
Michigan vs Ohio State: Betting Tips
Tip 1: Ohio State -20.5 (-112)
Tip 2: Over 43 (-110)
Tip 3: Will Howard 253+ passing yards (-120)
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