Ohio State Buckeyes visit the Michigan State Spartans Nov. 8th
By Ian Palmer
The Ohio State Buckeyes will make the short trip to Michigan on Saturday, November 8 to take on the Michigan State Spartans at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing in one of this week’s better NCAA football matchups. This Big Ten clash features a couple of red-hot teams as the Spartans have won 14 straight in the conference dating back to last season and the Buckeyes are have won 20 regular-season conference games in a row.
bet365 college football betting line: Ohio State vs Michigan State
- Point Spread: Ohio State (+3.5) at 10/11 and Michigan State (-3.5) at 10/11
- Money Line: Ohio State is 6/4 to win the game with Michigan State at 10/17
- Over/Under: 56 points, 10/11
Ohio State toyed with Illinois last week and handed them a 55-14 beating to go 7-1 overall this season. Ohio rushed for 296 yards last week with Curtis Samuel being the top gun with a pair of touchdowns and 63 yards. The Buckeyes are ranked number 17 in the FBS when it comes to rushing as they average 254 yards per outing. However, they’ve got a tough task in front of them since the Spartans are seventh best in the nation in rushing defense. They’ve allowed just 95.4 yards against per game and will try to contain Samuel. They also need to keep an eye on Ezekiel Elliot though as he’s scored five touchdowns this campaign and has rushed for 640 yards.
Ohio State also has a good aerial attack and they’ve scored 51.7 points per game on average during their current six-game winning streak. They will have a hard time reaching that average on Saturday though since Michigan State has allowed just 20.7 points per game so far this year. The Buckeyes will head into the contest as a confident bunch and they’ve been as tough as nails on the road in their last 10 games with an impressive 9-1 record.
The Michigan State Spartans are also on a six-game winning streak following their 35-11 win over Michigan last weekend. Running back Jeremy Langford led the way with three touchdowns and a total of 177 rushing yards. The Spartans are also 7-1 in 2014 and have won 14 consecutive contests against Big Ten rivals. This is a rematch of the 2013 Big Ten championship game which the Spartans won 34-24. Quarterback Connor Cook went 24 for 40 passes in passing in that encounter with three touchdowns an interception and 304 yards.
Cook averages 233.5 yards in the air this season, which ranks him 50th in the FBS for starting quarterbacks. He’ll be facing a good Buckeyes secondary which ranks number 16 in the FBS when it comes to passing defense. Ohio State allows just 187.7 yards against them per game this year. Fans should expect to see Langford rush the ball for the Spartans since Michigan State averages 254.9 yards on the ground per game, which is 16th best in the FBS. Langford has scored 10 touchdowns so far this campaign and has a total of 841 yards to his name. Michigan State is 10-0 at home in their past 10 games and should extend it to 11-0 this weekend.