Ohio State Buckeyes vs Western Michigan Broncos Prediction & Picks - NCAA
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by Travis Pulver in NCAA Picks
The Western Michigan Broncos will take to the road this weekend as they travel to Columbus, OH, to face the Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium. This game will be just the second between the two schools. The first came during the 2015 season (Sept. 26) and at Ohio Stadium. The Buckeyes got out to a quick 14-0 lead in the game and never looked back, winning 38-12. Ohio State cruised to an easy win in its season opener last week, beating Akron 52-6. Western Michigan had a tougher outing against another Big Ten school, Wisconsin, and lost 28-14.
As usual, Ohio State has to reload at several positions after losing several key players to the NFL. Transfer quarterback Will Howard looked the part last weekend, going 17-28 for 228 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith emerged as his favorite target, catching six balls for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns. TreVeyon Henderson led a run game that totaled 170 yards and two touchdowns with 65 yards. The defense picked up where it left off last season, shutting down the Akron run game (47 total yards) and holding the Zips to two field goals.
Western Michigan had a tougher day last week vs. Wisconsin. They struggled to get the offense on track all day, as quarterback Hayden Wolff had just 141 yards against the Badgers. The run game didn't have much luck either, with 120 total yards and both scores. Defensively, they had no answer for the balanced Wisconsin offense, giving up 192 yards via the passing game and 196 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.
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Ohio State Buckeyes vs Western Michigan Broncos Form
Table
Ohio State Buckeyes - Western Michigan Broncos Key Points
- Ohio State is 37-1 all-time vs. MAC teams, with the one loss coming against Akron in 1894.
- Western Michigan is 6-47 all-time vs. Big Ten teams; their last win was vs. Illinois in the 2017 season (34-10).
- Ohio State's last home loss to a team other than Michigan came against Oregon in the 2021 season (35-28).
- The OVER was 3-10 for the Buckeyes last season; Western Michigan was 7-5
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Our Ohio State Buckeyes vs Western Michigan Broncos Prediction
If Ohio State wants to know why it doesn't get more respect from the CFP voters, it's because of games like this. It is essentially a glorified scrimmage against an inferior team. It's one of those where the Buckeyes can make every mistake in the book and still come out ahead. It will not be as easy as beating up Akron, but Ohio State will win. However, the spread is pretty big (-38), so we're taking the OVER.
Our Prediction: OVER 54.5
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