One winning streak will reach five games as Head Coach James Franklin and the No. 9 Penn State Nittany Lions square off against Coach Urban Meyer and the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes. Kickoff for this big matchup is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and ABC has the TV rights.
Betting Preview: Penn State Nittany Lions vs. Ohio State Buckeyes
In this Saturday Big Ten game, Ohio State is labeled as the favorite and is currently giving up 3.5 points. The Buckeyes are also receiving -175 moneyline odds while the Nittany Lions are +155. There might be some good live betting opportunities during this showdown.
The initial odds have recently shifted. This game’s line opened at 4.
The Buckeyes have recorded 1.0 unit so far and are 3-0-1 against the spread (ATS). The team’s recorded an O/U mark of 2-2.
The Nittany Lions are up 1.0 unit for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 3-1 ATS and have an O/U record of 4-0.
The Buckeyes are 4-0 straight up (SU), including 1-0 SU against Big 10 opponents. The Nittany Lions are 4-0 SU overall and 1-0 SU in conference play.
The Buckeyes are hoping to stay undefeated after a 49-6 victory over Tulane last week. The Buckeyes defense allowed the Green Wave to run for 100 yards on 42 rush attempts, along with one rushing TD. Offensively, the Buckeyes completed 31-of-38 passes for 419 yards and five touchdowns. Dwayne Haskins went 21-for-24 for 304 yards and five touchdowns while Tate Martell completed 10-of-14 for 115 yards. J.K. Dobbins (55 rushing yards on 11 attempts, one TD) led the running attack while Parris Campbell (eight receptions, 147 yards, two TDs) and K.J. Hill (four catches, 57 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
Penn State just picked up a 63-24 win over Illinois. Trace McSorley completed 12-of-19 passes for 160 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Miles Sanders (200 rushing yards on 22 attempts, three TDs) and the signal-caller McSorley (92 yards on 15 carries) mounted the running attack as Juwan Johnson (four receptions, 51 yards, one TD) and Jonathan Holland (three catches, 53 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the win.
Ohio State has run the ball on 54.7 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Penn State has an overall rush percentage of 60.9 percent. The Buckeyes have produced 233.3 rush yards per game and have 10 touchdowns on the ground this year. The Nittany Lions are putting up 275.0 rushing yards per game and have 20 total rush TDs.
The Buckeyes offensive scheme has logged a ridiculous 365.8 yards per game in the air overall and has 17 passing TDs so far. The Nittany Lions have recorded 239.5 pass yards per game and have 10 total pass scores.
Defensively, Ohio State has allowed 142.0 rush yards and 181.3 pass yards per game. The Penn State defense has allowed 173.3 yards per game to opposing passers and 172.5 yards per game to opposing runners. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to the opposition, as the Buckeyes have given up an ANY/A of 3.89 to opposing QBs, while the Nittany Lions are yielding an ANY/A of 3.64.
Offensively, Haskins is up to 850 passing yards on the year, and has connected on 82 percent of his 77 attempts with 14 scores through the air and only one interception. He has a pristine 13.62 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 12.28 over the last two games.
Parris Campbell (233 receiving yards, four receiving touchdowns this season), J.K. Dobbins (202 rush yards, two rush TDs) and K.J. Hill (164 receiving yards) have each played key roles of late.
Trace McSorley has completed 46-of-84 passes for 534 yards, six TDs and one INT for Penn State. His ANY/A stands at 6.90 for the season and 9.36 over his last two outings.
Similar to the Buckeyes, expect a balanced approach offensively from Penn State this Saturday. Miles Sanders (409 rushing yards, five rush TDs, 26 receiving yards on the year), Trace McSorley (181 rush yards, three rush TDs, zero receiving yards) and DeAndre Thompkins (10 receiving yards) have combined to account for 573 total yards and seven touchdowns over the last couple of games.
These two teams faced off a year ago with the final outcome being a 39-38 win for Ohio State.
Ohio State Buckeyes at Penn State Nittany Lions Free Prediction
SU Winner: Penn State, ATS Winner: Penn State
Team Betting Notes
- The Ohio State defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 15 times this year. Penn State has registered 14 sacks.
- The Penn State offense has lost three fumbles this season while Ohio State has let one get away.
- Each team has produced five pass plays of 40+ yards. The Buckeyes have have made 10 pass plays of 30+ yards while the Nittany Lions have created eight such plays.
- The Ohio State defense has allowed three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while Penn State has given up one such play.
- The Ohio State offense has created seven rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Penn State has created nine such runs.
- The Buckeyes defense has allowed five rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Nittany Lions have given up four such runs.
- Penn State was getting 28 points in its last match and the O/U going into it was 59.5. The over cashed and Penn State covered in that 63-24 win over Illinois.
- In its last three matchups, Penn State is 3-0 ATS and the over cashed in each of those three.
- Over its last three contests, Ohio State is 2-0-1 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
- Ohio State was favored by 38 points in its last game and the Over/Under going into it was 66. The under cashed and Ohio State covered in the 49-6 win over Tulane.
- Ohio State has averaged 4.65 yards per carry across its past three games and 4.2 over its last two.
- Penn State has averaged 6.9 yards per carry over its last three outings and 7.1 over its past two.
