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Vegas Odds- Ohio State (-12), OVER/UNDER; 47
All the pundits out there are harping that OSU’s win vs Navy was closer than the score showed. I’m here to tell you that if not for 2 red zone turnovers (an interception and a failed 4th down conversion) Ohio State blows the brakes off of Navy and the whole national narrative changes. Think about it, convert those two red zone chances into just field goals and the Buckeyes drop 40. Not to mention that Navy’s touchdown in the first quarter was NOT a touchdown. The dude’s knee was clearly down. So after I expertly broke that down, the Buckeyes score really should have been 40-10.
But I digress. Now onto this Virginia Tech game. As I type this I’m currently in a car on 71 South driving to Columbus decked out in Buckeye gear. Hang On Sloopy is on the radio and I’m doing the O-H-I-O chant in the backseat. I’m armed with 2 Five Hour Energys at my disposal and some unbridled enthusiasm. There’s NO way Ohio State loses this game. No way.
What to watch for:
The Buckeye defense vs. a traditional offense.
Urban Meyer said it himself that the defense would not even watch the game tape from last weekend. When Facing a Wing T offense, there’s no way to gauge how good a team’s defense actually is. Virginia Tech returns 4 starters from last year’s offensive line. Aside from that experience, Tech is young and inexperienced on that side of the ball. Look for Luke Fickell to dial up the blitzes to try and rattle Texas Tech transfer QB Michael Brewer.
Ohio State offense vs. an aggressive Hokie defense
The Virginia Tech secondary trots out two players who had 5+ interceptions last year. Phil Steele said the Tech may possess the best secondary in the entire nation. I’ll admit that this worries me. The Hokies are always known to play an aggressive blitzing defense. The Ohio State offensive line NEEDS to play 10x better this week to have any chance of moving the ball.
JT Barrett’s second career start
I imagine making your second career start… at night… in front of 105,000 Buckeye fans… on national TV… vs a very established college football program may be just a tad nerve racking. It will be imperative that JT comes out and makes confident, good plays in the beginning of the game. He needs to set the tone early.
Game Prediction
The Buckeyes will come out hyped up as hell this game. I can easily see Virginia Tech trying a trick play right out of the gate. They’ll try and take advantage of the Buckeyes over aggressiveness. Maybe a hitch and go or a wheel route of some sort.
Look for the Buckeyes to try and establish a running game early and rotating backs Ezekiel Elliott and Curtis Samuel. This will open up the play action game and provide JT Barrett with easy reads and throws. Curtis Grant will make a big play on defense and Dontre Wilson final breaks one for a long touchdown.
Buckeyes win 31-20 and but do not cover the 12 point spread and the game goes OVER.
Bottlegate 