9/8/18
Rutgers may be better than it was a couple years ago, but it’s still miles behind a team like Ohio State. The Buckeyes stomped their way to 77 points in the opener, while the SCarlet Knights managed a 35-7 win even though their quarterback threw three interceptions. As expected, the Bucks are large -35 point home favorites with an over/under of 61.5 points at 5Dimes Sportsbook.
This Game is an annual bloodbath with Ohio State winning the last two meetings by a combined 114-0. That’s an ugly Scoreline, but Rutgers at least has confidence going into this one after a solid opening performance. The problem for the Rutgers offense all season may be at quarterback where freshman Artur Sitkowski needs a lot of work. He struggled against Texas State and could have major issues against the OSU defensive front that features Nick Bosa and Dre’Mont Jones. If the Knights can’t at least move the ball on the ground, Sitkowski could be in for a long day. They ran for 218 yards against Texas State, but surpassing 100 yards in this Game may be difficult.
In last year’s meeting, Rutgers got nothing from its three quarterbacks, while the ground Game managed 117 yards on 2.9 yards per carry. It’s possible the same thing happens again because at this point Sitkowski isn’t much better than whomever Rutgers threw on the field last season.
As for the Buckeyes, they should be able to hit around 50 points again after Dwayne Haskins looked the part in the opener with 313 yards and five touchdowns. Throw in stud tailbacks Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins and the Bucks only had to punt once against Oregon State. Rutgers may present a little more resistance, but not by much. J.T. Barrett destroyed Rutgers last year, while the running Game went for 7.4 yards per carry and 275 yards. The Knights are improving, but there’s little reason to suggest they can stop the Buckeyes from reaching 50 points.
If this Game goes how the last couple have gone, Ohio State will get an easy cover and the under will hit. The best chance for the over to hit is if Rutgers finds the end zone. If not, the Bucks will have to Scoreover 60 points and that’s not exactly something to bet on. The spread will only go up for OSU considering it has beaten Rutgers by at least 39 points in all Four of its matchups. The -35 point spread was seen on Wednesday and it opened lower than that. As seen in the opener, the absence of Urban Meyer isn’t a huge deal when the opponent is bottom of the league.
The SCarlet Knights are 4-1 ATS in their last five on the road, but 4-9 ATS in their last 13 vs. a team with a winning record. The over is 9-2 in the Buckeyes last 11 Conference Games and 5-2 in their last seven home Games.
Our Pick – OVER 64.5