One of the annual marquee games on the Big Ten calendar will take place in Columbus this afternoon as the No. 7 Penn State Nittany Lions will visit the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes. The game will kick off at noon ET and will air on Fox.
Penn State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) is rolling into the ‘Horseshoe’ undefeated and prepped for this top 10 showdown by slicing up UMass 63-0 last Saturday. The Nittany Lions barely broke a sweat against the Minuteman and didn’t even need to do much offensively as cornerback Daequan Hardy housed two punt returns for touchdowns. Quarterback Drew Allar threw for three TD’s on offense while the defense recorded seven sacks in this tuneup game.
Ohio State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) was also able to grab a blowout victory ahead of today’s big-time showdown as it crushed Purdue in a 41-7 rout last weekend. The Buckeyes didn’t need the likes of TreVeyon Henderson and Emeka Egbuka to get rolling as they were up 20-0 at halftime and continued their dominance well into the second half. Wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. had six receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown in the win.
SP+ Rankings
Penn State: 8 overall, 24 offense, 2 defense
Ohio State: 2 overall, 10 offense, 4 defense
Injury update
Penn State
WR Jan Mahlert – Questionable (Undisclosed)
WR Mason Stahl – Questionable (Undisclosed)
Ohio State
S Cameron Martinez – Questionable (Undisclosed)
WR Emeka Egbuka – Questionable (Leg)
RB TreVeyon Henderson – Questionable (Undisclosed)
RB Chip Trayanum – Questionable (Undisclosed)
TE Joe Royer – Questionable (Undisclosed)
RB Miyan Williams – Questionable (Undisclosed)
RB TC Caffey – Out indefinitely (Knee)
LB Arvell Reese – Out indefinitely (Undisclosed)
ATS/Total
Against The Spread in 2023
Penn State: 6-0 ATS
Ohio State: 3-2-1 ATS
Total in 2023
Penn State: Over 4-2
Ohio State: Over 1-5
Team Pace
Penn State: 2.24 plays per minute of offense
Ohio State: 2.23 plays per minute of offense
Odds at DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread: Ohio State -4.5
Total: 45.5
Moneyline: Ohio State -198, Penn State +164
Opening line: Ohio State -4
Opening total: 46.5
Weather
58 degrees, cloudy with a few showers, 17 MPH winds with 29 MPH wind gusts
Our Best Bet for Penn State vs. Ohio State
Penn State +4.5
Ohio State has held control of this rivalry since 2006 and the last time PSU won in Columbus was in 2011. I think that changes here. The Nittany Lions have quietly handled its business and are a perfect 6-0 against the spread heading into this game. The offense has been excellent with Drew Allar, Nicholas Singleton, and Kaytron Allen leading the way.
Where I think this game is going to be decided is Ohio State’s ability to run the ball. The Buckeyes’ overall run game hasn’t been great this year and both TreVeyon Henderson and Chip Trayanum are dealing with injuries heading into this one. Meanwhile, Penn State’s run defense has been awesome, giving up just 72.5 rushing yards per game on 2.4 yards per carry. While Ohio State can press the Marvin Harrison Jr. button at any time, I think its offense is going to sputter at times because of their struggle to establish a consistent ground game. Give me the Nittany Lions to cover and outright win.