Ohio State vs. Michigan State odds, line: 2018 college football picks, predictions from expert who’s 8-0 on Buckeyes games
The Michigan State Spartans host the Ohio State Buckeyes in a huge Big Ten battle Saturday at noon ET. The No. 10 Buckeyes are favored by 3.5 over the No. 18 Spartans in the latest Ohio State vs. Michigan State odds. The over-under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, is down to 52 after opening at 53.5 for this critical Big Ten game. Both teams are under .500 against the spread this season and have had issues covering, so before you make your Ohio State vs. Michigan State picks and predictions, be sure to check out what SportsLine data scientist Stephen Oh has to say.
The renowned co-founder of AccuScore, Oh simulates each game 10,000 times using the SportsLine projection model, and he’s on an astonishing run picking games involving the Buckeyes, hitting his past eight against the spread. That includes taking Penn State (+3.5) in its mega-matchup with Ohio State that the Buckeyes won 27-26 back on Sept. 28. He also nailed TCU’s cover (+13) in a 40-28 loss to Ohio State on Sept. 14.
Now, Oh has locked in another strong against-the-spread pick involving the Buckeyes. He’s only sharing it over at SportsLine.
Oh knows that the strength of the Buckeyes has been their offense, which racks up nearly 550 yards per game. They’ve been moving the ball at will this season, and finding a way to do it against a stingy Michigan State defense will be the key to victory.
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins has thrown for 3,053 yards and 32 touchdowns with just six interceptions and he’ll need another big day against the Spartans if Ohio State wants to stay in the College Football Playoff discussion. Meanwhile, wide receivers Parris Campbell and Terry McLaurin have a combined 16 touchdowns.
But just because Ohio State features an explosive offense that can hurt you in a multitude of ways doesn’t mean it will cover the 3.5-point spread.
The Spartans haven’t been as prolific as Ohio State on offense, but they’ve given every team they’ve faced problems by managing the clock in an attempt to make their opponents one-dimensional.
Michigan State is allowing just 2.5 yards per carry and is coming off its best performance of the season. The Spartans held Maryland to 100 yards of total offense and they’ll look to duplicate last week’s performance against Ohio State on Saturday.
Oh has analyzed this matchup from every possible angle and while we can tell you he’s leaning under, he has discovered a crucial x-factor that makes one side of the spread a must-back. He’s only sharing his pick over at SportsLine.
Who covers Ohio State vs. Michigan State? And what crucial x-factor causes one side of the spread to hit hard? Visit SportsLine now to see which side you need to jump all over Saturday, all from the data scientist who’s an insane 8-0 run picking Ohio State games.
Source: Read Full Article