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Ohio State vs Rutgers Pick, Odds: Big Ten Betting Preview

It’s time to dive into Ohio State vs Rutgers picks and odds in our Big Ten betting preview for Saturday’s college football game.

Ohio State Buckeyes vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights Odds

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Not many people had Rutgers and Ohio State combining for a 14-2 record entering Week 10 on their respective bingo cards.

That’s the reality however, with the Buckeyes methodically handling their business behind an elite defense, and the Scarlet Knights finding a way to win every time they’ve faced a similar or inferior opponent.

Expect Piscataway to be rocking on Saturday at noon, with the rare opportunity for the New Jersey faithful to get behind a 6-2 team that will be taking on the No. 1 team in the land following the Tuesday night initial CFP reveal.

Where does the betting value lie with Ohio State currently favored by 18.5 and the total at 42.5? Let’s dive into things.

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I’ve talked about it in recent weeks, but the Jim Knowles effect is on full display in year two.

The Buckeyes’ defense has been absolutely swarming all season and has still yet to allow an opponent to score more than 17 points.

A few metrics that show just how strong this unit has been: Ohio State ranks inside the top 15 in both Defensive Rush and Pass Success Rate, and it’s inside the top 10 in all of FBS in Finishing Drives and Quality Drives.

The Rutgers offense will have its hands full against a defense that forces you to methodically move the ball down the field.

On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes’ offense continues to sputter a little bit. There are elite playmakers in this group, including future top-five pick Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka and the now-healthy TreVeyon Henderson.

I’m just not very bullish on Kyle McCord, who threw two interceptions in Madison last week and often looks shaky in the pocket.

If this Buckeyes team wants to get to where it wants to go, McCord must show improvement in the final third of the season.

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It hasn’t always been pretty, but Rutgers just keeps finding ways to win.

Greg Schiano has done an impressive job in his second stint at the helm, and Saturday will be one of the biggest home games in some time for Rutgers.

Offensively, the Scarlet Knights have had a lot of success on the ground, but that will be difficult on Saturday against an OSU defense that’s elite at stopping the run.

When forced to drop back and pass, the results haven’t exactly been pretty for Gavin Wimsatt.

He’s completing just over 50% of his passes, is averaging under 150 yards per game and has a four TD/four INT ratio in Big Ten play.

The defense has been very opportunistic and has gotten key stops when it’s needed to throughout the season.

The biggest challenge on Saturday will be trying to contain Harrison, who can take the top off the defense at any moment.

If Rutgers can keep him and Egbuka in check, it can get some stops and apply some pressure on McCord.

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Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Ohio State and Rutgers match up statistically:

Ohio State Offense vs. Rutgers Defense
Offense
Defense
Edge
Rush Success 64 124
Line Yards 69 105
Pass Success 15 13
Havoc 8 65
Finishing Drives 60 19
Quality Drives 15 9
Rutgers Offense vs. Ohio State Defense
Offense
Defense
Edge
Rush Success 36 13
Line Yards 57 32
Pass Success 108 3
Havoc 6 51
Finishing Drives 42 7
Quality Drives 38 2
Pace of Play / Other
PFF Tackling 21 2
PFF Coverage 3 8
Special Teams SP+ 20 74
Middle 8 20 94
Seconds per Play 27.4 (73) 30.3 (123)
Rush Rate 51.9% (74) 63.2% (9)
Data via CollegeFootballData.com, SP+, Pro Football Focus and SportSource Analytics.

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Ohio State unders have been a covering machine for us all season, and I don’t see Saturday afternoon being any different.

Rutgers is going to have a very difficult time moving the ball in this contest, especially given the somewhat one-dimensional nature of its offense.

Look for Ryan Day to lean on his stable of running backs to wear out the Rutgers front, which will chew plenty of clock and lead to longer drives.

It’s always stressful playing a total this low, but there’s still value on the under here.

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Mike McNamara

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