Gene Ross
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Ohio State opens as 39.5-point favorites over Western Michigan
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
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Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The Buckeyes are once again heavy favorites as they welcome the Broncos to town under the lights.
After easily dispatching Akron in Week 1, Ohio State welcomes another non-conference opponent to Columbus on Saturday when the Western Michigan Broncos come to town for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff.
The Buckeyes took a bit longer to get going against the Zips than head coach Ryan Day would have liked, but they were never in danger of losing in a 52-6 victory over Akron.
Ohio State’s defense was the star of the show, keeping the opposition out of the end zone for the entirety of the contest and scoring two touchdowns of its own on a pick six and a scoop-and-score fumble recovery as part of three total takeaways. As a team, the Buckeyes recorded five sacks and tallied 10 tackles for loss, with guys like J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer making a living in Akron’s backfield. Overall, the Silver Bullets allowed less than 180 yards and held the Zips to 47 rushing yards on 1.3 yards per carry.
Offensively it was the Jeremiah Smith show, as the highly touted freshman lived up to the hype with six catches for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Will Howard settled in after a slow start to throw for 228 yards and three TDs, while TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins combined for 120 yards rushing on 21 carries. The offensive line looked a bit shaky without Donovan Jackson, who was held out of the game for precautionary reasons, but got better as the game moved along.
Western Michigan will be facing its second Big Ten foe of the season to begin the year, staying competitive but ultimately falling to Wisconsin 28-14 at Camp Randall in the opener. The Broncos held a 14-13 lead early in the third quarter, but couldn’t make it stick against the Badgers as they were held scoreless over the final 29 minutes of play.
Fifth-year senior Hayden Wolff leads Western Michigan at quarterback after spending his first three years at Old Dominion, completing 12-of-18 passes for 141 yards with a pick against Wisconsin. Jalen Buckley, last season’s MAC Freshman of the Year, heads the rushing attack, scoring both of the Broncos’ touchdowns against the Badgers with 64 yards on 16 carries and a 24-yard reception. No wide receiver had more than two catches for Western Michigan in Week 1, as Malique Dieudonne’s two grabs for 45 yards paced the room.
Former Minnesota transfer Donald Willis and corner Bilhal Kone led the way defensively against Wisco, each recording a game-high 10 tackles. The Broncos struggled to get the Badgers off the field on Friday night, allowing them to convert on 10-of-16 third down attempts and giving up nearly 400 yards of total offense evenly split between the passing and rushing attacks. Western Michigan did manage to force one turnover, a forced fumble on quarterback Tyler Van Dyke in the third quarter, and defensive lineman Isaiah Green recorded the team’s lone sack.
Ohio State will be looking to get off to a better start this time around against a better team than Akron, but one that they still hold a significant talent advantage over. The Buckeyes will hope to get both Jackson and linebacker Cody Simon back after the pair sat out the win over the Zips while nursing nagging camp injuries. Full strength or not, Day’s team will hope to build off Week 1 and come away with another large margin of victory as they work through the non-conference schedule.
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Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images
The Buckeyes are once again heavy favorites as they welcome the Broncos to town under the lights.
After easily dispatching Akron in Week 1, Ohio State welcomes another non-conference opponent to Columbus on Saturday when the Western Michigan Broncos come to town for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff.
Bettings Odds: Ohio State -39.5 (per DraftKings Sportsbook)
The Buckeyes took a bit longer to get going against the Zips than head coach Ryan Day would have liked, but they were never in danger of losing in a 52-6 victory over Akron.
Ohio State’s defense was the star of the show, keeping the opposition out of the end zone for the entirety of the contest and scoring two touchdowns of its own on a pick six and a scoop-and-score fumble recovery as part of three total takeaways. As a team, the Buckeyes recorded five sacks and tallied 10 tackles for loss, with guys like J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer making a living in Akron’s backfield. Overall, the Silver Bullets allowed less than 180 yards and held the Zips to 47 rushing yards on 1.3 yards per carry.
Offensively it was the Jeremiah Smith show, as the highly touted freshman lived up to the hype with six catches for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Will Howard settled in after a slow start to throw for 228 yards and three TDs, while TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins combined for 120 yards rushing on 21 carries. The offensive line looked a bit shaky without Donovan Jackson, who was held out of the game for precautionary reasons, but got better as the game moved along.
Western Michigan will be facing its second Big Ten foe of the season to begin the year, staying competitive but ultimately falling to Wisconsin 28-14 at Camp Randall in the opener. The Broncos held a 14-13 lead early in the third quarter, but couldn’t make it stick against the Badgers as they were held scoreless over the final 29 minutes of play.
Fifth-year senior Hayden Wolff leads Western Michigan at quarterback after spending his first three years at Old Dominion, completing 12-of-18 passes for 141 yards with a pick against Wisconsin. Jalen Buckley, last season’s MAC Freshman of the Year, heads the rushing attack, scoring both of the Broncos’ touchdowns against the Badgers with 64 yards on 16 carries and a 24-yard reception. No wide receiver had more than two catches for Western Michigan in Week 1, as Malique Dieudonne’s two grabs for 45 yards paced the room.
Former Minnesota transfer Donald Willis and corner Bilhal Kone led the way defensively against Wisco, each recording a game-high 10 tackles. The Broncos struggled to get the Badgers off the field on Friday night, allowing them to convert on 10-of-16 third down attempts and giving up nearly 400 yards of total offense evenly split between the passing and rushing attacks. Western Michigan did manage to force one turnover, a forced fumble on quarterback Tyler Van Dyke in the third quarter, and defensive lineman Isaiah Green recorded the team’s lone sack.
Ohio State will be looking to get off to a better start this time around against a better team than Akron, but one that they still hold a significant talent advantage over. The Buckeyes will hope to get both Jackson and linebacker Cody Simon back after the pair sat out the win over the Zips while nursing nagging camp injuries. Full strength or not, Day’s team will hope to build off Week 1 and come away with another large margin of victory as they work through the non-conference schedule.
Continue reading...