Ohio State Buckeyes vs Minnesota Golden Gophers Pick

Point Spread: Minnesota +29.5 / Ohio State -29.5 (Intertops)
Over/Under Total: 59.5

The Ohio State Buckeyes will host the Minnesota Golden Gophers in a B1G contest set to take place in at the fabled Ohio Stadium otherwise known as “The Horseshoe”. Coverage will be on the B1G Network live from Columbus, Ohio on Saturday, October 13th, 2018. Kick-off is scheduled for 12:00 PM ET. Dating back to 2001, the Buckeyes have won every meeting against the Golden Gophers. However, in the last five meetings the Gophs have gone 4-1 ATS against the Scarlet and Grey. Last year in the Twin Cities, the Buckeyes defeated the Golden Gophers 28-14.

Ohio State Continues To Do What Ohio State Best

The Buckeyes continue to win with emphasis as they seemingly have put the entire Urban Meyer controversy in the rear view mirror. Signal caller Dwayne Haskins presently is putting together the most prolific season by a quarterback in the school’s illustrious history. Currently, Haskins has thrown for 25 touchdowns and just four interceptions and nearly hit 2,000 yards already. The man has also hit 71.7% of his passes. At this point, he could be the front-runner for the Heisman trophy. Ohio State’s big win this season came two weeks ago when they rallied on the road against Penn State to edge out the Nittany Lions in a top-ten battle 27-26. The victory catapulted the Buckeyes to their present ranking as the No. 3 team in America.

Minnesota Loses Floyd of Rosedale

The Golden Gophers come in off their second defeat in a row when they fell at the hands of rival Iowa by a score of 48-31 in Minneapolis, last Saturday. The battle was for the fabled Floyd of Rosedale trophy which Iowa won for the fourth year in a row against their counterparts. Previous to this, the Gophers were rolled on the road at Maryland two weeks previous to this. Prior to this, Minnesota got off to a hot 3-0 start.

Minnesota’s Defense Against Ohio State’s Offense will be key. Believe it or not, Minnesota has quite an excellent defense. The problem lies in their offenses desire to get off the field quick and leave their defense on the field all game. The metrics still illustrate how potent this Gophers defense is as they rank in the top-25 in total defense with just 324.2 yards of total defense per game. Moreover, Minnesota allows only 196.8 yards per game through the air (37th nationally) and 127.4 rushing yards per game (38th nationally). On paper, this unit has can certainly be a disruptive force against Ohio State’s methodical offense. The key of course is Minnesota’s offense doing its part to give these boys a chance to rest. The problem lies in there with Ohio State’s defense being among the most talented in the country.

Take Minnesota +29.5

There are many factors that are prone to make the Buckeyes overvalued here. First, Ohio State in itself is one of college football’s blue bloods. Alone on this narrative, the Scarlet and Grey will inflict a premium on takers to back them. When you add in the fact they are at home, that propensity raises more. When you toss in that Ohio State is now a top-three team across all polls that potential is even greater and more imminent. Coupling this with the fact, Minnesota enters in poor form there will be more inclination to spot a lofty allotment of points as opposed to taking them back with a team like the Golden Gophers.

TIRED OF YOUR CREDIT CARD NOT WORKING AT SPORTSBOOKS? IT WILL AT Intertops + GET A 50% CASH BONUS!