Will Michigan Beat Notre Dame Again? Who Wins Ohio St. vs. Virginia Tech? What About Michigan St. vs. Oregon? Here are our Vegas Big Ten Predictions for Week 2

Vegas Big Ten Predictions

Virginia Tech at No. 8 Ohio State

Line: Ohio State by 11

Welcome to a showdown between a team trying to prove its still a national title contender and a team trying to get back into the upper echelon of college football. The Ohio State Buckeyes needed some big plays on defense on Saturday to put away Navy, and for a while they looked like they would severely miss Braxton Miller for the season. But J.T. Barrett got going in the second half as the defense provided the spark and momentum the team needed, and let’s not forget that Navy is never a team you should take lightly. There’s not that much to read into the Buckeyes struggling in the first half with the Midshipmen because it should have been expected. Now, they have a tougher test this week with the Virginia Tech Hokies coming to town, and a big win is a great chance for Ohio State to prove it’s back.

Virginia Tech had a nice 34-9 win over William and Mary last weekend, but with a team of a much different nature coming to town this week, the Hokies will need to focus on exploiting any weakness they can find. That means quarterback Michael Brewer has to have a big day, a much bigger day than he had last week while all six receivers who picked up a good chunk of yards last week will have to step up again. Shai McKenzie had 106 yards on the ground with just 9 carries, which was nice, but for the Hokies to beat the Buckeyes, they’ll have to rely on the passing game to exploit the weak Ohio State secondary and use their defense to hopefully force a few turnovers. And they’ll have to take care of the football. If all of that happens, this team might have a chance to pull of the shocker. But that’s asking a lot.

Prediction

The Hokies will have a couple of nice big passing plays and force a few turnovers to keep this game very interesting, but once again Ohio State will pull away in the second half. The Buckeyes still have a great offense that just needs to find its rhythm, and that will show by the fourth quarter.

Ohio State: 34 Virginia Tech: 24