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Ohio State Football: Way-too-early game-by-game predictions for 2018

By Connor Muldowney

PISCATAWAY, NJ - SEPTEMBER 30: Quarterback Dwayne Haskins #7 of the Ohio State Buckeyes during a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on September 30, 2017 at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey. Ohio State won 56-0. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
PISCATAWAY, NJ - SEPTEMBER 30: Quarterback Dwayne Haskins #7 of the Ohio State Buckeyes during a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on September 30, 2017 at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey. Ohio State won 56-0. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – OCTOBER 21: Head coach P.J. Fleck of the Minnesota Golden Gophers leads his team onto the field before the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini on October 21, 2017 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Golden Gophers defeated the Fighting Illini 24-17. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – OCTOBER 21: Head coach P.J. Fleck of the Minnesota Golden Gophers leads his team onto the field before the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini on October 21, 2017 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Golden Gophers defeated the Fighting Illini 24-17. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

P.J. Fleck took over at Minnesota last season but was unable to lead the Golden Gophers to a bowl game. It was somewhat surprising seeing as Minnesota had just won a bowl the season before and was returning key pieces, but there’s always an adjustment period under a new head coach’s direction and that one for Fleck lasted an entire season.

The Golden Gophers have somewhat of a quarterback crisis on their hands as Conor Rhoda is graduating and Demry Croft has announced his intention to transfer and he did so to Tennessee State. That leaves Fleck with no quarterbacks with experience heading into 2018 and that’s not ideal, to say the least.

Ohio State is going to take full advantage of this quarterback-less offense and blitz whoever is back under center all game long. Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks will be relied upon heavily to carry the offense and by this point in the season, they’ll be worn down. The Buckeyes will swallow them up and hold them to a combined 100 yards.

The Buckeyes’ defense, coupled with an increasingly-effective offense, will have no problem with the Golden Gophers in Columbus. This one will be over before you can say “Jim Harbaugh’s khakis make him look fat.”

Final Score: Minnesota 13, Ohio State 38 (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten)

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