With a Big Ten title and a playoff berth on the horizon, Michigan Football must first get over the Ohio State stumbling block in Columbus.
Michigan sits comfortably at No. 4 in the committee’s top four on the strength of 10 straight victories. Standing between them and a berth in the Big Ten Championship is The Game between Ohio State.
The Buckeyes have long tormented the Wolverines in the recent history of the rivalry, with Michigan boasting just one win in the series since 2003. Ohio State currently rides a six-game winning streak, with Urban Meyer picking up where Jim Tressel left off in dominating the team up North.
Jim Harbaugh was brought to Michigan to bring the Wolverines back to national prominence, and that can’t happen without getting the Ohio State monkey off of their backs. Harbaugh is 0-3 against the Buckeyes, and this will be the first season he has led Michigan to a better than third place finish in the Big Ten East.
This is Harbaugh’s best shot, as in year four he has his best team in Ann Arbor. Led by Karan Higdon and a power running game, along with competent QB play thanks to Shea Patterson, and a ferocious defense, Michigan finds themselves the favorite in The Game, with a win lifting them into next weekend’s Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern.
Despite the 10-1 record, it has been a tumultuous season in Columbus. Urban Meyer’s mishandling of the Zach Smith situation, and lingering health concerns surrounding the Buckeyes head coach has put a dark cloud over the 2018 campaign.
Their come-from-behind victory over Maryland last week positions the Buckeyes to steal the East away from the Wolverines, and end Michigan’s shot at the playoff in the process.
Will Michigan snap their six-game losing streak to Ohio State, or will the Buckeyes continue to torment the Wolverines?
Here’s how you can watch The Game on Saturday afternoon:
Date: Saturday, November 24
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Location: Columbus, OH
Venue: Ohio Stadium
TV: FOX
Live Stream: FOX Sports Go | FuboTV
Keys to Victory
The running game on both sides of the ball will be key. Michigan’s bread-and-butter offensively has been Karan Higdon and the ground game. The senior running back has over 1100 yards and 10 touchdowns, his play allowing Harbaugh to have the type of offense that he craves: a big physically dominant running game, with the play-action passing game working as a change-of-pace. Maryland’s Anthony McFarland gouged Ohio State a week ago for 298 yards rushing; they’ll have to do better than that this week to have a shot in this game. Michigan hopes to establish the run and impose their will on the Buckeyes for 60-minutes.
On the other side, it will be imperative that Ohio State establishes the run to alleviate some of the pressure off of Dwayne Haskins. J.K. Dobbins had over 200 yards rushing last week, and with Mike Weber set to be back this week, the Buckeyes will hope to be able to move the ball against Michigan’s stout front. The Wolverines are No. 1 in the nation against the pass, so they’ll hope to stop the run and force Ohio State to be one-dimensional offensively.
Betting Odds
Odds courtesy of oddsshark.com
Point Spread: Michigan -4.5
Over/Under: 56
Prediction
With all eyes on Higdon, I actually expect this to be the game that Shea Patterson puts the Wolverines on his back and proves his mettle as the team’s starter. The Ole Miss transfer has been good all year, but he has been more of a game manager for Harbaugh this season, which is exactly what his head coach has asked of him. Patterson’s dual-threat ability will be on full display, and I think he’ll hit some big passes, as well as some big runs, to finally lift Michigan over the Ohio State hump, clinching a spot in Indianapolis opposite Northwestern next week.
Final Score: Michigan 30, Ohio State 27