Frank Lorenzo
One of the best games on the slate in week 11 is a classic Big Ten matchup between the No. 8 Michigan State Spartans and No. 13 Ohio State Buckeyes. The game will be played at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on November 8 (at 8:00 p.m. Eastern).
One of the best games on the slate in week 11 is a classic Big Ten matchup between the No. 8 Michigan State Spartans and No. 13 Ohio State Buckeyes. The game will be played at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on November 8 (at 8:00 p.m. Eastern).
Heading into week 10, both teams have one loss on their resume and both are undefeated in the Big Ten. Michigan State is five spots higher in the AP Poll though, as their lone loss came against No. 5 Oregon at Autzen Stadium (46-27), whereas Ohio State lost to unranked Virginia Tech at home (35-21).
After a pre-season shoulder injury to quarterback Braxton Miller, the Buckeyes have found new life with J.T. Barrett under center. The Freshman pivot has thrown for 1,689 yards, 21 TDs, and 7 INTs. But Barrett had one of his worst games of the season last week against Penn State, going just 12-19 for 74 yards, one TD, and two picks. Ohio State escaped with a narrow 31-24 victory in double overtime;
After the week 2 loss to Oregon, the Spartans have prevailed in six straight, including a quality win over Nebraska (27-22). The Spartans are led by Heisman hopeful and top NFL prospect Connor Cook. The Junior QB has thrown 17 touchdowns to just five interceptions and has a passer rating of 163.1 (seventh best in the nation). The Spartans also have a great run game led by Senior running back Jeremy Langford. As a team, Michigan State averages 255 yards per game on the ground (17th in the country); Langford leads the attack with 105 yards per game.
Both programs know whoever loses this game will be out of the playoff conversation.
Looking at the betting trends, since 1997, Ohio State is 9-4 SU and 7-5-1 ATS in against the Spartans. But Michigan State has won two of the last three meetings, including a 34-24 win last season, where the Spartans covered the spread as 5.5 point favorites.
In the intervening week, Ohio State is at home to a mediocre Illinois team, while the Spartans have a bye.
(Photo credit: Kyle Kesselring [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped from its original.)
