The No. 18 Ohio State Buckeyes will host Miami (OH) on Saturday in the opening game for both schools in college football action. The game is scheduled for a 12:00 pm EST start time and it will be televised nationally on the Big Ten Network. Currently the odds for the game have the Buckeyes favored by 25 points.
Urban Meyer returns to Columbus and the Buckeyes today as they welcome in Miami (OH) University. Ohio State has several things going for it in this game prior to even taking the field. The Buckeyes haven't lost to an in-state school since Oberlin College in 1921 and no Ohio State coach has been beat in his debut game since Jack Ryder in 1892. Ohio State has won each of the four matchups, all played at Columbus. The teams haven't met since the 2005 season.
That being said, Meyer and the Buckeyes probably have a good shot at winning this game. That and the fact that they're a 25-point favorite of course. Ohio State is obviously banned from playing in a bowl game this season because of sanctions, but that doesn't mean they have nothing to play for this year. Many on the team believe they can win every game on their schedule and there's always the possibility of the mythical National Championship based on the voters.
Meyer has told his players to forget 2011, which saw them finish at 6-7 and lose their final four games. Sophomore quarterback Braxton Miller is supposed to be the best QB for Meyer's offense and he'll get a chance to showcase that talent today. Jordan Hall is injured and won't play in the game and Bri'onte Dunn will probably get a lot of the carries.
RedHawks senior QB Zac Dysert was pretty good last season, so he's going to pose a bit of a threat to the Buckeye defense. He's third in passing yardage among active quarterbacks, behind Oklahoma's Landry Jones and USC's Matt Barkley. Not bad company, for sure. Dysert threw for 3,513 yards with 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last year. In his final three games of the season he tossed for 1,172 yards. However, the RedHawks really struggled to a 4-8 season and Dysert was sacked 46 times last season -— second most in the country. He'll be throwing the ball to Nick Harwell, who was fifth in the FBS with 1,425 receiving yards and fourth with 129.5 per game.
Free Pick: Lots of points being laid by Ohio State, but we really don't see how Miami (OH) scores enough points to cover today.
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