Big Ten Championship Game Prediction
Northwestern will take on Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game at 12:00 p.m. ET on Saturday. Is 18.5 points too many to lay with the Buckeyes or will they roll versus a Wildcats team that has compiled a 6-1 record to date?
Game Snapshot
229 Northwestern Wildcats (+18.5) at 230 Ohio State Buckeyes (-18.5); o/u 55.5
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
12:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, December 19, 2020
TV: FOX
Northwestern Wildcats Game Notes
Northwestern redshirt senior QB Peyton Ramsey completed just 7-of-12 passes for 82 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in Saturday’s 28-10 win against Illinois. The win was nice for the Wildcats, and the aerials just weren’t a big part of what the offense was doing. They didn’t have to. Northwestern gobbled up a ridiculous 411 rushing yards on 58 attempts, scoring three times and gaining 7.1 yards per rushing attempt. So why pass? Ramsey got in on the rushing fun, going for 47 yards on nine attempts. He and WR Kyric McGowan hooked up four times for 72 yards, but it was mostly ground and pound. Next up for the Wildcats is a date the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship Game next Saturday afternoon.
Ohio State Buckeyes Game Notes
Ohio State junior QB Justin Fields completed 17-of-24 passes for 199 yards and two scores while rushing for 104 yards and two touchdowns in a 52-12 win over Michigan State on Saturday. After a three-interception effort against Indiana, Fields was much more secure with the football on Saturday. The 6-foot-3, 228-pound signal-caller didn’t get the ball downfield as much as he (probably) would have liked, but he did punctuate the blowout with a beautiful 41-yard strike to Chris Olave late in the contest. He showed off his usual dual-threat prowess; running in from short yardage in the first and second quarter.
Northwestern vs. Ohio State Betting Prediction
The favorite is 7-1 against the spread in the last eight series meetings between these two teams, so that means the Wildcats are 1-7 against the number in their last eight games versus the Buckeyes. Northwestern is also just 2-7-1 at the betting window in its last 10 games after allowing less than 20 points in its last game and is 1-4-1 against the spread in its last six contests after accumulating more than 200 yards rushing in its previous game.
On the other side, the Buckeyes have covered the spread in 12 of their last 17 games as a favorite, are 9-4 against the spread in their last 13 neutral site games and are 10-3 at the betting window in their last 13 games following an ATS win. Ohio State has also covered in 15 of its last 22 games overall.
BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME PREDICTION: OHIO STATE BUCKEYES -18.5
