The non conference portion of Ohio State’s schedule is complete which means it’s time for Big Ten football. Each year one of the goals for the Buckeyes is to play for and win a Big Ten Championship, something they haven’t won since the 2020 season. As conference play opens and Ohio State is currently ranked 3rd in the polls and 3-0, a familar foe awaits in East Lansing to play spoiler. While the Buckeyes have won 9 out of their last 10 against Sparty, if history tells us anything it's that every once in a while Michigan State has been able to pull the upset on Ohio State. Michigan State last won in this series in 2015 when they went into Columbus and defeated the Buckeyes 17-14 with a backup quarterback. This would ultimately diminish any national championship aspirations the Buckeyes had that season. Another monumental upset between these two came back in 1998 when then head coach Nick Saban led the Spartans to a shocking 28-24 win against the top ranked Buckeyes at the Horseshoe. Needless to say you always have to play your best against the green and white. With all of that being said, the last time Michigan State defeated Ohio State at home was 1999 when they won 23-7. Overall though the Buckeyes have owned the series with the Spartans with a record of 37-15.
Last week while Ohio State was able to defeat Marshall 49-14 at home, Michigan State lost a heartbreaker on the road 23-19 to Boston College. The Spartans held a 19-16 lead with 4:16 to play after a Johnathan Kim 27 yard field goal. Boston College would respond with a 42 yard touchdown pass with 90 seconds left and hold on to hand Sparty its first loss of the season. The Spartans come into Saturday's matchup with a 3-1 record.
Traditionally, Michigan State has been a run the ball first and rely on their defense kind of team and this year’s Spartans fit the mold perfectly. Michigan State has two talented running backs that they showcase. Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams and Nate Carter have combined for just under 500 yards on the ground this season and that could test an Ohio State rush defense which has been vulnerable at times so far this season. Defensively Michigan State ranks 26th in the country in points allowed per game with an average of 14.25. Leading the way in tackles this season is linebacker Jordan Turner who has three sacks and 22 total tackles. Mansfield’s own Angelo Grose who plays defensive back is currently second on the team with 20 total tackles and has an interception. The Tyger legend looks to cap off his Spartan career as a 5th year senior with a solid performance against the top tested receiving corps in the country.
As in weeks past the theme of slowing down Ohio State’s high power offense will once again play factor here in this matchup. Sparty will look to slow it down and work that clock as Marshall and Akron successfully did for a half. The question is can they outlast the determination and depth of this talented Ohio State offense? Defensively Ohio State should key on stopping the run, particularly the quarterback draw. It’ll be interesting to see how these two very different teams play out against each other.
Ohio State travels to East Lansing for their first road game of the year against Michigan State in their Big Ten conference opener. The game will be streamed on Peacock exclusively at 7:30pm Saturday night from Spartan Stadium.