Staff Picks: Indiana vs Ohio State

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Indiana heads into another matchup against a top-10 team and another one at Memorial Stadium. This marks the third top-10 opponent this year.

IU sits at 2-4 with all losses coming to ranked opponents. Ohio State sits at 5-1 with an early season loss to Oregon.

Here are our staff picks for the matchup.

Indiana crosses the midway point of its schedule as they are set to play its 5th ranked opponent already (with more to come). In those games IU has given up 116 pts while only scoring 45. Now the 7th ranked Ohio State Buckeyes come to Bloomington Saturday for what will be a sold out Memorial Stadium under the lights and cameras of a national ABC-TV audience. Last week I picked IU to beat Sparty depending on a fierce and opportunistic defense and an offense that just needed to be self sustaining. Unfortunately, that second part did not materialize. I knew they could win, but.... So, to be honest, I cannot imagine a scenario where Indiana wins this week against an Ohio State team that is not quite as good as those of recent pas, but still formidable. The Hoosiers' defense has played hard in every game, but just does not score enough. I say that because the Hoosiers have only scored 1 offensive touchdown in B1G play while giving up 3 TDs to opposing defenses. Ohio State is playing for a B1G title and I do not see them taking Indiana lightly, at least not for the first three quarters. Last season the Bucks were a 21 point favorite, as they are this year. Unlike last season where I couldn't wait to take the points, this year I do not know if its enough.

Prediction: Ohio State 42, Indiana 17

I think this game is close for part of the first half -- just due to the night atmosphere at Memorial Stadium -- but the Buckeyes will eventually flex its muscles and win by a few touchdowns. I think the IU defense will keep the Hoosiers in the game for even longer than expected as well. I just don't see how the Hoosiers have a legit shot of winning this one if they can't score points. With just one touchdown in Big Ten play, there is no real optimism that facing the Buckeyes will bring out a new IU offense.

Prediction: Ohio State 27, Indiana 13

Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud and the offense is looking better at this point in the season and will be a hard matchup for IU's defense. Though the Hoosiers defense held No. 10 Michigan State to 20 points, the offense's production is the primary concern heading into this matchup. IU has struggled to score in the red zone all season and against Ohio State; I don't see that drastically improving this week.

IU can score a few touchdowns but won't hold off Ohio State.

Prediction: Ohio State 35, Indiana 14

The Indiana defense is going to be able to slow down the Buckeyes like they have other teams this season, but the generational talent on the Ohio State offense is going to show itself in the 3rd quarter when they start to pull away. Jack Tuttle will have a better day, throwing for two scores, and Chuck Campbell will add on a field goal. I think the Hoosiers play well, but Ohio State is just the better team on Saturday.

Prediction: Ohio State 35, Indiana 17

Tom Allen said before the season that all his team’s preseason buzz and accolades were worthless and that they had to back it up on the field. Boy oh boy was that ever true. Sure, the Hoosiers have had a brutal schedule, but they come intro Ohio State week 2-4 and totally demoralized. The offense has shown no sign of improvement and there’s no reason to think a positive change in that trend is coming.

Prediction: Ohio State 31, Indiana 10

It could be a tough night for this Indiana team. I expect the defense to play decent, but without help from the offense, it could be tough to keep up. I think the Hoosiers could score a couple of touchdowns considering this Buckeye defense has had some issues this season, but Ohio State has shown big improvement in that side of the ball over the past couple of weeks.

Prediction: Ohio State 35, Indiana 14

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