Every week, we will be picking the score, MVP, and major storyline for each Buckeye game.
Being the Buckeye beat’s black sheep blog, we here at Land-Grant Holy Land like to pat ourselves on the back. So, throughout the season, members of our staff will be making predictions about that day’s game. They will go on the record with what they think the final score will be, who the game’s MVP will be, and what the major storyline will be coming out of the day.
The Ohio State Buckeyes will square off with the Texas Longhorns tonight with a spot in the College Football Playoff Championship Game on the line. The Cotton Bowl is supposedly scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET and will be aired in various forms on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, SEC Network, and ESPN Deportes. However, last night’s Orange Bowl started closer to 7:45 p.m., so be forewarned
As of this article’s writing, the Bucks are 5.5-point favorites according to FanDuel Sportsbook. College football’s gold-standard advanced analytics model SP+ is predicting a score of 26-22 in favor of Ohio State.
Check out what our staff members think and then let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments below. As we move forward with the season, you will be able to keep up with just how well our prognosticators do on a weekly basis HERE.
Michael Citro
Score Prediction: Ohio State 27, Texas 24
Game MVP: Caleb Downs
Major Storyline: The Texas secondary and pass rush will force Ohio State into a slow start and a rock fight-type game ensues.
Justin Golba
Score Prediction: Ohio State 34, Texas 24
Game MVP: Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: Emeka Egbuka will break the all-time receiving yards record in one of his best games as a Buckeye.
Dan Hessler
Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Texas 21
Game MVP: Jeremiah Smith
Major Storyline: Jeremiah Smith is still the best player in all of college football as a freshman and Will Howard will continue to prove doubters wrong as the defensive line shows out again.
Caleb Houser
Score Prediction: Ohio State 35, Texas 24
Game MVP: Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: Will Howard continues his dominant postseason run throwing for three touchdowns and 225 yards. The running back duo of TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins also rush for a TD a piece. The defense allows some points, but the game is never within two scores until the last two minutes.
Brett Ludwiczak
Score Prediction: Ohio State 37, Texas 21
Game MVP: Will Howard
Major Storyline: Ohio State has been playing at another level in the playoff and that continues against Texas. The Buckeyes have jumped out to big early leads against Tennessee and Oregon to leave no doubt in the result. We see another strong start to the game tonight, leaving the Longhorns in a hole they aren’t able to dig themselves out of. The defense sacks Quinn Ewers at least five times in another double-digit win.
Gene Ross
Score Prediction: Ohio State 34, Texas 21
Game MVP: Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: Ohio State continues to attack through the air, and with so much focus on Jeremiah Smith, it is Emeka Egbuka who scores two touchdowns to lead the way. The Buckeyes keep Ewers off schedule with their defensive front in a game that is close at the half.
Matt Tamanini
Score Prediction: Ohio State 38, Texas 16
Game MVP: Will Howard
Major Storyline: Texas has an excellent defense, possibly the best in college football… behind Ohio State’s. The growing confidence and comfortability that this team and its coaches have shown during the first two playoff games finally have the Buckeyes playing at — or at least near — peak potential, and I don’t see that slowing down all that much tonight.
While the Texas defense very well might try to put the clamps on Jeremiah Smith with the help of Thorpe Award winner Jahdae Barron, there are just too many weapons on the Buckeye offense to stop. I don’t expect OSU to race out to the blistering start that it did against Tennessee and Oregon, but I don’t exactly expect them to be particularly stymied either. I look for Will Howard to take advantage of shorter throws while the UT defense looks to prevent deep balls. The Buckeye QB will distribute the ball more to tight end Gee Scott Jr. and running back TreVeyon Henderson than he has in the first two games, opening things up for Emeka Egbuka, Carnell Tate, and — of course — Smith.
On the other side of the ball, with all due respect to Buckeye great Quinn Ewers, the Texas offense is too inconsistent and mistake-prone to overcome the Silver Bullets.
Jordan Williams
Score Prediction: Ohio State 34, Texas 17
Game MVP: Cody Simon and Emeka Egbuka
Major Storyline: The major storyline will be a reminder of how good Emeka Egbuka is. Texas will try to double-team Jeremiah Smith (it won’t work) but Emeka will go for over 100 yards and two touchdowns in another blowout. There will be increased conversation about Egbuka’s NFL prospects as a result. The national media will also begin to acknowledge how dominant the Ohio State defense has been after they shut down Texas’s offense for the first two or three quarters.