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Despite losing Braxton Miller prior to the 2014 campaign, the Ohio State Buckeyes have remained one of the Big Ten‘s premier teams and one that could compete for a national title if it wins out. The Buckeyes had one hiccup on the season at home against Virginia Tech, but have been explosive and unstoppable otherwise.
In their first year as members of the Big Ten, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights have been quite the surprise, starting the year with a 5-1 record, including a win over Michigan just two weeks ago. The Scarlet Knights might not have a great chance to win this week’s game, but they have the potential to make it very interesting.
Ohio State’s offense is led by someone other than Braxton Miller for the first time in three seasons as freshman quarterback J.T. Barrett leads the 35th-best passing offense and fifth-best scoring offense. Barrett has passed for 1,354 yards, 17 touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 66 percent of his passes this season. Fellow underclassman, sophomore wide out Michael Thomas, leads all receivers with 17 catches for 322 yards and five touchdowns while senior wide out Devin Smith has 11 catches for 313 yards and five touchdowns of his own. Running backs Dontre Wilson and Ezekiel Elliott have also been solid in the receiving game, combining for 330 yards and a touchdown on 24 catches. Elliott also leads the rushing attack with 462 yards and three touchdowns while Barrett is the next in line with 276 yards and two scores. Freshman Curtis Samuel has 192 yards and two scores of his own on the ground.
With a strong second half to the season, senior quarterback Gary Nova has a chance to reach nearly 10,000 passing yards and become the school’s all-time leading passer — he is just 1,300 yards away for the latter. He also needs just 14 more touchdown passes to become the school’s all-time leader in touchdown passes. While he’s having quite the career, he doesn’t get much respect because of his high interception rate, throwing 46 career picks — he could also finish with the most in school history in that category as well. On the season, Nova has passed for 1,601 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing a career-high 62 percent of his passes. His favorite target has been junior wide out Leonte Carroo who has caught 29 passes for 548 yards and five touchdowns this season. Andrew Turzilli has been a deep-threat, catching just six passes for 276 yards and three scores — that’s 46 yards per catch. Paul James and Desmon Peoples lead the run game with 363 yards and five scores and 326 yards and no touchdowns, respectively.
Defensively, Rutgers has been somewhat impressive this season compared to what it has been in years past. The Scarlet Knights rank 43rd in points allowed per contest while giving up just under 400 yards per game. Ohio State has been much more solid this year, ranking 31st in points allowed and an even more astounding 14th in total yards allowed per game. The Buckeyes have been successful in both the pass and run games, equally. If you want to experience an electric college football atmosphere, Ohio Stadium will be your destination on Saturday afternoon.
Rutgers will travel to Ohio State to take on the Buckeyes at 3:30 p.m. EST on Saturday, Oct. 18. The game will be broadcasted on ABC, ESPN or ESPN 2.
PREDICTION: Rutgers 17, Ohio State 37
Want to see Rutgers take on the Buckeyes in week eight? Check out ScoreBig for tickets.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also reach him at [email protected].
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