Michigan vs Ohio State point spread: Picking Wolverines vs Buckeyes
This week, to help him make picks on the Week 13 slate of college football action on the Andy Staples On3 Podcast, Staples brought in fellow college football expert Jake Crain. The two discussed the line for a number of games, saving arguably the best for last: Ohio State at Michigan.
And before they jumped into the air picks and reasons, Staples provided a little bit of context to the betting line for this contest.
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Time/Date: 12 p.m. ET/ Nov. 25
Channel: Fox, FuboTV
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
“The preliminary lines on this were always Michigan 6.5, 5.5,” opened Staples. “But when the time came on Sunday to open it up, Michigan, 3.5. People are a little concerned about what they saw in College Park, MD. Basically, the home team giving 3.5 means it’s a pick’em on a neutral site. This is huge, stakes huge, everything; Jim Harbaugh is not there; it’s the most interesting possible way to play this game.”
As interesting as the movement of the line may be for Staples, Crain likes it too, but for a completely different reason. For him, this smaller line makes it a better bet, as he is in favor of Michigan winning this year’s showdown. And has one big reason why he sees the Wolverines beating the Buckeyes.
“I. Don’t. Trust. Kyle McCord,” said Crain. “Love Martin Harrison Jr; you got a Maserati. Love (Emeka) Egbuka, you got a Lambeau. Kade Stover, you even got a Hummer. But when I look at Kyle McCord, I just don’t think, on the road, in the Big House, I don’t think he can make enough plays against this defense. And I think that Michigan is going to be able to move the ball on Ohio State… I feel like Kyle McCord makes a couple of mistakes.
“Michigan they’re a little more grimy than Ohio State is, again, this year. You’ve got possibly seven offensive linemen that can go in the NFL draft this year, which is insane. I laughed when people (say): ‘Oh, well, Michigan, they haven’t played anybody. We really don’t know anything about them.’ You want to know what I know about Michigan? Because I’ve watched these same guys play for what seems like the last eight years.
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“I’ve watched these guys play. They know what to expect, (and) they know how to handle themselves. I think Kyle McCord makes a couple of big mistakes; Marvin will keep them in it. I think the run game will work a little bit for Ohio State, but give me Michigan to cover; I would take it all the way up to Michigan -6.5.”
Staples appears to be erring more on the side of caution with this matchup. The On3 College football expert is a fan of Michigan’s offensive line as well but sees something fans and bettors alike should be worried about.
“I’ll give you guys a number: 73. That’s not a total. 73 is LaDarius Henderson’s number, that is Michigan’s left tackle,” said Staples. “He did not play against Maryland. They went with Myles Hinton; he got hurt. They had to move Karsen Barnhart over the left tackle. Carson Barhardt at left tackle has been a problem when he’s played there. If Henderson can’t go, it’s gonna severely limit what Michigan can do in the pass game. They’re not going to be able to protect that well. If Henderson is playing, they will be able to run their full offense. If they can run their full offense, I think they’re fine.”
Regardless of whatever struggles the Michigan offensive line may have, Staples sees the Wolverines coming out of the matchup victorious in the end. However, he doesn’t seem to be as confident as Crain when making his final assessment.
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“It is not inconceivable that Michigan could pop a couple of big plays. But if this becomes a grimy grind-it-out game, like we saw Ohio State play against Notre Dame, Michigan’s gonna win. That’s a game that plays right into Michigan’s hands. They’ve got to figure out how to let Marv be Marv, and I don’t know if you can do that against this secondary… So I’m with you. I don’t know if I’m as confident in Michigan as you, but at 3.5, I’ll take Michigan here.”