Rece Davis picks Ohio State to cover spread against Wisconsin

Last week, two of the Big Ten’s top teams played in tough games. Ohio State fought off Penn State in Columbus while Wisconsin came all the way back to defeat Illinois on a big-man touchdown late in the game.

Now, the Buckeyes and Badgers will square off in, effectively, the Luke Fickell bowl. Ohio State is a 14.5-point favorite in the game, according to FanDuel, although Fickell said Wisconsin might be starting to put it all together after last week’s win.

ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis is picking the Buckeyes to cover that spread, though, because they have a weapon no other team has: Marvin Harrison Jr.

“Wisconsin feels as if it turned a corner,” Davis said on the College GameDay podcast. “Luke Fickell felt that way after rallying against Illinois. But my question is, why in the world are you in position to have to rally against Illinois? It’s a feel-good moment, for sure. And I know the Buckeyes are still figuring some things out offensively, outside of throwing to 18 — which should be the first line of the game plan, should be, throw to 18.

“Am I in trouble? Throw it to 18. Am I wanting to put the game away? Throw it to 18. Is he single covered? Throw it to 18. If he’s double covered? Does he have half step? Throw it to 18. Get the ball to him. Run some more him plays. When in doubt, throw the ball to him. ‘Him,’ being Marvin Harrison Jr. I just don’t see Wisconsin scoring enough to stay within there. I’ll take Ohio State and lay it pretty easily.”

Saturday’s game could be a preview of the Big Ten Championship, depending on how the rest of the season goes. Wisconsin sits atop the loaded Big Ten West after last week’s come-from-behind victory coupled with Iowa’s loss to Minnesota. Ohio State, meanwhile, sits tied with just Michigan for first place in the Big Ten East — which adds to the stakes of The Game at the end of the year.

It’s also the first time Fickell will face his alma mater, and the team he led as interim head coach, as a Big Ten head coach. As kickoff gets closer, he wants to keep the focus on the players rather than himself.

“I know, for me, the most important thing, the first thing to start off with is it’s not about me,” Fickell said. “I know we have some guys on our staff, myself included, that have some obvious history there, whether they went to school there or played there. But that’s not what it’s about.

“For me? I don’t want to get too much into it. But that’ll be something that’s always stuck in the back of my head. They’ve asked ‘Hey, can you do a report or do an interview with a guy you know from Columbus?’ or ‘Hey, the Big Ten Network?’ I’m like, no, let’s put a player on. Have them do a player.”