Buckeyes open rivalry week as slight road underdog

COLUMBUS — Ohio State is undefeated and in the top three of the College Football Playoff rankings. So is Michigan. Now the arch rivals finally get to meet in the final week of the regular season with massive stakes that spread far beyond just bragging rights.

Ohio State is beginning the week as a 3.5-point underdog, according to Fanduel Sportsbook. And with a usual three points applied to the home team for home-field advantage, the folks in the desert truly believe this is an even matchup.

The total currently sits at 46.5, meaning Las Vegas thinks the Buckeyes and Wolverines will play a low-scoring rivalry classic.

For Ohio State, the Buckeyes know they have lost the last two and must get back to winning in the rivalry game. But they also know the focus level it’s going to take to have success on the road in Ann Arbor this week.

“The key is to just stay in the moment,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “There will be emotion this week. There will be a lot this week, there will be noise, there will be everything. What we have to do is we have to do a great job of preparing. We can’t do anything different. We have to continue to stay with our routine and then focus on maximizing every minute of this week. And then noon on Saturday is going to come. That’s not going to come any faster by us doing something else. So we need a great week of preparation.

“We’re all in this thing together. We are. I love this team. We’ve been working hard to get to this point. And so we need a great week of preparation, and then we get on that bus and head to Ann Arbor.”

Ohio State will have a shot to shock Michigan, win the Big Ten East and get to the conference title game this week. If all of that happens, the Buckeyes will go to the College Football Playoff.

And they’ll need to win the biggest game of the year as a slight rivalry underdog.

Ohio State vs. Michigan gambling trends

• The Buckeyes are 7-3-1 against the spread this season. The Buckeyes covered the number two weeks ago against Michigan State and again Saturday against Minnesota.
• Ohio State is 1-2 against Michigan under Ryan Day
• The Buckeyes have went over the total just twice in their 11 games this season
• Ohio State is 3-6 against the spread in its last nine games against Michigan
• Michigan is 5-5-1 against the spread this year
• The total has gone over in each of the last nine matchups between these rivals
• The total has gone over in six of the last seven Michigan games
• Ohio State has won 15 of the last 18 against Michigan