College Football Preview: Buy or Sell Ohio State to Win the Big Ten?
The Ohio State Buckeyes came up just short in 2022, winning 11 games and falling by just a single point to the eventual National Champions in the semifinals of the College Football Playoffs.
Ryan Day‘s squad reloads for 2023 and figures to be near the top of the college football world.
Let’s look at BetMGM Sportsbook’s betting insights into Big Ten Conference futures to see what their chances look like this season.
SportsGrid will preview college football conference winners, national championships, and season-win total futures throughout the offseason. See more Buy or Sells articles below.
Conference Winners: ACC-Clemson | Big Ten-Michigan | National Championship: Alabama | Georgia | LSU | Michigan | Ohio State | Colorado | Season-Win Totals: Colorado O3.5 | K-State O6.5 |
BetMGM College Football Insights: Big Ten Conference OddsFavorites: Ohio State and Michigan +180
Highest Ticket%: Ohio State 27.6%
Highest Handle%: Ohio State 40.5%
Biggest Liability: Ohio State
The Buckeyes are a popular bet, sitting as BetMGM’s biggest liability after leading the conference in the percentage of tickets (27.6%) and percentage of the handle (40.5%).
There’s little doubt that they’ll be back near the top of the sport as a National Championship contender, considering they’ve lost no more than two games in any season since 2011. However, I do have some doubt that there’s value at +180 to win the conference.
Michigan has established itself as the top team in the Midwest after Jim Harbaugh‘s side captured two straight Big Ten championships. The Wolverines return nearly everything from a statistically dominant team and will be elite on both sides of the ball, so there’s little reason to expect a dropoff. They also have the upper hand in this rivalry.
That’s a contrast to the Buckeyes, who lost starting quarterback C.J. Stroud and both tackles on offense. Plus, they still have questions to answer defensively after getting gashed in their two toughest tests a year ago (530 yards on 8.8 yards per play to Michigan and 533 yards on 8.9 yards per play to Georgia).
Quarterback will be a battle between Kyle McCord and Devin Brown, as Day says he will not name a starter heading into fall camp. The skill positions are loaded with Miyan Williams and TreVeyon Henderson in the backfield and Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka out wide. Still, the offensive line is a question mark, and it will be hard-pressed to repeat last year’s performance when they ranked third in Line Yards and eighth in Front Seven HAVOC.
Jim Knowles was a splashy hire as defense coordinator a year ago and offers plenty of promise, but this unit was repeatedly burned for big plays and will need to improve. The Buckeyes ranked 123rd in Explosiveness on defense and were vulnerable to chunk plays via the run (114th in Rush Explosiveness) and the pass (117th in Pass Explosiveness).
I don’t see any value in Ohio State’s odds, considering Michigan has a better case to be the standalone favorite and an easier schedule. Road tests against Notre Dame, Wisconsin, and Michigan will keep Ohio State on edge from the end of September onward.
Factor in that Penn State may have the best team in James Franklin‘s tenure, and the gap seems to have narrowed between Ohio State and the rest of the conference.
2023 Big Ten Winner VerdictSell Ohio State (+180) to win the Big Ten
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