The No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1, 7-1 B1G) are back in the Big Ten Championship Game for the second straight season.
This year, they will face No. 21 Northwestern (8-4, 7-1 B1G).
The Wildcats come in off 24-16 win over Illinois that wasn’t nearly as close as the score would indicate.
The Buckeyes spent last Saturday grinding Michigan into a slurry, and then using it to lubricate OSU’s suddenly-revitalized Football Death Machine. The final score was 62-39, and it also wasn’t really that close.
This is the Buckeyes’ fourth trip to Indianapolis, after a 2013 loss and wins in 2014 and 2017.
It’s the first time Northwestern has earned a shot to play for the conference title.
Ohio State owns a 61-14-1 lead in the all-time series with the Wildcats, including a 30-1 mark in games played since 1971.
Here’s everything you need to know about Ohio State vs. Northwestern, whether you’re headed to Indianapolis to see it in person or watching from home.
Kickoff Time
The game kicks off Saturday, December 1 at 8:00 pm Eastern.
Really, though, they’ll screw around with pregame stuff for a while and probably actually kick off closer to 8:15.
TV & Streaming
You can watch the game on FOX, or stream it via the FOX Sports Go app. Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt, and Jenny Taft are on the call.
Radio
The game will be carried live on the Ohio State Football Radio Network. Find your local Ohio State Football radio station here.
Weather
The game is being played inside Lucas Oil Stadium, and the roof will be closed.
Temperatures should be around 70, and uhhh… don’t expect much wind.
Point Spread
Ohio State is a 14-point favorite. The Over/Under is 60.5, both of which almost identical to the numbers for the OSU-Maryland game a couple weeks ago.
If those numbers are both accurate, the Buckeyes should win 37-23 or so.
Tickets
There are no more tickets available through Ticketmaster, but you can still get in the door at a reasonable price through the secondary market.
The “get-in” price on StubHub right now is $57.
If you’re looking for a pair of seats, you can sit on the 20 in the upper deck for $80 each.
Want the best seats in the house? There are club seats on the 50 available for $415 apiece.
Ticket prices will generally drop as the game gets closer, so you may want to wait until Friday or even Saturday morning to buy your seats.
Lucas Oil Field Bag Policy
From the Indianapolis Colts official website:
The policy affects the type and size of bags that are permitted into the stadium — not the items that you normally need to bring to a game. Each fan may carry in their pockets items such as keys, makeup, combs, phones, wallets, and credit cards. Fans may also carry a blanket or jacket into the stadium. Every fan may use the below specified bags to carry other items into the stadium:
- One bag that is clear plastic, vinyl or PVC that does not exceed 12” by 6” by 12” OR
- A one-gallon clear plastic freezer bag (Ziploc bag or similar).
You can find the complete bag policy here.
Parking
There are just shy of 40,000 parking spots within a six-block walk of the stadium, so you’ll be able to find a spot.
You can download the official parking map here.
If you’re the plan-ahead type, you can reserve and pay for your parking in advance here.
One note of warning: There will be tens of thousands of Buckeye fans all heading west on I-70 at the same time on Saturday afternoon. It has caused traffic jams in the past if there is any kind of road construction or accidents.
You may want to leave home 30-60 minutes earlier than your GPS suggests, just to be safe.
