Five Predictions: Ohio State at Michigan State

The last thing my Prediction Master told me on his death bed was that he knew this was coming.

The second-to-last thing he told me was that predicting college football is the most difficult soothsaying there is. For one, you can’t trust these dang millennials. For two, on any given play with 22 players on the field, at least 11 are screwing up.

It is impossible to predict the 11 that are going to screw up, which makes predicting the rest of the game a near impossibility. Over the years, I have turned an impossibility into a probability, but this year has been one for the trash can. The only thing that gets me through each day, however, is knowing that it isn’t my fault.

I would go over last week’s results, but I’m sitting in a hotel room at 10:30 on a Friday night in the middle of Michigan and I just don’t have it in me to see any more failure in my life.

Instead, I’m just going to get straight to the predictions. Many of which may even come true this week.

1. Parris Campbell will score.

Parris Campbell is one of four Buckeyes with a team-high 48 points. He, J.K. Dobbins, and Terry McLaurin have all scored eight touchdowns. Kicker Sean Nuernberger is the fourth member of the 48 Club. Campbell, however, has scored just once in the last three games. Given his ability to score from anywhere — and Ohio State’s need for a touchdown from just such a location — I like Campbell’s chances of finding the end zone in this game.

2. Ohio State will rush for at least 125 yards.

This may seem like a cop out, but Indiana, Northwestern, Purdue, and Maryland rushed for a combined 125 yards against Michigan State this season. Ohio State, meanwhile, has been held under 125 yards rushing in three of their last five games. Last week they saw an uptick, which should give people some hope. Until they see the Buckeyes run against a rush defense like Michigan State’s, however, none of it matters all that much.

3. Michigan State will be held under 137 yards rushing.

Michigan State has not had a great season moving the ball in 2018. Last week was actually the first time this season they rushed for more 130 yards against a Big Ten opponent. They may get to 130 yards again this week, but they won’t get much further than that. I think MSU’s run game matches up well for the Buckeye defense. Of course, they’ve only held two opponents under 137 yards rushing this season, so don’t get your hopes up here either.

4. Brendon White will start the game.

If this one doesn’t happen, it won’t be my fault, it will be Alex Grinch’s. If Brendon White doesn’t start this week, then he must be the world’s worst practice player. Being a more physical safety, he is perfectly suited to help out in run support against a Michigan State offense that will pound the football whether it’s working or not. I don’t think he’ll have another 13 tackles, but I am interested to see if a safety who isn’t Jordan Fuller can put back-to-back great games together.

5. Tuf Borland will lead the team in tackles.

Michigan State is going to run the ball between the tackles a lot, which is exactly where Tuf Borland will be waiting. If he isn’t over eight tackles this weekend, it’s probably because Michigan State threw the ball too much and had too many three-and-outs. Given the weather, the conference, and the opponent, this game was made for a big performance from Tuf Borland.