Ohio State Football: Roundtable and Predictions Week 2

Here are the roundtable predictions from Scarlet And Game contributors for the Ohio State-Oklahoma showdown.

I missed on my prediction last week but was all so close. I had Ohio State winning 62-7 at Indiana. Just think if the Robert Landers fumble recovery for a touchdown wasn’t overruled?

That would have been 56 points for the Buckeyes and Indiana wouldn’t have scored later in the drive. That darn instant replay.

And what if my man Parris Campbell hadn’t dropped the pass in the end zone. It could have been a 62-14 rout for the Buckeyes.

Anyway, my nemesis Thomas Scurlock beat me last week with a 51-17 prediction so he gets top billing this week. Here we go with our Week 2 predictions.

Thomas Scurlock

Ohio State is not like UTEP and Oklahoma is not like Indiana so we can pretty much ignore what happened in week one for any guidance on how this game may play out.

In terms of key factors, I’ll go with the always reliable winning in the trenches, turnovers and momentum.

The Sooners have the best offensive line in the country and the Silver Bullets have the best defensive line in the country.  Something must give in this battle.  I think it will be Oklahoma’s line that runs out of gas first.

Both teams, especially Baker Mayfield and J.T. Barrett, protect the ball well so there may not be many chances to get a critical turnover. I still expect the Buckeyes to get an interception and a fumble recovery giving the offense two more possessions.

If there is one element that is difficult to measure but clearly understood in a football game, it is momentum.  A special teams play, a turnover, a quick counter score or a big conversion all tilt momentum.  The team that sustains it generally wins.

This one will be a lot closer than last year, maybe not in final score, but in ease of winning.  I see a back and forth game with the Buckeyes pulling away late in the fourth quarter.  Ohio State 38-27.