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Ohio State Football: Buckeye Blitz Week One

By Peter Burtnett

COLUMBUS, OH - NOVEMBER 18: Members of the Ohio State Buckeyes run out on to the field prior to the start of the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini on November 18, 2017 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH - NOVEMBER 18: Members of the Ohio State Buckeyes run out on to the field prior to the start of the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini on November 18, 2017 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /
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SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 07: Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers celebrates with teammates against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the fourth quarter in the College Football Playoff National Championship at Levi’s Stadium on January 07, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 07: Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers celebrates with teammates against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the fourth quarter in the College Football Playoff National Championship at Levi’s Stadium on January 07, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /

Georgia Tech at #1 Clemson (-35.5, O/U 60.5) — Thursday night at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, SC

A glance at the line would suggest that there is no chance this game will be close. However, this game is an interesting one for two reasons: One, Clemson will be without their entire defensive line from last year, and two, Georgia Tech goes away from the triple option for the first time in nearly a decade (Plus it’s always interesting to see how the defending champions do in week one).

Dabo Swinney’s Tigers will still pull out the victory, but look for the Yellow Jackets to keep this game interesting for at least the first half and for the line to be a little over-zealous.

#11 Oregon vs. #16 Auburn (-3.5, O/U 56) — AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX

The marquee match-up of the weekend features two teams who will quickly find themselves in the top ten after a win in this one. NFL-caliber QB Justin Herbert leads the Ducks, while the Tigers are led by a stingy defense that returns 7 starters from last year.

The Tigers are also going with a true freshman QB (Bo Nix) against an Oregon defense that struggled against the pass last season, giving Nix an easier adjustment to being a starter at the FBS level.

In this era of college football, being thrown into the fire as a true freshman has somehow been an advantage, as proven by Trevor Lawrence and Clemson last year. Auburn should pull out a close victory, causing the Ducks to be forced to win the rest of their games and hope that the Tigers do well for any hope to make the CFP.

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Some other key/interesting match-ups in week one are:

Northwestern at #25 Stanford (-6.0, O/U 47): Both teams have similar chances to win their conference divisions and this game is a way to kick-start their respective seasons.

Houston at #4 Oklahoma (-23, O/U 79.5) on Sunday night: The last match-up resulted in a Houston upset, it will be interesting to see if the Cougars can do it again.

#9 Notre Dame (-19, O/U 54) at Louisville on Monday night: The first opportunity to see if the Cardinals can return to glory or if the Fighting Irish can restart momentum after a 12-0 season ended in a 30-3 beat-down against Clemson in the CFP semis last year.

Next. Braxton wants a home and MJ found one. dark

There may not be many ranked match-ups (only Oregon-Auburn), but that doesn’t take away from the fact that college football is back!

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