Regardless of what happens at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, Jim Tressel cannot lose.
The Vest’s illustrious career as a college football head coach saw him elevate both Youngstown State and Ohio State to national title-winning glory, while his post-coaching pursuits included a stint as YSU’s president from 2014-23. But on Saturday, Tressel’s two programs will battle for supremacy in the Buckeyes’ home opener.
SATURDAY MORNING pic.twitter.com/qysfna7Prk
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) September 9, 2023
After a less-than-impressive showing against Indiana last week, Ohio State’s offense has the perfect opportunity to find its footing against the FCS-level Penguins. At the same time, the Buckeye defense looks to add to its strong start after holding the Hoosiers to just three points and 153 yards of total offense in the 23-3 win over IU.
The Penguins waddle into Columbus after a 52-10 drubbing of Valparaiso in their season opener, in which Youngstown State churned out 303 yards on the ground.
With three hours remaining until kickoff, the Eleven Warriors staff offer their score predictions for the Tressel Bowl, as well as dive into the betting implications at stake during Saturday’s contest.
ELEVEN WARRIORS STAFF SCORE PREDICTIONS
Dan Hope - Ohio State 59, Youngstown State 0: “Nonconference games against non-Power 5 schools usually aren’t memorable, but I distinctly remember covering Ohio State’s last game against an FCS opponent (as a student reporter for The Lantern at the time) vs. Florida A&M in 2013 because of how embarrassingly lopsided it was. Youngstown State might be a little better than that Florida A&M team, but this game still has no business being competitive. Ohio State’s defense will be motivated to get a shutout and Ohio State’s offense will be motivated to quiet the noise after a lackluster Week 1.”
Andy Anders - Ohio State 45 Youngstown State 0: “Ohio State's defense gets the shutout it's been craving against an overmatched FCS squad. The offense, even against a lower-division opponent, still takes a few lumps and a shortened clock plus some easing off the gas pedal limit the scoring just a touch in this one.”
Garrick Hodge - Ohio State 48, Youngstown State 3: “OSU gets back on track offensively and its defense remains dominant as the Buckeyes cruise against an overmatched opponent.”
Josh Poloha - Ohio State 52, Youngstown State 10: "The Buckeyes will find a rhythm offensively and get rolling both through the air and on the ground and the defense will dominate once again., just like it did in Bloomington. Look for OSU's offense to get Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka going early and often after the two stars were almost nonexistent against Indiana."
Chase Brown - Ohio State 66, Youngstown State 0: "Execute Order 66."
George Eisner - Ohio State 41, Youngstown State 3: "We will see Mr. McCord make the most strides as he develops greater comfort and timing with distributing the ball within Ryan Day's scheme at game speed."
"No matter how much Tyshon King believes the Penguins can beat Ohio State, that will not happen."– Matt Gutridge
Johnny Ginter - Ohio State 38, Youngstown State 7: “Look, the offense is going to continue to improve, but anyone expecting an immediate light-bulb moment en route to 50 points is probably being a little too optimistic. More than McCord, I want to see the running game play with some level of dominance that sets the tone for the rest of the team.”
Kyle Jones - Ohio State 49, Youngstown State 14: “The offense finds its groove in both facets of the game while the defense reverts back to the mean as a competent YSU offense puts together more of a fight than the Hoosiers did.”
Matt Gutridge - Ohio State 49, Youngstown State 3: “No matter how much Tyshon King believes the Penguins can beat Ohio State, that will not happen. He is correct that both teams play football, but both teams don’t play the same quality or level of football.”
Jack Emerson - Ohio State 56, Youngstown State 7: “Ohio State’s offense takes full advantage of an overmatched opponent to get on track, with Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka getting much more action than they did in the season-opener against Indiana.”
Check out this week's Eleven Warriors Roundtable for further analysis regarding this week's matchup from Anders, Eisner and Ginter.
WILL OHIO STATE COVER?
As is to be expected when Ohio State squares off with an FCS program, the Buckeyes are favored by a wide margin against the Penguins. Opening as a 41.5-point favorite against Youngstown State, Ohio State has a history of covering lofty spreads against FCS opponents this century after overcoming a 50-point margin in a 76-0 win over Florida A&M in 2013.
Only two members of the Eleven Warriors staff don’t see the Buckeyes covering the imposing spread. While Chase Brown has the Buckeyes running away with a 66-point win – the largest margin of victory predicted – Johnny Ginter and Kyle Jones envision Ohio State falling short of the 41.5-point mark, predicting 31 and 35-point margins.
WHAT ABOUT THE OVER?
With the release of betting odds being delayed until Thursday, there has been no movement of the opening O/U of 56.5 as of Saturday morning. Ohio State and Indiana failed to hit the 59-point over in last week’s season opener, scoring a measly 26 points between the two teams, while the Buckeye offense sputtered.
Dan Hope and Brown anticipate the Buckeyes will reach the over by their lonesome, predicting scoring outputs of 59 and 66 points from the Ohio State offense. Josh Poloha, Kyle Jones and Jack Emerson also foresee the over hitting, while the rest of the Eleven Warriors staff took the under.
Interested in more betting analysis from Eleven Warriors? Check out the site's new series Easy Bucks for more detailed breakdowns on this weekend's lines and more.
ELEVEN WARRIORS PROP BETS
Looking for more betting opportunities? Take a look at our in-house prop betting lines for this matchup and leave your predictions for us in the comments to compete for bragging rights!
- How many passing yards will Kyle McCord finish with?
- 275 or more (-110)
- Less than 275 (+100)
- How many receiving touchdowns will Marvin Harrison Jr. finish with?
- 2 or more (-110)
- Less than 2 (-110)
- How many rushing yards will Chip Trayanum finish with?
- 55 or more (-115)
- Less than 55 (-105)
- How many yards of total offense will Youngstown State produce?
- 250 or more (-105)
- Less than 250 (-110)
