Land-Grant’s experts make Ohio State-Michigan predictions

Being the Buckeye beat’s black sheep blog, we here at Land-Grant Holy Land like to pat ourselves on the back. So, throughout the season, members of our staff will be making predictions about that day’s game. They will go on the record with what they think the final score will be, who the game’s MVP will be, and what the major storyline will be coming out of the day.

This afternoon, at 12 noon ET, the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes (10-0) will conclude the regular season as they travel to face their rivals, the Michigan Wolverines (9-2). As of the writing of this article, the Buckeyes are TK point favorites, with the total points mark set at TK points. So that means that the Vegas oddsmakers see the game as finishing somewhere in the ballpark of TK-TK in favor of OSU.

Check out what our staff members think and then let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments below. As we move forward with the season, you will be able to keep up with just how well our prognosticators do on a weekly basis HERE.

Michael Citro

Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Michigan 20Which injured wide receivers play: Jeremiah SmithOffensive MVP: I think Jeremiah Smith will get some catches, but I expect Max Klare to benefit from the star receiver’s return. Klare will have his second straight big day as Julian Sayin again leans on the tight ends. I think Klare will catch at least five passes in a low-scoring game.Defensive MVP: Caleb Downs will be a difference maker both against the run and the pass. I think he’ll approach double figures in tackles, defend well against Michigan’s tight ends in coverage, and make at least one big play.Major Storyline: The major storyline is Ryan Day ending the OSU losing streak in The Game and getting the Buckeyes to Indy to face the Hoosiers. In “The Godfather” parlance, Day is trying to settle all family business. He got the natty last year, and this year he’s trying to get the Gold Pants and the Big Ten title to go along with it. This game will show how much he listened during last year’s meeting with the players after The Game.

Alex Frank

Score Prediction: Ohio State 34, Michigan 24Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: I believe Jeremiah Smith is going to have a ridiculously good game. He is hands down going to play. After comments he made about TTUN in the offseason, he is going to rise to the occasion with 9 receptions, 135 yards, and 2 touchdowns.Defensive MVP: Arvell Reese is going to be a menace on Saturday. It would not be surprising if he had eight tackles, including three for loss, and a forced fumble that proves to be a game-changer.Major Storyline: Whew! Order has finally been restored. Ryan Day was a man on a mission this entire week and had the Buckeyes going full throttle on Saturday afternoon. While the ultimate goal is to win the national championship, beating TTUN is still mightily important and a huge part of Ryan Day’s legacy. He understood that, and the Buckeyes played like this was the national championship. On to Indy and a long-overdue return to the Big Ten Championship Game.

Joey Gertz

Score Prediction: Ohio State 27, Michigan 17Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: You won’t be able to tell Jeremiah Smith was ever injured. Not only has the receiver spoken about his hatred for Michigan, but The Game is on his birthday and TTUN just doesn’t have defensive backs who can guard him. The returning star will go for 8 catches, 125 yards, and 2 touchdowns.Defensive MVP: Caden Curry continues the hot streak. The defensive end will force another fumble, this time at a pivotal time.Major Storyline: Ryan Day, after four straight losses, walks into Ann Arbor and ends Michigan’s season. Next up: Indianapolis.

Justin Golba

Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Michigan 17Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: Julian Sayin will have his Heisman moment in this game, throwing for 300 yards and three touchdowns. He will also set the tone early as the Buckeyes will win the toss, take the ball, and score on the first drive.Defensive MVP: This will not be an unpopular opinion, but Arvell Reese is the key to slowing down Michigan and quarterback Bryce Underwood. As a spy and via the pass rush, he will keep Underwood in the pocket and force him to beat OSU with his arm. Reese will also force a fumble at one point in the game.Major Storyline: For me, the Buckeyes winning the game is the major storyline. They have lost four straight, and this game is in Ann Arbor against a talented Michigan team. Ryan Day gets his second win over Michigan, and the Buckeyes move to the Big Ten Championship for the first time since 2020.

Dan Hessler

Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Michigan 17Which injured wide receivers play: Jeremiah SmithOffensive MVP: Julian Sayin will cement his name in the Ohio State and Michigan lore by leading the Buckeyes to their first win over their rival some 2019. Sayin throws for over 275 yards with three touchdowns and a completion percentage greater than 75%.Defensive MVP: Caleb Downs proves why everyone thought he was the best defensive player in college football in the preseason. He gets an interception early in the second half that helps the Buckeyes pull away after a close first 30 minutes.Major Storyline: Ryan Day and Ohio State finally get the Michigan monkey off their backs with the win. The game will be chippy like always, but the Buckeyes leave Ann Arbor with a win and no new additional health concerns.

Caleb Houser

Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Michigan 14Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: Julian Sayin continues to keep his cool, calm, and collected demeanor to be steady against TTUN, going 21 for 27 for 252 yards and two touchdowns. Staying consistent with how he was all season, his accuracy is why Ohio State was able to be good enough the the air even with a limited Carnell Tate.Defensive MVP: Arvell Reese will be the defensive MVP with 11 tackles on the day and two for loss. His ability to be a force in the run game, but also against Underwood, will be the key to his performance.Major Storyline: Ohio State ends the streak by playing to its strengths, for the first time in recent memory. Ryan Day and crew lean into what makes them good, realizing they have the athletes to be better in space rather than having to prove how tough they are. Defensively, the veteran core of Caleb Downs, Sonny Styles, and Arvell Reese sets Ohio State up to be as steady as they have been all year.

Jami Jurich

Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Michigan 17Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: Last season, the passing game seemed to fall apart against the Wolverines, with an abnormally low 57.6% completion rate and two interceptions from then-quarterback Will Howard. But assuming that Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, or both are on the field today, the passing game should be the Buckeyes’ path to victory. As long as Julian Sayin looks as consistent as he has all season, limiting turnovers and maintaining his high completion rate (currently 79.4%), he’ll be the MVP on the path to victory. Defensive MVP: In both of Michigan’s two losses this season, they gained fewer than 350 yards of total offense. OSU, the No. 1 defense in the country, has allowed an average of just  206.6 yards per game. On Saturday, this battle will come down to how well the Buckeyes’ defensive line fares against a strong Wolverines offensive line. Look to Kayden McDonald, who has been excellent at stopping the run, to shut down Michigan’s run game and lead the defense on Saturday. Major Storyline: Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate quiet the concerns about their health with stellar performances in Ann Arbor, helping OSU snap its losing streak against its rivals.

Connor Lemons

Score Prediction: Michigan 17, Ohio State 14Which injured wide receivers play: Jeremiah SmithOffensive MVP: Michigan’s Jordan Marshall follows in the footsteps of Donovan Edwards and Kalel Mullings, going for 100+ yards and a touchdown in The Game. Ohio State gets worn down by the fourth quarter, and Marshall burns out the final few minutes on his own with a couple of big first downs.Defensive MVP: Even with the loss, Caden Curry will have a huge game, recording multiple sacks in a contest for the third time this season.Major Storyline: Will Ryan Day ever stop trying to out-Michigan Michigan? Ohio State will still head into the College Football Playoff as a high seed and probably still the favorite to win it all, but once again, Day refused to play to Ohio State’s strengths, resulting in another crushing loss to its biggest rival.

Brett Ludwiczak

Score Prediction: Ohio State 28, Michigan 13Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: After sitting out last week, Smith is back with a vengeance. The sensational sophomore goes over 100 yards receiving and washes the bad taste from last year’s loss to Michigan out of his mouth.Defensive MVP: Following three very quiet games, it becomes obvious that Arvell Reese was just recharging his batteries for The Game. The Buckeye linebacker will be all over the field on Saturday, making life miserable for quarterback Bryce Underwood and company.Major Storyline: Ryan Day finally gets the win that has eluded him since his last victory over Michigan in 2019. Now with The Game behind them, Day and the Buckeyes solidify their spot as college football’s top team. Another deep playoff run looks like a formality at this point since no other team has the quality on both the offensive and defensive sides of the football to compete.

Gene Ross

Score Prediction: Ohio State 31, Michigan 17Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: With both receivers playing, but Jeremiah Smith more healthy than Carnell Tate, tight end Max Klare has another big game with over 100 yards receiving and two touchdowns.Defensive MVP: As the primary spy on Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood, linebacker Arvell Reese racks up two sacks and a handful of tackles for loss, and he helps to shut down the Michigan rushing attack.Major Storyline: Ryan Day finally clears his Michigan hurdle with an impressive road win. The Buckeyes show up and play a clean game without a ton of drama, and the chase for back-to-back national titles is officially on. Ohio State heads into the Big Ten Title Game as the clear No. 1 team in the country. Despite all of the offensive firepower, it is Matt Patricia’s defense that seems to be the driving force in what makes this group special.

Matt Tamanini

Score Prediction: Ohio State 38, Michigan 9Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: Julian Sayin will reestablish himself as the Heisman Trophy frontrunner today with a little help from some familiar faces. With Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate back in the lineup, even if they aren’t 100%, their presence will open things up around the field for the Ohio State quarterback. While the backup wide receivers were seemingly unable to get open last week against Rutgers, the game plan also limited the offense’s explosive opportunities; that will not be the case today.

Look for the Buckeyes to use tempo strategically throughout the game when they find favorable matchups against the Michigan defense. The game plan will look very similar to OSU’s postseason run last year when they scored early and often, getting as many of their top talents involved as often as possible. Despite the cold and potentially inclement weather, Sayin will have a day that etches his name in Ohio State lore forever, completing 85.2% of his passes for 335 yards and four touchdowns. Defensive MVP: This is going to feel like a cop out, but I’m going with defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, simply because it feels impossible to single out a single Buckeye for what I believe will be a thoroughly dominant performance. From Caden Curry and Kayden McDonald along the front to Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese in the middle to Davison Igbinosun and Caleb Downs in the secondary, it will be an utterly demoralizing beatdown of epic proportions in Ann Arbor this afternoon.

As a unit, they will harass true freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood all game, forcing him into bad decisions and turnovers. Ohio native Jordan Marshall will be held to just 65 yards rushing, and freshman phenom wide receiver Andrew Marsh will be shut down with under 50 yards. In total, the Corn and Blue will total under 250 yards of offense. Major Storyline: Ohio State is unequivically, undisputedly, and inarguably the best team in college football. While outsiders can downplay their domination of an admittedly mid regular-season schedule, there is no denying that this Buckeye squad is just different, not only from the rest of the field in college football, but even from the version of the team that won the national title last season. Ryan Day’s team is on a mission; they have a chip on their shoulders, and there is no one or nothing capable of truly standing in their way.

Cole VanWiechen

Score Prediction: Ohio State 24, Michigan 14Which injured wide receivers play: Jeremiah SmithOffensive MVP: Consider this Jeremiah Smith’s Flu Game. I think the wide receiver returns from injury to have a massive game (100+ yards and a touchdown) and leads Ohio State to its first win over Michigan this decade. Michigan’s pass defense has been susceptible this season, and I think J.J. will expose that in this game, unless they double or triple him, which only opens the field up for everyone else even more.Defensive MVP: Arvell Reese is the obvious pick for defensive MVP because he can be whatever Ohio State needs on any snap. One play, he can blow up a run, the next he can chase down Bryce Underwood attempting to escape the pocket, and after that, he can drop into coverage. If Reese is flying around like that on Saturday, he’s the guy that Michigan will be sick of seeing by halftime.Major Storyline: The big storyline coming out of this game will be Ryan Day finally completing the last step of his Ohio State journey and coaching ascension. He’s already won a national title, but beating Michigan for the first time in six years and pushing the Buckeyes back into the Big Ten title game would silence every lingering doubt and cement his legacy.

Ryan Weckstein

Score Prediction: Ohio State 48, Michigan 20Which injured wide receivers play: BothOffensive MVP: Everyone will remember the name Jeremiah Smith after his showcase on Saturday. I have him with 7 catches for 107 yards and 1 touchdown.Defensive MVP: Caleb Downs will have the game of his life after sacking Bryce Underwood and intercepting him.Major Storyline: The two best players in the country will show why they have been so universally heralded by the sport’s most respected experts. Ryan Day won’t let what happened in the past few years deter his team’s performance on Saturday. OSU fans, get ready for a trip to Indianapolis for the first time in half a decade.