Rutgers vs Ohio State 10/2/21 College Football Picks, Odds, Predictions

The Ohio State Buckeyes and Rutgers Scarlet Knights square off Saturday at SHI Stadium in Big Ten week 5 college football meeting. The Ohio State Buckeyes look to stay in the playoff race while improving to 4-1 on the season. The Rutgers Scarlet Knights look for a statement win to build on their 3-1 record.

The Ohio State Buckeyes haven’t lost a road game since October of 2018. C.J. Stroud is completing 62.4 percent of his passes for 963 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions. Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba have combined for 674 receiving yards and six touchdowns while Chris Olave has 18 receptions. The Ohio State Buckeyes ground game is averaging 22.3 yards per contest, and TreVeyon Henderson leads the way with 439 yards and six touchdowns. Defensively, Ohio State is allowing 23.3 points and 410.8 yards per game. Ronnie Hickman leads the Ohio State Buckeyes with 33 tackles, Haskell Garrett has three sacks and Cameron Martinez has one interception.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights have lost five of their last seven home games. Noah Vedral is completing 67.9 percent of his passes for 762 yards, five touchdowns and zero interceptions. Bo Melton and Aron Cruickshank have combined for 357 receiving yards and two touchdowns while Brandon Sanders has four receptions. The Rutgers Scarlet Knights ground game is averaging 157.3 yards per contest, and Isaih Pacheco leads the way with 259 yards and three touchdowns. Defensively, Rutgers is allowing 13.5 points and 265 yards per game. Olakunle Fatukasi leads the Rutgers Scarlet Knights with 33 tackles, Julius Turner has 2.5 sacks and Max Melton has two interceptions.

The Buckeyes are 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 road games and 1-3-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Scarlet Knights are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 home games and 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games overall. The over is 4-1-2 in Buckeyes last 7 games overall. The under is 5-2 in Scarlet Knights last 7 games overall. The Buckeyes are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 meetings.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are going to be favored for obvious reasons, but they’ve struggled in their two games against toughest competition and are just 2-5-1 against the spread in their last eight games as a double-digit favorite. This is the best team Rutgers has had in years, and the Scarlet Knights have looked sharp, which includes taking Michigan down to the wire last week on the road. Rutgers is really solid defensively and is a live dog here if it can find consistent offense. Give me Rutgers and the points.