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We’ve had football games trickle in over the past weekend, whetting our collective appetite. In Week 0, Hawaii-Colorado State was one of the headline games; on Thursday night, a Big Ten battle of Northwestern-Purdue and the Civil ConFLicT between UConn-UCF got us primed to dive into Week 1.
Now, we’ve finally reached the day: the beginning of the Ohio State Buckeyes 2018-19 football season. The past few weeks have been an exhausting ordeal around Zach Smith’s domestic violence accusations, and what Urban Meyer knew/didn’t know and what he should/shouldn’t have done. All this pulled the attention away from the student-athletes that have formed the 129th edition of Ohio State football. Practices were kept under wraps, and not as much is known—compared to past years— about this team. But, all that is behind them now (for the most part), as they take the field against the Oregon State Beavers.
The betting lines are liking the Buckeyes big in this matinee. Bovada, one of the leading online sportsbooks, has Ohio State as 39-point favorites against the Beavers, with the over/under set at 64. Additionally, Bovada has the Bucks jumping out early. The first half spread has the Scarlet and Gray at -24. (In other terms: are you betting on Ohio State having a halftime lead of 24 points?)
Oregon State has a quarterback in Jake Luton who is coming off a 2017 campaign that ended in injury. Unfortunately, despite Luton being back, the Beavers are still entering this season with some injuries to key players. The biggest one is on the defensive side of the ball. Safety David Morris, the defense’s second leader in tackles from a season ago, is out for this game.
The Beavers will need to pull out all of the stops if they want to make it a game inside The Horseshoe. First year head coach Jonathan Smith will have his hands full, however, the same can be said for Buckeyes interim head coach Ryan Day, who is filling into the HC position as Meyer serves his suspension.
When is the game and how can I watch?
Game Date/Time: Saturday, Sept. 1, noon ET.
Location: Columbus, OH
TV: ABC
Online: WatchESPN
Radio: 97.1 FM/1460 AM
Where is GameDay this week?
ESPN’s long-time traveling college football preview show is going back to where it all started: South Bend, Ind.
For the first time since 2014, Michigan and Notre Dame are renewing their rivalry vows, and it’s one of the marquee matchups in Week 1. National championship aspirations are on the line, as a loss for either team puts their backs against the wall for the rest of the season.
What’s the rest of the Big Ten up to this weekend?
A handful Big Ten teams have already played. Northwestern beat Purdue, 31-27, on Thursday night in West Lafayette, Ind. Minnesota, also on Thursday night, opened up their season with a win against New Mexico State, 48-10. On Friday night, No. 11 Michigan State squeaked by Utah Stat, 38-31, at home. Also on Friday night, No. 4 Wisconsin ran away from Western Kentucky, 34-3.
Michigan-Notre Dame is obviously the most high-profile game for a Big Ten program in Week 1; the Wolverines battle the Irish at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Another big matchup for the Big Ten involves Maryland. The Terrapins take on Tom Herman’s Texas Longhorns at noon on FS1.
The rest of the Big Ten slate includes: Kent State at Illinois (noon ET, BTN), Texas State at Rutgers (noon ET, BTN), Northern Illinois at Iowa (3:30 p.m. ET, BTN), Appalachian State at Penn State (3:30 p.m. ET, BTN), Indiana at Florida International (7 p.m. ET, CBSSN), and Akron at Nebraska (8 p.m. ET, FOX)
Join the conversation
Below is your Ohio State-Oregon State game thread. As always: Be respectful, be kind, and keep it classy. If you like GIFs, throw them into the convo. We’ve made it to the football season, so let’s get cheering —and if you’re a Beaver fan who has stumbled into this game thread: Welcome!
Be good to each other, and follow the golden rule. Let’s carry on from last year’s success of the game threads, and make 2018’s season one to remember.