Who you got? LGHL staff predicts the score of Ohio State-Washington

This season, the LGHL staff is competing to see who is the best prognosticator!

By Matt Tamanini and Land-Grant Holy Land Staff Jan 1, 2019, 9:01am EST

NCAA Football: Big Ten Conference-Football Championship-Northwestern vs Ohio State

Well, friends, the time has come. The final game of the 2018 season is upon us as the No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes take on the No. 9 Washington Huskies in the 105th edition of the Granddaddy of Them All, the Rose Bowl.

The game, which will kick off around 5 p.m. ET on ESPN, holds extra meaning for many in BuckeyeNation as it will be the final one coached by Urban Meyer. After seven seasons on the sidelines with the Buckeyes, the legendary coach will hang ‘em up following the game, passing the proverbial torch to current offensive coordinator Ryan Day.

Over the course of this season, we here at Land-Grant Holy Land are competing to see who the best prognosticator is on staff.

How this is working is that every week our writers and editors will predict what think the final score of the Ohio State game will be. If a forecaster foresees the game’s correct winner, he or she will receive 75 points. If the expert gets the score exactly right, they will receive a bonus 25 points. However, for every point that a prediction is off, one point will be subtracted—with a max total of 25 points getting subtracted. Get it? Got it? Good.

With every new week of predictions, we will update the standings, so that you can follow along and see who the best handicapper on the LGHL staff is. Current standings are below this week’s predictions.

Matt Brown

Ohio State 28, Washington 20
Season Point Total: 723 | Place: 1 out of 13

(He’s THE Matt Brown, he doesn’t need to give an explanation.)

Alexis Chassen

Ohio State 56, Washington 21
Season Point Total: 656 | Place: 10 out of 13

The Buckeyes go all out for Urban Meyer’s last game and Dwayne Haskins will continue to show that he’s among the top draft prospects, but Greg Schiano’s defense still lets Washington keep things interesting for the first half.

Colton Denning

Ohio State 42, Washington 17
Season Point Total: 604 | Place: 13 out of 13

Big Bob (Robert Landers) scores a TD!

On the latest episode of The Hangout in the Holy Land podcast, Colton and Patrick Mayhorn go in depth on the Rose Bowl. So, check that out for more of their thoughts on the game.

Geoff Hammersley

Ohio State 38, Washington 23
Season Point Total: 703 | Place: 6 out of 13

Washington gets big plays on the ground behind Myles Gaskin, and stays in the game. Even though UW has an elite secondary, the speed of OSU’s WRs will be too much. Dwayne Haskins has another big day, and leads the Buckeyes to victory in Pasadena.

Dan Hessler

Ohio State 35, Washington 24
Season Point Total: 662 | Place: 9 out of 13

I think this game is kept within one score until the very end, when Ohio State pulls the win out for their coach in his last game.

Meredith Hein

Ohio State 38, Washington 21
Season Point Total: 715 | Place: 2 out of 13

Dwayne Haskins and company showed what they’re capable of against a top-ranked defense in Michigan. If the Buckeyes continue in that vein, they should have no problem picking apart Washington’s defense. Also expect an expanded role for Mike Weber in his final game as a Buckeye.

Caleb Houser

Ohio State 34, Washington 20
Season Point Total: 712 | Place: 3 out of 13

Ohio State can’t — and won’t lose — in Meyer’s last game as head coach. Dwayne Haskins and the offense are still hot after a month’s preparation and, even though Washington has a great secondary, Haskins throws for 3 TDs to Terry McLaurin (2) and Johnnie Dixon (1).

Running backs of Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins gain 150 yards on the ground and Dobbins has the lone rushing TD.

The defense does well enough to hold the Huskies to 20 points, not nearly enough for the win.

Brett Ludwiczak

Ohio State 38, Washington 24
Season Point Total: 704 | Place: 5 out of 13

If Ohio State can get a performance out of Chase Young like they did in the Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern, where he registered three sacks, they should be in good shape. Dwayne Haskins and the Ohio State offense might have a little trouble gaining some early traction against the stingy Washington defense, but, in the end, the Buckeyes not only have too much talent for the Huskies to keep pace with, but Ohio State will also have the motivation of sending Urban Meyer out as a winner in his final game with the school.

Patrick Mayhorn

Ohio State 34, Washington 20
Season Point Total: 695 | Place: 7 out of 13

Chad Peltier

Ohio State 31, Washington 24
Season Point Total: 578 | Place: 13 out of 13

Matt Tamanini

Ohio State 37, Washington 24
Season Point Total: 642 | Place: 11 out of 13

I think that the Buckeyes finished the regular season playing as well as they had all year due to some schematic changes and player development on both sides of the ball. I would expect that those things have continued to be developed during the month of bowl prep. I would also imagine that there will be some extra incentive for the Buckeyes to play well to put a cap on Urban Meyer’s career, and perhaps that of Dwayne Haskins as well.

Ok, after 13 games, let’s take a look as to how our staff’s picks are looking.

LGHL Predictions Scoreboard

Place	LGHL Staff	Total Points	B1G Points	TTUN Points	Maryland Points	Mich. St. Points	Nebraska Points	Purdue Points	Minnesota Points	Indiana Points	Penn State Points	Tulane Points	TCU Points	Rutgers Points	Oregon St. Points
Place	LGHL Staff	Total Points	B1G Points	TTUN Points	Maryland Points	Mich. St. Points	Nebraska Points	Purdue Points	Minnesota Points	Indiana Points	Penn State Points	Tulane Points	TCU Points	Rutgers Points	Oregon St. Points
1	Matt Brown	723	54	0	50	73	70	71	64	48	58	64	61	60	50
2	Meredith Hein	715	61	50	50	62	69	0	56	66	61	54	62	74	50
4	Caleb Houser	712	71	50	50	55	71	0	50	62	66	65	55	67	50
5	Brett Ludwiczak	704	74	50	50	54	68	0	50	61	59	61	62	65	50
6	Geoff Hammersley	703	75	0	50	62	73	72	64	64	0	64	74	55	50
7	Patrick Mayhorn	695	51	0	50	69	63	64	60	69	50	44	64	61	50
8	Dan Vest	673	64	73	50	0	70	0	62	58	63	58	61	64	50
9	Dan Hassler	662	71	50	50	50	53	0	58	55	57	51	65	52	50
10	Alexis Chassen	656	71	50	50	50	65	0	54	60	50	52	52	52	50
11	Matt Tamanini	642	61	50	50	0	67	0	56	59	61	59	72	57	50
12	Max Littman	628	72	0	50	55	60	0	58	41	62	57	56	67	50
13	Colton Denning	604	67	0	50	0	60	0	59	62	56	68	68	64	50
13	Chad Peltier	578	54	0	50	0	66	0	60	66	55	54	73	50	50

So, to recap our oddly overly complicated scoring system:

Correct Winner Prediction: 75 points
Perfect Prediction Bonus: 25 points
Point Total Deductions: Subtract 1 point for every point off total score (cap 25 points)