College Football ATS Picks - Oklahoma at Ohio State Game Preview

College GameDay heads to Columbus for the Top 10 matchup between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Oklahoma Sooners this week. Ohio State didn’t look like the No. 2 team in the nation in the first half against Indiana last Thursday. The Buckeyes couldn’t get their offense moving and were actually down a point at the break. However, they turned it on in the second half, outscoring the Hoosiers 36-7 and cruising after that. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s first game under Lincoln Riley was a successful one. The Sooners and Baker Mayfield tore up UTEP’s defense and OSU completed 32 of 36 passes as a whole. Now it’s time for a rematch of last year’s hyped battle.

Kickoff for this regular season Week 2 game is set for Saturday, September 9, 2017, at 7:30 p.m.

ET at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. This game will be broadcast on ABC.

College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu

Oklahoma +7.5
Ohio State -7.5
Over/Under 64.5

Odds Analysis

The Buckeyes strong second half performance won them the cover last week. Ohio State was a 20-point favorite over Indiana and once it turned it on, Indiana bettors knew they were toast. Urban Meyer and company know they can’t do that this week against Oklahoma though.

In Baker Mayfield we trust. Oklahoma has one of the best signal callers in the country in Mayfield and he lit up UTEP last week to get the Sooners the cover. He is one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the game today, but no longer has his top weapons from last season and must find new targets.

Coaching Angle

Riley is one of the youngest coaches in all of college football. He made a name for himself installing Air Raid offenses at East Carolina and Texas Tech and revolutionized Bob Stoops offense when he came to Norman two seasons ago.

Stoops surprise retirement announcement in spring caught Oklahoma off guard. The Sooners knew that it would be hard to bring someone in this close to the season and so they stayed in house and promoted Riley to the top job.

Although he is just 34 years old, Riley has done a lot during his short time as a college football assistant. He can definitely run an offense, but whether or not he can run a team is still up for discussion. This will be his first real test.

Last Year’s Meeting

Sharps jumped all over Ohio State when these two teams met last year. Oklahoma started out as the favorite even though the Sooners were 1-1 after a loss to Houston, because of the total lack of experience on the Buckeyes roster. Ohio State returned just six starters to that team from the previous year, but there was a wealth of talent on the roster.

Ohio State jumped all over Oklahoma early. The Buckeyes were able to move the ball with relative ease all game against the Sooners, while Baker Mayfield really struggled. Mayfield threw two interceptions, one that was returned for a pick six, and didn’t look like himself.

The story of the game was Ohio State’s ability to run the ball. The Buckeyes ran the ball 48 times for 291 yards against the Sooners and they were able to control the clock for most of the affair. Oklahoma can’t let J.T. Barrett and Mike Weber do that again.

Free ATS Pick

This is a great number from the oddsmakers. We would have liked Ohio State at a touchdown or less and Oklahoma would have had too much value to pass up if it was a double-digit underdog.

Instead of betting a side here, go for a total. The over is a decent bet here as Oklahoma’s weakest unit on defense is its defensive line and Ohio State is playing a lot of underclassmen in its secondary.

College Football Odds: Buckeyes 38, Sooners 31

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