Ohio State has won eight of the last 10 games in this series and while the last two games have each been decided by a point, the series over that span has seen the Buckeyes enjoy a 330-200 point edge, or win by an average of 13 points per contest.

The Buckeyes have not lost at home to Penn State since 2011, the one-year Luke Fickell season and even in that game, it was close with the Buckeyes cutting things down to a 17-14 hole after Braxton Miller hit Jake Stoneburner on a 7-yarder late in the second quarter, but neither offense could muster any second half scoring as the Buckeyes fell by six en route to a 6-7 season on the eve of the Urban Meyer-era.

In fact, Ohio State has only lost twice to Penn State in Columbus this century with the other loss taking place in 2008, the year that Terrelle Pryor was unable to put the game away, opting to go outside instead of up the middle, only to have Mark Rubin knock the ball away in the 4th quarter, ultimately allowing Penn State to wrestle away momentum and turn a 6-3 Ohio State lead into a 13-6 loss.

Outside of that, things have gone pretty well at home. Yes, it took a furious comeback in 2017 in the 4th quarter when J.T. Barrett put on one of the greatest displays of quarterbacking and leadership that Ohio Stadium will ever see, but beyond of that, Penn State has only kept games within one-score only twice since the 2000 season and Ohio State holds a 21.3-point scoring edge in games that take place on the banks of the Olentangy.

How do we see things shaping up for this one? We make our weekly picks.

I have always felt that the Buckeyes were going to win this game, or at least once Ohio State passed its first test against Nebraska several weeks ago. Even with Penn State winning games, I just felt that there was something different about this Ohio State team, a team that should be able to avoid the one-point type of game that we have seen over the past two seasons.

There was this feeling that Ohio State was about 10-13 points better than Penn State, especially in Columbus (Ohio).

Then the last two weeks happened for Penn State.

I am not even talking about the loss, I am taking about the pass defense.

Statistically, Ohio State is not the best pass offense that Penn State will face this year, it is not even in the top-two (it is No. 3 to be exact). But Ohio State's passing numbers are what they are because Justin Fields does not have to play much into the second half in most games, plus the Buckeyes have a balanced offense that does not necessitate 40-plus throws to win the game.

It was easy to dismiss the 372 yards that Penn State gave up to Pittsburgh by way of the pass as an outlier, but over the past two weeks, Minnesota has thrown for 339 yards and then Indiana threw for 371.

Minnesota is the only team that Penn State has faced with a top-50 offense both in passing and rushing. Ohio State will be the second, and Ohio State's offense is considerably better than the Gophers.

Couple this with the fact that Ohio State is bringing in a much more sound defense in 2019 than either the 2017 or 2018 teams with the Buckeyes giving up about nine points less a game than the 2017 team did all season and better than two touchdowns fewer than the 2018 team did.

And Chase Young is back.

Penn State will come out and swing for the fences, the Nits may even land or shot or two. But they are just not built to score into the 30s against the top-end of the competition whereas the 30s are where the Buckeyes are at when they are just idling. Buckeyes win this one and clinch the B1G East on Saturday. Ohio State 38 Penn State 17

The spread in this game is in the 18-19 range. Penn State has been struggling the past two weeks. Their pass defense has looked putrid. The Buckeyes just tied a record for the most consecutive games with margin of victory at 24 or more. So this should be another easy win for Ohio State, right?

Not so fast. The last three games in this series have been decided by a total of just five points, as PSU won 24-21 in 2016, OSU won 39-38 in 2017, and the Bucks won 27-26 last year. I'm expecting more of the same---maybe not that close of a margin, but a really competitive game between two teams that have done a tremendous job recruiting the last few years, and have the rosterS well-stocked with talent. It should be the Buckeyes' toughest game of the season by far up until this point.

The Nittany Lions enter this game with the top rush defense in America and I fully expect them to try and shut down the Ohio State running game early. Look for Ryan Day to have Justin Fields stretching the field horizontally and vertically early to loosen things up in the box, and then use his legs to gain chunks of yards and make big plays, as PSU keys in on shutting down JK Dobbins.

When Penn State has the ball, I expect James Franklin and Ricky Rahne to try and expose some vulnerabilities we've seen in the OSU defense at times. If slot receiver KJ Hamler plays, that should occupy Shaun Wade, which will leave Pete Werner to deal with tight end Pat Freiermuth, who has had a ton of success this year. I believe the Nittany Lions will try to hit the pockets in the zone and the seams with Freirmuth and Hamler, as well as leverage the rushing ability of Sean Clifford, after seeing the success Rutgers had at times last week in running Johnny Langan, although with Chase Young back, that won't be as easy.

In the end, I think Ohio State is the more talented team. I expect this game to be close for a while, and will be the first contest that is tight in the fourth quarter. Eventually, though, the Buckeyes will be able to get enough stops on defense to give the ball back to the offense and wear down a very talented PSU defense. I think OSU will be held to their season-low in points on the year (tied with the MSU game), but I don't expect PSU to have enough firepower on offense to keep up with them. Heisman-type of game for Fields, and maybe one for Young, in his return, too. Ohio State 34, Penn State 23

Is this finally the game where Ohio State fans will be on the edge of their seats with under five minutes remaining? If so, the Buckeyes would truly have to operate in crunch time with all the pressure in the world. With the Big Ten East and playoff aspirations on the line, the Penn State game has heightened importance for the third consecutive year. The teams will meet in the top 10 for the third straight year, and although the Nittany Lions lost to Minnesota two weeks ago, Penn State still has everything to play for against Ohio State.

This game has the hype and stage to be an all-time classic, but I don't believe this is the game that the Buckeyes will be threatened. With Chase Young returning and the opportunity to clinch the Big Ten East, I expect Ohio State to come out with a focus and edge that will rival its game against Wisconsin.

On paper, the Buckeyes will have a tough battle in the trenches. Penn State comes into the game allowing only 76.3 rushing yards a game, and Ohio State is averaging 288.1 yards a game on the ground. Ohio State will have a clear advantage through the air, however. Penn State has surrendered 300 or more passing yards on three different occasions this year, including each of the last two games. Justin Fields may have to finally win a game with his arm, and after throwing for 305 yards and four touchdowns in just over two quarters against Rutgers, the sophomore seems up for the challenge.

I expect the receivers to play big for Ohio State, and the passing will play a huge role in opening up the running game later in the game. With the stakes high, the Buckeyes will step up to the challenge like they have all year. Ohio State 41 Penn State 20

The last three games between these two teams have come down to a combined five points. While I think this will certainly be the toughest game of the season for Ohio State until a potential playoff matchup, I still think Ohio State will move past Penn State with relative ease similar to the way they won against Wisconsin.

Penn State excels in rush defense, leading the nation with 2.2 yards per carry. This is offset, however, by the fact that they give up 240 passing yards per game, this time ranked 84th in the nation. Unfortunately for the Nittany Lions, Ohio State does both of those things really well.

Justin Fields should be able to have a career day, because even if the Buckeyes are up big, I don't think you'll see much of the second team in a game like this. Ryan Day has been on the sidelines for both of Ohio State's past wins over Penn State, so even though he's been on the right side of things the last two years, he knows how quickly a game like this can change. So a full four quarters for Fields should net him some good yardage with, as I'm predicting, a season high in passing attempts.

Penn State's offense with Sean Clifford is good, but they don't really stand out in any meaningful statistics, so I find it hard to imagine that they'll find a way to make an impact against Ohio State's defense. Fields only has three more rushing yards than Clifford this season, though, so the Silver Bullets will have to deal with a quarterback who can legitimately escape from the pocket and make some plays.

I think Penn State's defense will be able to get a stop or two and the offense may be able to cobble together a couple of drives, but I just don't see Ohio State's defense crumbling to the Nittany Lions offense or Ohio State's offense not being able to find the endzone. Despite Day called this a "talent equated" game, I don't see things turning out like that Saturday.

Oh, did I mention Chase Young is back? Ohio State 41, Penn State 17

At seventh in SP+, Penn State checks in as the best team Ohio State will have faced this season (for comparison, Wisconsin is currently 13th, Michigan 10th). The Nittany Lions have had some success slowing down the Buckeye run game in recent seasons with zone blitzes on run downs -- frequently slanting, bringing the overhang outside linebacker on fire zones, and playing a 3 deep-3 under zone behind. But Ohio State has eventually cracked that approach with the QB keeping on split zone arc read, bash, and outside zone -- combined with bubble screens, comeback routes against the soft cover 3 corners, and then attacking the deep middle.

If this sounds familiar it should -- it's essentially been the Buckeyes' offensive game plan all season long. Look for Ohio State to rely heavily on those outside throws to stay ahead of the chains, combined with a heavier dose of Justin Fields in the run game with zone read and bash. Fields' legs can also make a difference on third down against cover 1 man. While Penn State may short circuit some drives by keeping the Ohio State run game behind schedule, Ohio State should have some opportunities for explosive passing plays; an area where the Nittany Lions have been particularly vulnerable.

The Penn State offense has been more inconsistent. They are very reliant on KJ Hamler to create plays, and on quarterback Sean Clifford picking up first downs with his legs on plays like power read and Q-draw/stick RPOs. Similar to Rutgers, look for the Nittany Lions to stress the integrity of the Ohio State defense by using "nub" formations that place trips to the field, and the tight end to the boundary. The Buckeyes will likely respond with cover over, leaving weak safety/linebacker Pete Werner both responsible for setting the edge and covering Penn State's effective tight end Pat Freiermuth. While Penn State may be able to generate some offense this way, the Buckeyes' 1-high defense is designed to limit the RPO stick and slant routes that the Nittany Lions rely upon. Chase Young's return will make a big difference not only in rushing the passer -- allowing the Buckeyes to stay more vanilla to defend third-down QB designed runs -- but also in limiting the Nittany Lions' split zone read run game. Ohio State 36 Penn State 19

This is a big game because we made it one. Not them. Penn State had a chance to made this a battle of the unbeatens and they flubbed versus a Minnesota team that was exposed by Iowa last week. I look for our offensive line to have a rebound performance after an up and down outing versus Rutgers in a game they surely weren't up for. Having a two-week sprint with everything in front of you is what dreams are made of, and they will not die on Senior Day for the Bucks. I am looking for 250 on the ground and 300 in the air this week.

Defensively, the Mattison Revolution is rolling along and gets their lead singer back in the band this week as Chase Young makes his huge return. I personally hope they let him run out on Senior Day, but who knows if they will. It would electrify the crowd. Jeff Okudah might as well jog some roses to his family as well as he is as gone as they come after an epic season playing corner for us. I look for three turnovers and three chaos plays from our DL this week as we catapult into Michigan week. Ohio State 45 Penn State 28

The best nine-game run of my lifetime keeps on rolling on Senior Day versus the nasty Nittany Lions. Chase Young will get a hero’s welcome as he returns to the field for his final game in the Horseshoe (it is amazing I just typed that). Him, along with the general emotion of Senior Day, will lead to an electrifying start for the Buckeyes. I look for our defense to set the tone up front and I think Chase ends up with five sacks on the day.

Offensively, we will be doing a ton of running versus their mixed fronts, and I believe it will be JK's swan song as well and he will go over 200 yards. We will have Justin Fields for another wonderful year, but the game will be won on the ground on Saturday. We have some serious things in front of us and I think our guys are locked in. Ryan Day turning the Woody into Fort Knox over the next two weeks bodes well for the focus of the team and eliminating distractions and keeping guys locked in. Ohio State 38 Penn State 10

I am about to expose the Penn State football team. They think they’re special. They think they’re back. They really believe the College Football Playoff Committee hype that they’re the eighth best team in the country. I’ve got some news for you: they’re a fraud and you’ll see it firsthand on Saturday afternoon. Used Car salesman James Franklin is a heck of a recruiter. He can talk a good game but he sure as hell can’t coach one. You already know the history of our series with them. The last two years they got out to a double-digit lead but we did amazing things (and I coached well) and came back to win. You won’t see any of that drama on Saturday.

The Nittany Lions have had an easy schedule this season. They beat powerhouses like Idaho and barely got past Pittsburgh. LOL. Then they lost to the Gophers. LOL. They have a highly mediocre quarterback who has never been pressured like he will on Saturday. Their defense is highly susceptible to giving up big plays. Their defense will have no idea how to stop whatever we’ll throw (and run) at them. Oh, and we’ve got that Chase Young kid back who might play a little bit angry. Overall, you’re about to see a team get their you know what’s handed to them. In Game 11 of our “no fret” season, this will again be a laugher. Ohio State 48, Penn State 14