Staff Predictions: Rutgers

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Sometimes you go through the week, knowing you have to make a pick and you just wait and see if your feelings change as days go on. On Monday I felt that this was a titanic mismatch and now as I sit here writing this (not on Monday) I still feel that this could be a colossal rout.

Rutgers lost its best chance of keeping the game close when Janarion Grant went down to injury. He is a special talent and someone that could be worth a score or two on his own. Now with him out of the lineup, I am having a hard time finding where Rutgers is going to find much productivity.

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The Buckeyes will come out of the bye week a little sloppy but will quickly work through that. If the weather conditions are less than ideal, I expect it to be a J.T. Barrett/Mike Weber/Curtis Samuel/Dontre Wilson ground assault. Even if the weather is not all that bad, still expect the Buckeyes to have a lot of success on the ground. Ohio State still needs to get the passing game to be a little more consistent and have two weeks before the season really starts to ramp up with four straight night games and two tough road trips (Wisconsin/Penn State). I would not be surprised to see Urban Meyer and Ed Warinner dial is up a little bit with two games left before that march starts. At the end of the day, too much Buckeyes and not enough Rutgers. Ohio State 56 Rutgers 10

It’s reasonable to think that Chris Ash will, at some point while he’s coaching Rutgers, take down his former team. It’s unreasonable to think it will happen on Saturday.

Well rested with momentum from rolling Oklahoma still, Ohio State should have no problem sending Rutgers (2-2) packing.

This is a perfect game for J.T. Barrett did solidify himself as a real Heisman contender, and I think he will do just that. In Rutgers’ only real test so far, against Washington in Week 1, the defense allowed nearly 300 passing yards and three scores. Barrett should have no problem picking apart the Scarlet Knight secondary, which starts three sophomores, regardless of any wrinkles that Ash and Co. throw at him.

The Buckeye defense’s only real test comes on the ground by way of running back Robert Martin, who ranks 32nd nationally in rushing yards. That’s a good thing, though, because we know how good Ohio State’s pass defense is but questions linger about the run defense. This gives them a good chance to evaluate themselves. Ohio State 48 Rutgers 10

With new head coach Chris Ash, there's been a little more attention paid to Rutgers than in previous years while returning a veteran offense. However, this game should closely resemble last year's matchup at Rutgers, when the Buckeyes kept the Scarlet Knights off the scoresheet until the final minute of the game.

Senior quarterback Chris Laviano, who completed just ten passes last year versus the Buckeyes, is having a devil of a time so far in 2016. At 52.5-percent completed passes, his offensive statistics rank close to the bottom in every category among Big Ten signal callers. Combined with a porous offensive line that has allowed him to be sacked eight times so far in 2016 and you get a recipe for a very long day for the Scarlet Knight offense.

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With the Buckeye defense keeping constant pressure on a weak Scarlet Knight line, the offense should keep rolling against a defense that won't be spending too much time on the sidelines, giving them more time to tune-up as the conference schedule gets underway. Ohio State 59 Rutgers 6

Well the rest of the season will now be a bit of a gauntlet for the Buckeyes, the bye week probably came at a good time. An extra week for some nagging injuries to starters Dante Booker and Gareon Conley should go a long way towards getting the defense back to full health. It also gives a young Ohio State team a week to recharge the batteries after an emotional road win at Oklahoma.

Chris Ash has a tough rebuilding task in front of him at Rutgers and the Scarlet Knights have not had good fortune recently on the injury front. Still, Ash has his team seemingly playing better each week and he definitely has a great feel for Ohio State's personnel.

I think Rutgers comes out and plays with a lot of energy early but ultimately Ohio State's speed, athleticism, and depth will pull away by the third quarter. Ohio State 42 Rutgers 14

As a gambler you look for "types" of games. OSU on the road against Oklahoma was the "type" of game that Urban Meyer does really well. This is another spot that OSU typically does very well in as well. This is a Rutgers team that just isn't very good on either side of the ball. They are playing an Ohio State team that is rested, confident and pretty close to full healthy. Despite the early start time I expect OSU to score early and often. And the Ohio State defense will feast against this Rutgers team that just lacks playmakers on offense. I'm seeing the game about 54-7 with Ohio State playing the second and third string guys liberally throughout the second half. Only Urban Meyer's fondness for Chris Ash will prevent this from being worse. Ohio State 54 Rutgers 7

This will be one of the stranger games of the season for the Buckeyes. They are playing a team that literally runs the exact same offense and defense as they do(same verbiage and all). This can be something that can be a benefit and a hindrance. One of Coach Meyer’s greatest assets is his ability to figure out who gives his offense and defense issues. In the offseason, the staff will regularly sit down and gameplan against each other’s schemes. What “tells”(tendancies) are found by your comrades allows for you to amend and diversify your calls to eliminate them. In addition, we also often ask “What is a pain in the butt for you to defend against?”. This always yields great discussion and new ways to develop a game-plan going into the season. In layman’s terms, Chris Ash knows what Urban Meyer hates to go against. The problem is, I don’t think he has the horses to do anything about it.

Ohio State caught a break last week when Janarion Grant suffered a season ending injury, thus eliminating their most dynamic playmaker from their offense. They have run the ball at a very nice clip(which is pretty standard in Urban’s offense), averaging 220 yards a game to this point. However, in their only major road contest, they got destroyed by Washington. I expect similar results in their trip to the Shoe this week. I believe that the Curtis Samuel show will continue and he will continue to be the factor back and engine to this offense. He is an example of a kid who patiently waited his turn(without raising a stink about playing time) and I think Urban is working hard to pay him back for that. I look for the offensive line to take another step, as Greg Studrawa has done a sensational job to this point with a relatively inexperienced crew. An added bonus would be if we really put it on them early and were able to see some of the AYO OL so they could get some reps in the stadium.

Defensively, I think Greg Schiano will have the guys fired up and ready to go for this one. Rutgers could have brought their most successful coach ever back for round 2, but they instead elected to go for new blood and grab Chris Ash. While Greg might not outwardly express it, I would be disappointed if I was in his shoes. Thus, I expect a major effort against Rutgers. With their top playmaker in Grant being lost, I think we’ll see a very aggressive game-plan(it is fun to have much better athletes, isn’t it?). Also, it is kind of cool when predicting a defensive score isn’t really even considered going out on a limb. Malik Hooker has been the best DB in the country thus far, and I look for him to continue his campaign towards the 1st round this weekend. Ohio State 49 Rutgers 14

The primary question is whether Ohio State will be rusty and start slow after a bye week. Rutgers' head coach Chris Ash is familiar with both the Buckeyes' scheme and personnel. He will likely try to slow the Buckeye offense by limiting Ohio State's first down run game and making J.T. Barrett and his inexperienced receiving corps make plays in the passing game. Look for Ash to sit in a soft cover 4 to take away the deep throws and try to force Ohio State to methodically move the football. Do the Buckeyes respond by treating this like a glorified scrimmage? Or do they use a diversified run game plan featuring Curtis Samuel and Mike Weber to stay ahead of schedule?

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Even if Ohio State's offense starts slow, it is unlikely that Rutgers will have much success against the Buckeye defense. The quarters scheme that Ash brought to Ohio State is well-designed for the Urban Meyer spread offense that Ash took with him to Rutgers. Ohio State 49 Rutgers 14

You may remember two weeks ago when I wrote in this very prediction column that Ohio State would beat Oklahoma 45-24. It's obvious that not only can I coach and tweet simultaneously from the sidelines, but I am a bit of that Nostradamus guy. This week, we play Rutgers and my former defensive coordinator, Chris Ash, is working to bring them back from the dead. That won't happen this week. Our defense will shut them down and if you enjoy seeing a lot of Buckeye touchdowns, this is the game for you. Sorry, Chris Ash. Happy Homecoming, people. Ohio State 52 Rutgers 0