Cole Mirza’s Predictions – College Football
October 28, 2022
(2) Ohio State @ (13) Penn State
9am pst on FOX
The Big Ten brings us another heavyweight battle between ranked teams in Happy Valley on Saturday morning. It will be a hostile environment as the Penn State Nittany Lions look to end the Ohio State Buckeyes unbeaten season.
Ohio State has been a juggernaut this season. They come into this game undefeated (7-0) having won every game by at least twenty-nine points except for week one against Notre Dame. The Buckeye offense is led by Heisman favorite Cj Stroud and his plethora of weapons on the outside. Emeka Egbuka and Marvin Harrison Jr. have been stars this year and they will be a large part of the Buckeye game plan. The Ohio State defense has been pretty good this year, ranking fifth in yards allowed per game. Ohio State will look to get after Sean Clifford early and often.
It is a totally different story on the other side of this.Penn State has been very average this year on both offense and defense. They have played one ranked team this year and they got blown off the field in that game by Michigan. The Nittany Lion offense ranks 76th in yards per game and 39th in points per game with 33.4. Penn State lacks the weapons offensively to compete with a team that is as explosive as Ohio State. They do have a veteran quarterback who has played in many big games before but they managed barely anything against Michigan in that game. I think Penn State will struggle on offense in this one against a tough Buckeye defense.
Penn State’s defense has been leaky this year. They rank 130th in yards allowed, giving up near 400 yards per game. They allowed 41 points to Michigan a couple weeks ago and this Buckeye offense is better than the Michigan offense. I believe the score will not be close and that Ohio State will win by at least 15 points.
Prediction: Ohio State -14.5
(9) Oklahoma State @ (22) Kansas State
12:30pm pst on FOX
The Oklahoma State Cowboys will travel to Manhattan, Kansas to take on the Kansas State Wildcats in a highly anticipated ranked battle this Saturday.
OSU comes in as one of the highest-flying offenses in the nation led by veteran quarterback Spencer Sanders. The Cowboys currently sit third in the country in points scored per game. They have some key players that are questionable for this game which is something to keep an eye on leading up to game time. Dominic Richardson and John Paul Richardson are both questionable for Saturday’s game. Both are key contributors in the offense in both the running and passing game. Even if they both do not play, this offense should be able to move the ball and score points because of Spencer Sanders and head coach Mike Gundy. If both do play however, the Cowboys should be able to score points at will against a defense that has been average at best all year.
Former star quarterback at Nebraska, Adrian Martinez, is questionable for the Wildcats. He has played very well this year and is using his legs to do so. Martinez is second on the team in rushing with nine touchdowns and 565 yards so far this season. He is a dual threat quarterback making him a very tough quarterback to stop. If he is unable to go, Will Howard will start in his place. Oklahoma State’s defense has been bad this year and I expect this to continue. The Cowboys rank 232nd in yards allowed this year so expect a lot of points from both sides. This game should go over the total regardless of who wins but I think Oklahoma State is going to find a way to get it done on the road.
Prediction: Oklahoma State +1.5 and Over 56