Bet on Ohio State to cover and an overtime finish when they meet Michigan for “The Game”

This year’s showdown between Ohio State and Michigan could go down as the most dramatic version of “The Game” in the rivalry’s 125-year history. The two combatants are both ranked inside the top-3 and would all but clinch a spot in the College Football Playoff with a win, but a loss would throw a season’s worth of hard work into the bin.

The on-field stakes are as high as they could be for this season headliner, but the off-the-field shenanigans will be what dominates the headlines as Michigan deals with the fallout from the signal-stealing scandal.

All of this adds up to the Wolverines being a 3.5-point favorite at home on Saturday afternoon.

A lot of the signals in this matchup point to this being a tightly contested game where the defenses do the heavy lifting. There are certainly game-breaking players on the offensive side of the ball, but the defensive stats for both teams are elite.

Michigan’s schedule has not been all that difficult, but you can’t poke many holes in a defense that leads the nation in yards allowed and points allowed per game. The Wolverines have given up 14+ points in just two games this season and is holding opponents to just 9 points per contest.

Ohio State’s defense is not too far behind, though. The Buckeyes are the best unit in the country at defending the pass and rank third in yards allowed and second in points conceded per game.

This all checks out under the hood as Michigan’s defense ranks seventh in passing success rate, seventh in rushing success rate and first in finishing drives. Ohio State’s defense is first in passing success rate, 10th in rushing success rate and second in finishing drives.

These two teams look like near equals in every facet. Neither team has a quarterback that you’d be confident in taking over and dominating, but the supporting cast -- Michigan’s running game and Ohio State’s star wide receivers -- figure to be the difference makers on the offensive side of the ball.

With things projected to be so tight, I’d lean towards Ohio State covering as a 3.5-point underdog, but there’s also a fun longshot bet to play in this contest. There’s so little separating these two teams that it would be pretty surprising to see either side rout the other. That puts some value on backing this game to go to overtime at +1100.

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