No point in making it it's own thread
#4 Wisconsin Badgers (9-0, 12-0) vs. #8 Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1, 10-2)
8:00 - Indianapolis, IN - FOX
Looks like Ohio State is up in the annual Badger Invitational in Indianapolis. Penn State had it in their sights, and Michigan State made it interesting longer than expected, but in the end we got the matchup we all expected in the preseason. The fact that Wisconsin got Iowa and Michigan late helped them stay focused when the division has otherwise been wrapped up since about the 3rd quarter of the BYU game. It has also helped the offense round into form after some early unevenness. This is being billed as the Buckeye Offense vs. the Wisconsin defense, and for good reason, Wisconsin leads the conference in scoring defense, total defense, run defense and pass defense, all by a healthy margin, while Ohio State leads all of those categories on the offensive side. But it's Bucky's offense which is being ignored. Aside from Hornibrook's interception issue, it is as good as any in the conference outside of Columbus. Even the maligned passing game is 3rd in the Big Ten in completion percentage, and 2nd in yards per attempt. The issue is that horrible 1 in 14.83 interception ratio, worst in the conference. It's particularly odd when you consider Hornibrook's completion percentage on the whole is so good. 1 in 5.58 incompletions is an interception. For comparison, Illinois has the 2nd worst interception ratio at 1 in 18.21, but their interceptions on incompletions ratio is 1 in 9.36; and best in the Big Ten is Maryland's 1 in 25, which is when you only complete 51% of your passes, but also only throw 5 interceptions. As good as Ohio State's offense is, Wisconsin has a defense good enough to cause some stops. We saw Michigan give them trouble for a good portion of the game last week, and Wisconsin's defense is better. Best in the nation. But does Ohio State have enough defense to stop Wisconsin? They are going to have to cause turnovers, and frankly that is something they haven't done at a high rate this year, particularly considering how often they were playing from ahead, necessitating their opponents to take risks. They should have been far higher than 7th in the Big Ten in takeaways. The fan balance in the dome might play a factor. When Ohio State's offense was operating at its peak, the fourth quarter against Penn State and the first half against Michigan State, they were executing their tempo perfectly. They have to find that rhythm to try and get the Badgers off balance. That tempo didn't seem to travel well. Once the crowd in Iowa City got going, and then last week in Ann Arbor, even when the offense was working, the tempo was nothing like what I saw in those other two games. The tailbacks are good, but the receiving options aren't quite up to Ohio State's normal level, where they can overwhelm you on the edges. The Buckeyes only chance is to find that rhythm again, but I haven't seen it yet outside the Shoe.
WISCONSIN 31, OHIO STATE 24
