Game Day: Ohio State vs. Wisconsin, Noon, Ohio Stadium

Latest Weather, Matchup to Watch, Keys to the Game, Prediction
Game Day: Ohio State vs. Wisconsin, Noon, Ohio Stadium
Game Day: Ohio State vs. Wisconsin, Noon, Ohio Stadium /

No. 3 Ohio State plays host to No. 13 Wisconsin in a noon kickoff at Ohio Stadium (Fox-TV) with the Big Ten's College Football Playoff hopes on the line.

The Buckeyes (7-0) have an inside lane to the Playoff in head coach Ryan Day's first season because they are unbeaten and will get fellow-unbeaten Penn State at home on Nov. 23.

The Badgers (6-1) were dominant through the first half of the season and still boast the nation's No. 1 defense in every category, but are coming off a shocking 24-23 loss to Illinois last week.

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Latest weather: 100% chance of rain. High temperature 59 degrees. Winds 10-14 mph.

Matchup to watch: Wisconsin tackles Cole Van Lanen and Logan Bruss must hold up against OSU defensive end Chase Young, tied for the lead nationally with 9.5 quarterback sacks. The Buckeyes move Young around, sometimes positioning him in the middle of the line on passing downs to keep offenses guessing. If Wisconsin cannot keep him out of the backfield, it's likely to undermine any chance quarterback Jack Coan has of keeping OSU from stacking the line of scrimmage to stop tailback Jonathan Taylor.

Keys to the game: Wisconsin wants to run the ball to exhaust the clock and keep the football away from OSU's explosive offense. Because of the rain, ball security will be a big issue. Badgers' tailback Jonathan Taylor suffered a costly fumble last week in a loss at Illinois.

 The Badgers must be able to hold up against an Ohio State rushing attack that averages 280 yards per-game. That means stopping tailback J.K. Dobbins, but also Fields, who has broken Big Ten defenses with timely scrambles. He also has a deep, talented receiving corp that will challenge Wisconsin's secondary sideline-to-sideline and deep down field.

Prediction: Ohio State 37, Wisconsin 20.

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