Ohio State vs. Wisconsin picks, predictions: Week 9 college football odds, lines
Big Ten rivals meet under the lights this weekend as unranked West Division leader Wisconsin returns home in a statement game against No. 3, undefeated Ohio State in college football's Week 9 action on Saturday.
Wisconsin sits at 5-2 overall this season and with a 3-1 mark in conference play and holding the No. 1 position in the West after a narrow win over Iowa behind the nation's 20th ranked scoring defense and following an 18-point fourth quarter effort to take down Illinois last weekend.
Ohio State is averaging just under 432 total yards per game, but it was a stellar defensive performance that pushed it over the top in a statement victory at home over division rival Penn State, proving the Buckeyes can win ugly games, too.
What do the experts think of this matchup? Let's see how the College Football Power Index computer prediction model projects the game.
Ohio State vs. Wisconsin picks, predictions
Ohio State vs. Wisconsin picks, predictions
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Ohio State odds: The simulations side squarely with the Buckeyes, who are projected to win the game in 88.3 percent of the model's forecasts this week, or in 17,660 of the 20,000 simulations it uses to predict game winners.
Wisconsin odds: Conversely, the Badgers win out in the remaining 11.7 percent of the projections, or the other 2,340 of the simulations.
Point spread: Ohio State is a 14.5 point favorite against Wisconsin, according to the lines at SI Sportsbook, which set the total at 43.5 points for the game.
Ohio State predictions: The computer slots the Buckeyes at No. 1 in its 133 team rankings and project them to be 27.9 points better than an average opponent, forecasting the team will win 11.8 games this season.
Wisconsin predictions: FPI ranks the Badgers at No. 29 nationally, projects them to be 8.8 points better than opponents, and estimates they will win 8.2 games this season.
Score prediction? By taking the difference between the teams' expected point margins, the computers project Ohio State will defeat Wisconsin by 19.1 points.
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College Football Power Index
Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance.
Rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season and games, using a combination of key analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, team talent, recruiting, and a team’s schedule.
Teams are ranked not in order of talent like in other rankings, but by a projected point margin per game against an average team on a neutral field.
Ohio State at Wisconsin schedule
When: Sat., Oct. 28
Time: 7:30 p.m. Eastern
TV: NBC network
Stream live: fuboTV (Try for free)
More college football from SI: Top 25 Rankings | Schedule | Teams