Ohio State vs. Michigan State: Keys to a Buckeye Victory

The 14th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes are traveling to East Lansing to take on the 20th-ranked Michigan State Spartans in a Big Ten showdown. The Buckeyes have struggled a bit on defense, but the Spartans have had a tough go of it on offense. 
On the other side, the Buckeyes offense has been great, but it’s been the Spartans defense that has really shown up. They are allowing 3.9 yards per play this year.
So what will happen? Here are some keys to a Buckeye victory.
 
Stopping the run
The Spartans have a pretty good running back in Le’Veon Bell, but they have just not been able to get it going in the passing game. Andrew Maxwell has struggled.
The Buckeyes are going to do what they can to contain Bell. That might mean keeping eight men in the box on running downs. They’re going to force Maxwell to throw.
While Ohio State’s pass defense isn’t great, their run defense is solid enough. With the extra attention, they should be able to contain Bell. Maxwell simply isn’t good enough…

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