Ohio State at Michigan State

* Date, Time: Sat., Oct. 18, 3:30 p.m. (Eastern)

* Location: Spartan Stadium; East Lansing, Mich.

* TV: ABC regional telecast with “back haul” on ESPN2 to areas not receiving the ABC broadcast (Announcers: Brad Nessler, Bob Griese, Paul Maguire, Stacey Dales).

* Records, Rankings: Ohio State, 6-1 overall, 3-0 Big Ten, ranked 12th in Associated Press poll and 11th in USA Today coaches poll; Michigan State, 6-1 overall, 3-0 Big Ten, ranked 20th in the AP poll and 17th in the coaches poll.

* Coaches: Ohio State, Jim Tressel (eighth year at OSU, 79-17; 23rd year overall, 214-74-2; vs. MSU, 5-0); Michigan State, Mark Dantonio (second year at MSU, 13-7; fifth year overall, 31-24; vs. OSU, 0-3).

* Series History: Ohio State leads the all-time series 26-12, including 12-5 in East Lansing. OSU has won the last six games in the series, dating to a 1999 loss (23-7) in East Lansing. The Buckeyes won at East Lansing 38-7 in 2006 and prevailed 24-17 last year in Columbus.

* Ohio State Schedule: Aug. 30, Youngstown State, W 45-0; Sept. 6, Ohio U., W 26-14; Sept. 13, at USC, L 35-3; Sept. 20, Troy, W 28-10; Sept. 27, Minnesota, W 34-21; Oct. 4, at Wisconsin, W 20-17; Oct. 11, Purdue, W 16-3; Oct. 18, at Michigan State; Oct. 25, Penn State; Nov. 8, at Northwestern; Nov. 15, at Illinois; Nov. 22, Michigan.

* Ohio State Key Players (2008 Stats): QB Terrelle Pryor (52 of 79 passing, 537 yards, 5 TDs, 2 INTs; 76 carries, 339 yards, 4 TDs), RB Chris “Beanie” Wells (71 carries, 479 yards, 2 TDs), WR Brian Robiskie (24 catches, 232 yards, 4 TDs), WR Ray Small (16 catches, 112 yards; 1 punt return TD), WR Brian Hartline (14 catches, 231 yards, 2 TDs), MLB James Laurinaitis (67 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT), WLB Ross Homan (40 tackles, 2 TFLs), SLB Marcus Freeman (45 tackles, 3 sacks, 5 TFLs), CB Malcolm Jenkins (27 tackles, 3 INTs), SS Kurt Coleman (28 tackles, 2 INTs).

* Michigan State Schedule: Aug. 30, at California, L 38-31; Sept. 6, Eastern Michigan, W 42-10; Sept. 13, Florida Atlantic, W 17-0; Sept. 20, Notre Dame, W 23-7; Sept. 27, at Indiana, W 42-29; Oct. 4, Iowa, W 16-13; Oct. 11, at Northwestern, W 37-20; Oct. 18, Ohio State; Oct. 25, at Michigan; Nov. 1, Wisconsin; Nov. 8, Purdue; Nov. 22, at Penn State.

* Michigan State Key Players (2008 Stats): QB Brian Hoyer (86 of 171 passing, 1,314 yards, 6 TDs, 3 INTs), RB Javon Ringer (247 carries, 1,112 yards, 14 TDs), WR Mark Dell (20 catches, 443 yards, 2 TD), WR B.J. Cunningham (19 catches, 322 yards), SLB Greg Jones (52 tackles, 5-1/2 TFLs), WLB Eric Gordon (45 tackles, 2-1/2 TFLs), SS Otis Wiley (38 tackles, 4 INTs), DE Trevor Anderson (16 tackles, 5 sacks, 6-1/2 TFLs).

* Michigan State Fast Facts: Location: East Lansing, Mich.; Enrollment, 45,166; Nickname, Spartans; Colors, Green and White; Stadium, Spartan Stadium (surface, grass; capacity, 75,005).

Depth Charts

Ohio State Offense    

WR 80 Brian Robiskie, 6-3, 199, Sr.

     8 DeVier Posey, 6-3, 205, Fr.

LT 75 Alex Boone, 6-8, 312, Sr.       

     67 Kyle Mitchum, 6-3, 291, Sr.

LG 64 Jim Cordle, 6-4, 297, Jr.

    71 Steve Rehring, 6-7, 335, Sr.

C  50 Mike Brewster, 6-5, 296, Fr.

     64 Jim Cordle, 6-4, 297, Jr.

     66 Andrew Moses, 6-3, 280, Jr.    

RG 63 Ben Person, 6-3, 323, Sr.

     77 Connor Smith, 6-4, 321, So.

     73 Josh Kerr, 6-4, 286, So.

RT 70 Bryant Browning, 6-4, 312, So.

     73 Josh Kerr, 6-4, 286, So.

TE 86 Jake Ballard, 6-6, 256, Jr.

     88 Rory Nicol, 6-5, 252, Sr.

     87 Brandon Smith, 6-2, 251, Sr.

WR 9 Brian Hartline, 6-2, 186, Jr.

     82 Ray Small, 5-11, 180, Jr.

     12 Dane Sanzenbacher, 5-11, 175, So.

QB 2 Terrelle Pryor, 6-6, 235, Fr.

     17 Todd Boeckman, 6-4, 244, Sr.

     14 Joe Bauserman, 6-2, 220, R-Fr.

TB 28 Chris Wells, 6-1, 237, Jr.

     1 Dan Herron, 5-10, 193, R-Fr.

     34 Maurice Wells, 5-10, 196, Sr.

     3 Brandon Saine, 6-1, 217, So.

FB 87 Brandon Smith, 6-2, 251, Sr.

     49 Ryan Lukens, 6-0, 238, Sr.

K 85 Ryan Pretorius, 5-9, 169, Sr.

     20 Aaron Pettrey, 6-2, 199, Jr.

LS  96 Jake McQuaide, 6-2, 219, So.

Ohio State Defense

DE 97 Cameron Heyward, 6-6, 287, So.

     99 Curtis Terry, 6-1, 229, Sr.        

DT 84 Doug Worthington, 6-6, 276, Jr.

     93 Nader Abdallah, 6-4, 300, Sr.

DT 72 Dexter Larimore, 6-2, 300, So.

   or 92 Todd Denlinger, 6-2, 292, Jr.

DE 90 Thaddeus Gibson, 6-2, 240, So.

     9 Robert Rose, 6-5, 285, Jr.

SLB 1 Marcus Freeman, 6-1, 239, Sr.

     26 Tyler Moeller, 6-0, 216, So.

MLB 33 James Laurinaitis, 6-3, 240, Sr.

     11 Etienne Sabino, 6-3, 232, Fr.   

WLB 51 Ross Homan, 6-1, 229, So.

     36 Brian Rolle, 5-11, 221, So.                  

CB 2 Malcolm Jenkins, 6-1, 201, Sr.

     29 Shaun Lane, 5-10, 175, Sr.

SS 4 Kurt Coleman, 5-11, 188, Jr.

     7 Jermale Hines, 6-2, 210, So.

     3 Jamario O’Neal, 6-0, 205, Sr.

FS 21 Anderson Russell, 6-0, 205, Jr.

     8 Aaron Gant, 6-0, 194, So.    

CB 5 Chimdi Chekwa, 6-0, 188, So.

 or 20 Donald Washington, 6-0, 194, Jr.

     13 Andre Amos, 6-1, 183, Jr.

P 15 A.J. Trapasso, 6-0, 229, Sr.

     48 Jon Thoma, 6-2, 201, Jr.

Michigan State Offense 

X WR 6 Mark Dell, 6-2, 188, So.

    25 Blair White, 6-2, 200, Jr.

LT 57 Rocco Cironi, 6-6, 308, Jr.

    64 Brendon Moss, 6-6, 287, Jr.

LG 67 Joel Foreman, 6-3, 308, R-Fr.

    60 Mike Bacon, 6-4, 305, Sr.

C 65 Joel Nitchman, 6-3, 297, Jr.

     60 Mike Bacon, 6-4, 305, Sr.

RG 73 Roland Martin, 6-5, 330, Sr.

     75 Jared McGaha, 6-6, 290, R-Fr.

RT 79 Jesse Miller, 6-6, 312, Jr.

     76 Mike Schmeding, 6-8, 320, Jr.

TE 83 Charlie Gantt, 6-4, 252, So.

     85 Garrett Celek, 6-5, 238, R-Fr.

Z WR 3 B.J. Cunningham, 6-2, 205, R-Fr.

     82 Keshawn Martin, 6-0, 180, Fr.

QB  7 Brian Hoyer, 6-3, 215, Sr.

     8 Kirk Cousins, 6-3, 197, R-Fr.

FB 45 Andrew Hawken, 6-2, 238, Jr.

     35 Jeff McPherson, 6-1, 240, Sr.

RB 23 Javon Ringer, 5-9, 202, Sr.

     20 A.J. Jimmerson, 5-10, 208, Jr.

K    14 Brett Swenson, 5-8, 169, Jr.

Michigan State Defense

DE 47 Brandon Long, 6-4, 250, Sr.

     89 Colin Neely, 6-1, 248, So.

DT 97 Justin Kershaw, 6-5, 273, Sr.

     96 Kevin Pickelman, 6-3, 248, R-Fr.

NT 70 Oren Wilson, 6-3, 288, So.

     98 Michael Jordan, 6-5, 287, Jr.

DE 58 Trevor Anderson, 6-2, 250, Jr.

     49 Dwayne Holmes, 6-0, 286, Sr.

SLB 53 Greg Jones, 6-1, 222, So.

     34 Brandon Denson, 5-11, 222, Jr.

MLB 55 Adam Decker, 6-2, 238, Jr.

     54 David Rolf, 6-3, 215, Fr.

WLB 43 Eric Gordon, 6-0, 224, So.

     42 Ryan Allison, 6-3, 224, Sr.    

SS 21 Otis Wiley, 6-2, 210, Sr.

     11 Marcus Hyde, 6-0, 199, So.

FS 33 Danny Fortener, 6-1, 199, Jr.

     38 Kendell Davis-Clark, 5-11, 210, Sr.

CB 37 Ross Weaver, 6-1, 202, Jr.

     5 Johnny Adams, 5-11, 165, Fr.

CB 29 Chris L. Rucker, 6-2, 190, So.

     9 Jeremy Ware, 5-10, 184, Jr.

P   18 Aaron Bates, 6-0, 188, So.

Breaking It Down

* When Ohio State Has The Ball: Ohio State struggled offensively last week against Purdue, mustering just 222 yards total offense playing at home against the last-ranked team in total defense in the Big Ten. Of course, part of the problem was the fact tailback Chris “Beanie” Wells was playing after dealing with a bout with the flu.

He had to pull himself out of the game at key moments and just was not himself. He ended up with 94 yards on 22 carries. At the same time, freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor seemed confounded at times by the Purdue defense. He was 10 of 14 passes, but those plays netted just 97 yards. And the Boilers succeeded in bottling up the athletic Pryor.

Those two are OSU’s first, second, third and fourth options on offense. The Buckeyes need them to come up big. A year ago, Wells trampled the Spartans for 221 yards and one touchdown on 31 carries in a 24-17 win at Ohio Stadium. OSU is 10th in the Big Ten in total offense and 11th in passing offense. It is clear the offense needs something – anything – to energize it.

Michigan State has given up some yards and some points in 2008. It is a young defense with just four seniors. MSU is eighth in the Big Ten in rushing defense and ninth in total defense. Cal rolled up 38 points in its opening day win and Indiana had 29 in a loss to MSU.

MSU will bring tons of pressure, certainly, to try and confuse the young Pryor. It will be on him to be an effective distributor in those situations. OSU’s wide receivers have largely been missing-in-action this year. It would be good to get them back in a groove here.

And did we mention that Beanie Wells needs to be healthy and have a big game?

* When Michigan State Has The Ball: If OSU relies on Wells, then MSU bases its whole existence on the play of tailback Javon Ringer. He is the nation’s No. 2 rusher at 158.9 yards per game. He is averaging over 35 carries a game as MSU’s workhorse back. He is a tough back with great footwork.

OSU is quietly rounding into shape against the run. The Buckeyes are up to fourth in the conference and 23rd nationally against the run. It will be important for the OSU defensive line, which showed some signs of life last week against Purdue, to set the tone and keep Ringer bottled up. The OSU linebackers will need to come up big. Everybody expects James Laurinaitis and Marcus Freeman to show up, but soph Ross Homan did quite a job against Wisconsin’s run game in that Oct. 4 match-up.

MSU quarterback Brian Hoyer is effective as a play action passer. He does well with screens and underneath routes and will then go up top, usually to standout receiver Mark Dell. Overall, the MSU receiving corps is a bit inconsistent.

The OSU defense has bounced back nicely from the flame-out at USC and has been strong in the team’s four wins since that defeat.

* How It Will Go: This is one of the biggest home games in recent memory for Michigan State, which has not won a Big Ten title since 1990. A win would put MSU, which has won its last six games, in position at the halfway point to play for the title and the school’s first-ever BCS bowl bid.

Of course, the stakes are just as high for Ohio State. There has been a lot of talk in the OSU camp this week about accountability. Nobody was satisfied with last week’s showing against Purdue. Yes, it was a win, but everybody knows a similar effort this week at MSU or next week at home against Penn State would probably result in (another) embarrassing double-digit defeat.

I think a healthy Wells will be the deciding factor. He doesn’t need 221 yards to make his case. Even, say, 140 would be a tremendous factor and allow the Buckeyes to play keep away from the similarly-minded Ringer.

OSU showed at Wisconsin it knows how to handle tough road tests – you jump on the opponent early and take the crowd out of the game. My feeling is we’ll see OSU get out to another early lead. And like last year’s OSU-MSU game in Columbus, the Buckeyes could have to fight off a furious Spartans rally at the end to win it.

In fact, I like that scenario so well I am even stealing the final score from last year’s game. I’ve got it: Ohio State 24-17

* For The Record: I am 6-1 straight-up and 2-4 against-the-spread with Ohio State. (OSU is a four-point favorite over Michigan State.)

* Other Picks: On this week’s Bucknuts Radio Hour, all of the panelists picked Ohio State. Mr. Bucknuts picked Ohio State 27-17. Jerry Rudzinski said OSU 22-17. Dave Biddle said OSU 24-13. Kirk Larrabee said OSU 23-17. Jeff Rapp picked OSU 24-20. (Last week, everybody picked OSU’s win over Purdue. Rudzinski came closest to the final margin. He predicted 27-12 and OSU won 16-3.) 

-- Steve Helwagen