Tennessee Volunteers vs Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Pick & Prediction College Football Playoff First Round Game

ABC will be covering the 8:00 ET kickoff between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday, December 21st. This is the first round of the College Football Playoff, with both teams entering the game with 10-2 records. The over/under line is currently set at 47 points, and the Buckeyes are -7.5 point favorites at home. The game will be played at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS VS OHIO STATE BUCKEYES BETTING PICK

The Pick: Tennessee Volunteers +7.5

This game will be played at Ohio Stadium at 8:00 ET on Saturday, December 21st.

WHY BET THE TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS:

• We have the Tennessee Volunteers winning this one by a score of 26 to 20
• Not only do we have the Tennessee Volunteers winning straight-up, we have them covering the spread at +7.5
• We see this game finishing below the line of 47 points

Will The Tennessee Volunteers Pull Off An Upset As Road Underdogs

Tennessee enters their Week 1 matchup against Ohio State with a 10-2 record. They are 5-0 at home and 3-2 on the road this season. The Volunteers have been favored in eight of their 12 games, going 7-1 as the favorite. Their average scoring margin is +23.3 points per game.

Against the spread, Tennessee is 6-4, with a 3-2 record both at home and on the road. As the favorite, they are 5-3 ATS, and they’ve covered the spread by an average of 5.5 points per game.

The over/under line for this week is set at 47 points. Tennessee’s games have averaged 51.2 points, and their average over/under line this season has been 54.8 points. Six of their games have had higher totals than this week’s line.

Heading into week 1, Tennessee’s offense is ranked 8th in points per game, averaging 37.2, and they are 8th in rushing yards, with 234.9 yards per game. They are 5th in rushing attempts, averaging 44.8 per game. Dylan Sampson has rushed for 1,485 yards and scored 22 touchdowns this season.

Nico Iamaleava leads the passing game with 2,512 yards and a passer rating of 105. Tennessee ranks 25th in completion percentage and 14th in third-down conversions. Iamaleava has thrown 19 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Dont’e Thornton Jr. has 647 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns.

Heading into their game against Vanderbilt, Tennessee’s defense ranked 4th nationally, allowing just 13.9 points per game. They’ve given up 106 rushing yards per game (16th) and 178.7 passing yards per game (26th), with a passer rating of 69, which is 12th best in the country.

Against Vanderbilt, Tennessee’s defense allowed 23 points but gave up just 213 total yards, including 109 rushing yards and 104 passing yards. They also forced an interception in the game.

Are The Ohio State Buckeyes Going To Defend Home Field Advantage?

Ohio State enters their Week 13 matchup against Tennessee with a 10-2 record. They’ve gone 7-1 at home and 3-1 on the road this season. The Buckeyes have been favored in all 12 games, going 10-2 as the favorite.

Ohio State’s ATS record stands at 6-6, with a +24.6 average scoring margin. They are 4-4 against the spread at home and 2-2 on the road.

The Buckeyes’ over/under record is 5-7, with their games averaging 46.4 points. Their average O/U line is 50.3 points, and this week’s line is set at 47 points.

Ohio State’s offense ranks 15th in points per game, scoring 35.5, but they are 5th in our offensive power rankings. Quarterback Will Howard has thrown for 2,860 yards and has a passer rating of 118. Ohio State is 6th in passer rating and 3rd in completion percentage, completing 70.3% of their passes.

Howard has 27 touchdown passes and 8 interceptions this season. Quinshon Judkins leads the rushing attack with 805 yards and 8 touchdowns, averaging 5 yards per carry. Jeremiah Smith has 934 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 57 catches.

Ohio State’s defense has been a strong point this season, ranking first in the nation by allowing just 10.9 points per game. In their recent game against Michigan, they gave up only 13 points but still lost 13-10. The Buckeyes allowed 235 total yards, including 173 rushing yards on 41 attempts, while holding Michigan to just 62 passing yards and forcing two interceptions.

Opposing quarterbacks have managed a passer rating of just 65.3 against Ohio State, completing 59% of their passes. The Buckeyes rank fifth nationally in passing yards allowed, giving up just 144.2 yards per game. They’ve also been strong against the run, ranking 13th in the country by allowing 101.3 rushing yards per game.