Ohio State football needs a win on Saturday as it goes up against lowly Purdue. The Buckeyes need to keep picking up victories in order to keep up in a competitive Big Ten Conference. Ohio State enters the game with a 7-1 record, and a 4-1 conference mark. The squad trails Oregon and Indiana in the standings.
The Buckeyes started the season off with a series of strong wins, but the team's offense has struggled of late. Quarterback Will Howard and freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith aren't posting the same types of numbers in the last month, that fans saw in the first month of the campaign.
Here are some bold predictions for Howard and Smith, as Ohio State football looks to win its third game in a row.
Will Howard will have his best passing game in a month
Howard is a transfer quarterback who played his last few years at Kansas State. This season, Howard has posted 1,977 passing yards and 19 touchdowns. He's also completing his passes at a 73 percent rate, which is a career-high for the play caller.
The quarterback is coming off of some rough performances. He's not thrown for 300 yards since a loss to Oregon on October 12. In his last two games, Howard has been sacked five times. The quarterback threw for just 182 yards in a sluggish performance against Penn State on November 2.
A game against Purdue may be just what the doctor ordered. The Boilermakers are struggling to stop opposing teams this season. Purdue football is allowing nearly 37 points a game, per team stats. The squad is also allowing 243 passing yards a contest, so Howard will get his chance to throw for 300 yards for the first time in a month.
If Howard is able to get going, that is good news for another Buckeyes offensive player.
Jeremiah Smith will grab a touchdown catch for Ohio State football
Smith is a freshman wideout who is having a memorable year in the Buckeyes program. The first-year player has 678 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, to go with 39 receptions. He's most definitely in the running for several awards, including Big Ten Freshman of the Year.
Smith will be adding to his touchdown total against Purdue. He didn't get a score in the team's last game, a close win over Penn State. That was the first time this season that Smith didn't post a touchdown in a game for Ohio State football.
There should be plenty of opportunities for the freshman to get some revenge against Purdue. Smith is averaging more than 10 yards per catch in every game this season, and going up against a struggling defense should allow him the opportunity to do that yet again. It wouldn't be out of the question to see Smith finish this contest with more than 100 yards receiving, and possibly more than one touchdown grab.
There's one final prediction to make about this Ohio State-Purdue game.
Ohio State will defeat Purdue behind their strong offense
The Buckeyes are in deep trouble if they lose this home game to a 1-7 team. Purdue has had a very difficult season; the team even fired their offensive coordinator midway through the campaign. The Boilermakers are also 0-5 in the Big Ten.
Ohio State should get some of their footing back on offense, and get a solid victory over the Boilermakers. While Ohio State football has the one loss, the Buckeyes can still win the Big Ten. That's what they were favored to do at the beginning of the season.
Ohio State and Purdue battle Saturday at 12:00 Eastern.
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