Greg McElroy calls his shot on Texas vs. Ohio State

One of the biggest season openers in recent memory is almost upon us. No. 1 Texas will take on No. 3 Ohio State in The Shoe in Columbus, Ohio.

The game will pit potential superstar quarterback Arch Manning against a new starting quarterback for the Buckeyes, Julian Sayin. But it’s the matchup between the Texas defense and the Ohio State offense that has one notable college football analyst keenly interested.

ESPN’s Greg McElroy broke down the game on Get Up on Thursday morning. And he called his shot.

“I think Texas will hold Ohio State under 21 points,” McElroy said. “Looking at the team totals, it’s about 24.5. I thought that 21 was super bold. I think this defense will come to play. If you look last year at how they defended, they did score 28, Ohio State did in the matchup against Texas, but that was on a fumble return of the house late in the game.”

In the meeting last year in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Ohio State came out victorious 28-14. As noted, the Buckeyes pulled away with a late defensive score when they hit Quinn Ewers and forced a fumble, taking it to the house.

The actual stats were pretty respectable for the Texas defense. The Longhorns yielded 370 total yards, limiting the Buckeyes to just 81 yards — and 3.4 yards per carry — on the ground.

But it was what the unit did to one of the top Ohio State stars that had McElroy the most impressed. He explained.

“I look at this defense, they’re going to bracket Jeremiah Smith; he had one catch for three yards in this matchup back in January,” McElroy said. “I think Texas has the recipe and the pass rushers to fluster a young quarterback and create some problems for that Ohio State offense.”

On top of the fact that Ohio State is breaking in a new starting quarterback, it is also getting used to new coordinators on both sides of the ball. There might be an adjustment period in live action.

Will that be enough to give the Texas defense the edge? We’ll see. But at least McElroy is predicting it.