Rece Davis picks Michigan to win, cover against Ohio State
College GameDay host Rece Davis likes the Michigan Wolverines to win and cover against arch-rival Ohio State on Saturday afternoon.
In another highly anticipated match-up between the Wolverines and Buckeyes, No. 3 and 2 respectively in the CFP rankings, everything is on the line. The winner gets to the Big Ten Championship Game and the inside track to the College Football Playoff.
Below is the latest on The Game between Michigan and Ohio State and what to expect in Saturday’s epic showdown, as well as Davis’ take on Michigan being 3.5 point favorites.
How to watch Michigan vs. Ohio State
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX, FuboTV (streaming)
Location: Ann Arbor (Mich.)
This game has historical implications since it’s the second straight year both squads are 11-0 and in the top three.
“The theater surrounding Jim Harbaugh not being there is fascinating, and I know we’ve talked about this quite a bit … Sherrone Moore at some point in his career is going to be a head coach and has a chance to be a really good one,” Davis said on the College GameDay Podcast. “I think he’s done a nice job in really difficult circumstances. Hearing Harbaugh at the podium on Monday was absolute gold … That usually reflects a coach who feels really good about things yet he’s not going to be there. So that gives you pause.”
Michigan is 5-0 without Harbaugh on the sidelines this year, but the last two weeks haven’t look great, at least by Wolverines’ standards. The Ohio State game is a different animal.
“Before the season started, I had Michigan as my preseason number one, if you had asked me before the season started, who are you picking to win the national championship, I would have said Michigan and did,” Davis said. “Now I think Georgia is better than them at the moment, and I saw a couple of things …
“They played Penn State and Maryland that really (gave) me concern … I saw them not throw a pass in the second half. And now I wonder if it’s because we don’t think that we can stop edge rushers which Penn State has and Penn State obviously loves to dial up pressure with Manny Diaz.
“I’m really concerned and I started getting the gut feeling last Saturday watching Michigan and Maryland (and said) I think Ohio State’s going to win. But I’m not going to overthink this.”
When thinking back on it, Davis thinks it’ll be a little uglier Saturday with two elite defenses. But ultimately, Michigan is going to come out on top.
“I’m going to say Michigan wins this game,” Davis said. “I’m not even gonna say 21-17. That means there are too many clean drives. I’m going to say Michigan wins the game 20-16 and covers by half (a point) So I’m gonna go with the Wolverines.”