The Rutgers Scarlet Knights take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus, Ohio. Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m. EST on FOX.
Ohio State is favored by 32.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -10000. The total is set at 55.5 points.
Here’s my Rutgers vs. Ohio State prediction and college football picks for Saturday, November 22, 2025.
Rutgers vs Ohio State Prediction
- Rutgers vs. Ohio State Pick: Ohio State 1Q Under 9.5 points
My Ohio State vs. Rutgers best bet is on under the Buckeyes' first-quarter total. Find the best line available on our live NCAAF odds page.
Rutgers vs Ohio State Odds
| Scarlet Knights Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+32.5 -110 | 55.5 -110o / -110u | +3500 |
| Buckeyes Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-32.5 -110 | 55.5 -110o / -110u | -10000 |
- Rutgers vs Ohio State point spread: Ohio State -32.5 (-110), Rutgers +32.5 (-110)
- Rutgers vs Ohio State over/under: 55.5 (-110o / -110u)
- Rutgers vs Ohio State moneyline: Rutgers +3500, Ohio State -10000
Rutgers vs Ohio State Preview
Rutgers Scarlet Knights Betting Preview: A Statistically Average Team
At 5-5, Rutgers is about as average as average gets.
The Scarlet Knights aren't nearly good enough to threaten top Big Ten teams (they lost to Oregon, 56-10, and Illinois, 35-13), but they'll take care of Purdue (27-24) and Maryland (35-20). They even rank 60th in the FBS in aggregate industry power rating.
Athan Kaliakmanis found new life as a quarterback in Piscataway. His 2,705 passing yards are both a career-high and the second-most in the Big Ten. He has 17 touchdown passes against seven interceptions and 21 graded big-time throws against nine turnover-worthy ones, per PFF. The completion percentage (62.1%) isn't elite, but it's eight points better than last season.
Receiver KJ Duff is approaching 1,000 yards, and his counterparts, Ian Strong and DT Sheffield, both have at least four receiving scores. It's a good, not excellent, receiving unit playing above expectations.
Rutgers puts together a quality drive on 56.5% of its possessions, ranking sixth nationally. It ranks inside the top 40 nationally in points per drive.
But scoring points isn't Rutgers' problem.
The Scarlet Knights' defense is downright putrid.
It's allowed six of seven Big Ten foes and seven of nine FBS opponents to score above their season average — the exceptions were Miami-OH (90th in points per drive) and Maryland (106th).
Rutgers' defensive line isn't getting blown off the ball, but that's about where the positives end. Its back end isn't cleaning up where it needs to, there's almost no semblance of a pass rush, and the secondary is the third-worst coverage unit in the Big Ten. Only Oregon State has allowed more 20-plus yard plays on the season.
A half-team wins half its games and ranks right about halfway up the ratings leaderboard in the country.
Balanced, as all things should be (or, at least, that's how the saying goes).
Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Preview: An Elite Team Navigating Injuries
It's funny the position defending champion Ohio State finds itself coming off a resounding 48-10 throttling of Big Ten foe UCLA.
There's genuine concern for the Buckeyes, who stand 10-0 and No. 1 in the country.
Star receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate didn't play much against the Bruins. For Tate, it's his second straight game sitting out after getting nicked up against Penn State.
Smith was a late questionable on the injury report, played the first quarter, made an incredible one-handed catch, and led the team with 40 yards before taking a seat for the remainder of the game. Afterwards, he was seen limping to the locker room.
Without those stars in the lineup, Heisman frontrunner Julian Sayin had to find other targets. Sayin finished with an unremarkable 184 yards on 23-of-31 passing. It's hardly time to ring the alarm bells, but Sayin looked off-schedule without Smith and Tate as downfield outlets.
Instead, it was the run game that stepped up big time against UCLA.
CJ Donaldson got hardly any playing time, and it was youngsters Bo Jackson (112 yards), Isaiah West (61 yards), and James Peoples (two touchdowns) who led the scoring charge. It was the first time the backfield looked genuinely dangerous, but it came against a subpar run defense in UCLA (not that Rutgers provides much more resistance this week).
The offensive line still has issues, especially in pass protection and against the blitz. Buckeye linemen simply whiff at the point of attack, far more than you'd like to see. Against aggressive defenses like Michigan, this could come to a head, especially if Smith and Tate aren't back in the lineup.
Fortunately, this is still the nation's best defense. Penn State was able to expose it on the perimeter a couple times — that's a recipe Purdue and UCLA both tried with little avail — but getting to the perimeter is easier said than done.
Arvell Reese looks more akin to the Predator than mortal man, while linemen Kaden McDonald and Caden Curry continue to terrorize opposing fronts and quarterbacks.
So far, no quarterback has found much success at all against this defense.
If there's a weakness to attack, it's cornerbacks Jermaine Matthews, Devin Sanchez, and Noah Igbinosun.
The latter can get into trouble with his physicality, leading to cheap first downs on penalties. The other two are more inexperienced and can be beaten in coverage, especially Sanchez, who's eager to get a turnover (and sometimes misplays the ball).
But that's nitpicking. The real concern, if there is one, comes in the health of Smith and Tate.
Rutgers vs Ohio State Pick, Betting Analysis
Ohio State is an impressive 31.5-point favorite in its home finale against Rutgers.
The weather in Columbus should be ideal for November football. The real star of the show comes next week (in both opponent and weather).
It's time to finally fade the Buckeyes early in this game.
The injuries to Smith and Tate are genuinely concerning to this offense, from someone who follows this team more closely than anyone else.
Inniss, Quincy Porter, Mylan Graham, and Bryson Rodgers are all blue-chip recruits, but they're not ready to carry an offense like the clubhouse leaders.
The Buckeyes' offense operates differently without those two studs in the lineup.
With Michigan on the horizon, I expect Ohio State to do two things this week: (a) keep everyone healthy and (b) show absolutely nothing.
Rutgers' defense doesn't necessitate extra gameplanning, and Ohio State can, and will, get by on a vanilla game plan.
While Ryan Day feels out this game, expect multiple backs and receivers to hit the field. That doesn't afford the Buckeyes an opportunity to get in a groove. It's those quick-hitting explosive plays to Tate and Smith that really power this offense early. There's very little explosiveness on the ground.
Instead of playing with fire — the Buckeyes' second unit is talented enough to find 24 against the Scarlet Knights' defense eventually in a half — I'm going first quarter.
A couple of extended drives and feeling out the personnel is a recipe for a quick first quarter. And a quick first quarter means less scoring.
Here's a quick rundown of Ohio State's second-quarter scoring outputs of late:
- 17 vs. UCLA
- 24 at Purdue
- 10 at Penn State
I'd rather bet on the slower start happening right out of the gate. This is a very rare quarter bet under Ohio State's team total.
Pick: Ohio State 1Q Under 9.5 points
