Ohio State vs Indiana: 4 Bold Predictions for Saturday’s Buckeyes vs Hoosiers Matchup

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Week 6 kicks off on Saturday with a rematch of last season’s Big Ten Championship game, as the reigning national champion Indiana Hoosiers host the Ohio State Buckeyes at Memorial Stadium. In what promises to be one of the best college football games in 2026, we’re expecting fireworks between two exciting offenses.

Let’s dive right into our bold predictions for Ohio State vs Indiana.

Jeremiah Smith Puts Up 160+ Receiving Yards, 2 Touchdowns

In their last matchup against All-American wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, the Hoosiers defense allowed 144 receiving yards on eight receptions but kept him out of the end zone. One thing that slightly separates Ohio State’s passing game this year is that Carnell Tate is gone and this team’s second-leading receiver only has 17 receptions through five games. Theoretically, Indiana could throw double and triple teams Smith’s ways and force the Buckeyes’ other receivers to beat them. However, the 6-foot-4 wide receiver has a size advantage over either cornerback Indiana throws his way and he’s demonstrated he can still get open versus double teams or make contested catches with defenders around him. Plus, he’s simply the best player in college football. We think Smith will get the best of both Ryland Gandy (10.1 yards per reception allowed) and Jamari Sharpe (66.9 PFF coverage grade), finding the end zone twice and eclipsing 160 receiving yards.

Julian Sayin Throws an Interception

The numbers for Julian Sayin this season look impressive–1,772 passing yards, 17-2 TD-INT and 87.0 ESPN QBR–but Jeremiah Smith has done a majority of the heavy lifting for Ohio State’s passing game. We go back to the game in Austin, where Sayin completed just 53.1 percent of his pass attempts and struggled when Texas started heating him up. Sayin’s completion rate drops by 20 percent when he’s pressured versus throwing from a clean pocket, and Indiana can generate pressure without blitzing. The Buckeyes quarterback was picked off in the Big Ten Championship Game, and we think Hoosiers defensive coordinator Bryant Haines will bait him into another pick on Saturday.

Josh Hoover Completes Under 60 Percent of His Passes

While the Hoosiers offense comes into Week 6 averaging 40.2 points per game (14th), there are some reasons to be concerned about how the passing attack will fare versus Ohio State. On the plus side, Indiana ranks third nationally in yards per attempt (10.2) and passer rating (190.9), but it is 61st in sack rate (5.47 percent) with Hoover taking eight sacks in the last five contests. Our concern for Indiana would be what happens if Hoover gets rattled. He’s only been pressured on 26 dropbacks this season, but he’s completed just 3-of-14 passes for 56 passing yards (4.0 ypa). Ohio State’s pass rush hasn’t been great this season, with great coverage largely responsible for its success–lowest yards per attempt (4.76) allowed in FBS–but defensive coordinator Matt Patricia can find ways to bother Hoover. We think both Nick Marsh and Charlie Becker hit for some big plays in this one, but Hoover will be inefficient with those explosive plays boosting his numbers on a hit-or-miss day for this passing game.

Indiana, Ohio State Both Average Under 3.5 Yards per Carry

Good luck to either of these teams attempting to run the football on Saturday. Indiana enters having allowed just a 2.31 yards-per-carry average to opponents, and the Hoosiers defense is tied for the fourth-fewest rushing first downs allowed per game (4.8). While Ohio State isn’t quite as good (3.21 ypc and 5.8 rushing first downs per game), it did neutralize Texas’ rushing game a few weeks ago and completely erased Iowa’s ground game (1.9 ypc). Most impressively, the Buckeyes simply don’t allow explosive runs (20-plus yards). While we’re prepared to see some huge explosions through the air on Saturday, it’s going to be a long few hours for the running backs on both sides as they constantly find themselves running into brick walls.

Related: Week 7 College Football Predictions, including Ohio State vs Indiana

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos