Game Predictions: No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes at Purdue Boilermakers

The No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes and Purdue Boilermakers do battle in less than 24 hours at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Saturday's game between the Buckeyes and Boilermakers will air on Peacock, making it the first time Ohio State football has been broadcast on a streaming service.

Here is how the BuckeyesNow staff thinks the winds will blow between Ohio State and Purdue:

Caleb Spinner, Staff Writer

Purdue is missing a lot of what got them to the 2022 Big Ten Championship game, including head coach Jeff Brohm, quarterback Aidan O'Connell and wide receiver Charlie Jones. New head coach Ryan Walters seems like he can do a lot of good for the program, however, I have to imagine it will take at least a year to fully develop the culture and player connections needed to start working back to the top of the West division.

Ohio State (the favorites to win the 2023 National Championship) has had some strong performances this season, most notably against then-No. 9 Notre Dame. The full might of the Scarlet and Gray is starting to become clear, but there are plenty of kinks still left in the hose.

The Buckeyes might have had their fair share of close first-half scores this season, but they almost always find a second gear after halftime. This formula will either be no different against Purdue (in which case, Ohio State still gets its blow-out win), or the pattern will finally break (leading to Buckeyes fans breathing a sigh of relief ahead of Penn State).

Ohio State - 52, Purdue - 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer

Since 2011, few teams have been able to keep pace with Ohio State like Purdue. The Boilermakers might be 2-3 in the series over the previous decade-plus, but they forced overtime in 2012 and picked up victories at Rose-Ade Stadium.

Maybe the Buckeyes look slow coming out of the gate. Perhaps Ryan Walters' defense forces Kyle McCord into making a mistake or two. Ohio State will have kicked their engine into high gear by the second half. Purdue will just be leaving the station.

Ohio State - 45, Purdue - 24

Timm Hamm, Writer

A lot of people are overthinking this game. Ohio State is a much better team on paper and on the field. It's a better-coached team and has infinitely more talent. Purdue is definitely on the rise, but it's not up just yet. This game might look different in a couple of years, but in 2023, the Buckeyes will have no problem.

Ohio State - 30, Purdue - 17

Gaurav Law, Staff Writer

Though the past seven matchups dating back to 2009 have been almost evenly split, Ohio State is 5-0 and Purdue 2-4. The Buckeyes have two good wins over Notre Dame and Maryland while the Boilermakers have two bad losses against Fresno State and Syracuse.

Ohio State has certainly struggled on both ends of the run game, but Purdue ranks roughly middle of the Big Ten in pass and rush offense and defense. I don’t think the Boilermakers will be able to hang with the Buckeyes after the first quarter, even with wide receiver Emeka Egbuka is not playing.

Ohio State - 52, Purdue - 10