Joel Klatt previews Big Ten matchup between Ohio State-Illinois

No. 1 Ohio State visits No. 17 Illinois on Saturday. Joel Klatt is on the call and Big Noon Kickoff is in attendance.

Fox Sports announcer Joel Klatt | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Big Noon Kickoff goes to No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 17 Illinois this weekend and Joel Klatt gave his preview of the game.

"Now, the Buckeyes come into this one with what has become the best single unit in all of college football. This defense has been outstanding for Ohio State, led by their new defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia. They've got great players, no doubt, but they've also got what I think is one of the more intricate schemes now going on in college football."

Ohio State enters Week 7 with the nation's stingiest scoring defense and a balanced offense. The Buckeyes are allowing 5 points per game while scoring 37.4, with per-game averages of 279.8 passing yards and 171.6 rushing yards. Quarterback Julian Sayin has thrown for 1,313 yards and 13 touchdowns, freshman Bo Jackson paces the ground game, and Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate lead the receivers.

Illinois has surged into the top 20 behind efficient quarterback play from Luke Altmyer and a productive receiving corps led by Hank Beatty. The Illini average 37 points, 267.2 passing yards and 130.7 rushing yards per game; while allowing 24 points per game. Altmyer has 1,573 passing yards with 12 touchdowns and no interceptions on the season, while Beatty has 569 receiving yards.

On paper, the matchup leans toward Ohio State's defense, which Klatt argued is even better than last year's title-winning unit. The Buckeyes lead the nation in scoring defense and have held every opponent to single digits. By contrast, Illinois' defense has yielded yardage and points to upper-tier offenses and the Indiana game is major stain on the resume.

For Illinois, if the Illini can keep Altmyer clean and establish enough of Ca’Lil Valentine and Kaden Feagin on early downs, they can challenge Ohio State. Klatt singled out Altymer with how productive he has been this year.

 "Luke Altmyer is playing great football right now," Klatt said. "Very under-the-radar player that is very smart. He can run it on the outside. In fact, last week he ran the ball fairly well for them. He threw it for 390 yards and he's averaging, listen to this, 15 yards per attempt since that loss to Indiana. So, that offense has come to life. They're the be best in the nation over that span and he hasn't turned the football over. So, watch out for Altmyer to have a big day.

Klatt also mentioned that he has been impressed with how Sayin has developed as the season has progressed. Klatt is on the call for the game so he is not able to give a pick, but this matchup will have plenty of impact on the Big Ten this year.