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Boxing Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Picks: December 29 Ohio State vs Missouri Preview, Betting Odds and NCAAF Picks
After losing the Big Ten title game to Michigan, the 1-loss Ohio State Buckeyes arrive at the Cotton Bowl as slight favourites over the Missouri Tigers. An appearance in the Cotton Bowl might be a disappointment for the Buckeyes, but a win against a battle-tested Missouri team will not come easy.
Our resident college football expert Ej Garr is here to answer the questions and give out a winning tip for the Cotton Bowl, so let’s see what he’s got!
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Picks
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Game Info
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Betting Lines
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Trends
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Stats & Form
- Ohio State Buckeyes vs Missouri Tigers Where to Watch
- Safer Gambling
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS PICKS
The big news out of Arlington this week comes with the news that Marvin Harrison Jr. has decided to opt out of the Cotton Bowl eyeing his chances in the 2024 NFL Draft. He is not alone, as the Buckeyes will also be without QB Kyle McCord although RB TreVeyon Henderson is telling the press that he plans on playing in the Cotton Bowl with his future in doubt.
Henderson is contemplating an NFL career, although he has been at practice the last two days seen participating stating that he is ready to go for this game. That certainly makes Coach Day’s job a little easier because Henderson can make big plays on the ground that Ohio State will desperately need to win this game. Henderson missed 3 games this year due to injury and he also sat out 4 games a season ago, but he has still accumulated 2.590 over the last 3 years with the Buckeyes.
Evan Pryor and Chip Trayanum have both transferred, and Miyan Williams has declared for the draft, so that leaves Henderson as the only guy in the Ohio State backfield with experience to speak of.
While the Buckeyes deal with who is available, the Tigers have their entire roster ready to go as no players have announced a choice to leave early.
The emergence of Brady Cook at QB for Missouri showed as he gained confidence down the stretch of the regular season. You could see his Moxy attitude against Tennessee coming out, and he believes in himself more than ever coming into the Cotton Bowl. His team is buying everything that he is selling and it makes it easy for everyone around him to play with just as much confidence.
Cook accumulated 3174 passing yards with a 20 – 5 TD to INT ratio, and the best thing a QB has to make his life easier is a ground game. Cody Schrader only needs 11 yards to become a 1500-yard rusher this season, and with 13 TDs to his credit, he has seen the end zone in Missouri’s last 9 games. Despite the loss to LSU, Schrader scored 3 times against the LSU defense, and I expect him to be charged up to get to AT&T Stadium for this game.
With Ohio State losing some key pieces to their puzzle and Missouri riding high, I have the Tigers upsetting the Buckeyes in the Cotton Bowl. I was going to settle for the +3 and buy it up but then it hit me. Just win, baby! The 2.25 offer is too good for me to leave there, so I will call for the Tigers to win while Ohio State lacks some of their key components.
Odds available as of December 28, 2023. Odds may now differ.
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS GAME INFO
- Saturday, December 30
- Time: 01:05 UK Time
- Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS BETTING LINES
| Cotton Bowl Betting Lines | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bet365 Odds | Moneyline | Over/Under | Handicap/Spread |
| Ohio State -2.5 | 1.75 | Over 48.5 | Buckeyes |
| Missouri +2.5 | 2.25 | Under 48.5 | Tigers |
Odds available as of December 28, 2023. Odds may now differ.
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS TRENDS
- The Total Under is 4 – 0 in the Tigers’ last 4 Bowl games.
- The Total Over is 4 – 0 in the Buckeyes’ last 4 bowl games.
- Ohio State has hit the Game Total Under in 9 of their last 13 games.
- Missouri has hit the 1H Game Total Under in their last 5 games.
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS STATS AND FORM
The Buckeyes are 27 – 28 in their 55 previous Bowl Game appearances, and the total has flown to the Over the last 4 games.
The Missouri Tigers have a Bowl Game record of 15 – 20, and they have lost their last 4 post-season games.
The Ohio State defense is #1 in the Nation against the pass holding opponents to a mere 147.4 YPG in the air. They are ranked in the top 5 in passing yards per attempt (1), yards per completion (2), and completion percentage (4).
The Tigers average 441.4 YPG which ranks them 25th in the country. The 6.6 yards gained per play is good enough to be ranked 15th in the land, and Cook completes 66.7 of his attempts for the Tigers which puts him in the top 25.
OHIO STATE BUCKEYES VS MISSOURI TIGERS WHERE TO WATCH
The Goodyear Cotton Bowl can be seen on ESPN and ESPN+ for Subscribers
SAFER GAMBLING
At bettingexpert, we always take a safe approach to gambling. We’ll never bet more than we can afford or chase losses. For more advice, head to our Safer Gambling hub.
