5 reasons No. 10 Ohio State will dispose of Michigan State in East Lansing

5. The Buckeyes will show signs of life on defense

The drought has continued for the Buckeyes on the defensive side of the ball. It’s very much so came to the point where it’s acceptable to call this defense trash. There is no other way to describe this defense than absolute garbage as they are now 60th in the nation in yards allowed per game.

The Buckeyes are allowing nearly 400 yards per game on average and it’s only getting worse weekly. It was relatively understandable before when the loss of Nick Bosa was fresh and players were still young but that time is over now. This team was supposed to have some of the best quality depth defensively in the nation but it’s nowhere to be found.

However, there is something to be encouraged by. The best way for this trash defense to get right is by playing against a trash offense. The Spartans have by far one of the most underachieving offenses in the country. Spartans junior quarterback Brian Lewerke was supposed to be one of the top picks in the NFL Draft this upcoming Spring but now he’s looking nearly undraftable.

Lewerke is just seventh in the Big Ten alone in passing yards along with just eight passing touchdowns. He matches his eight touchdown passes with eight interceptions. The only quarterback in the Big Ten with a worse touchdown to interception ratio is Rutgers‘ Artur Sitkowski who has four touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

Amazingly enough, the Spartans have still managed to stay afloat with Lewerke doing his best to sink them. The Spartans rank second to last in the Big Ten in scoring offense.

Again, the only team worse is Rutgers. If there was any opportunity for this defense to get right then it would be this game. Expect the Buckeyes to bring the heat against Lewerke to create some turnovers. The Buckeyes will stand a great chance at winning this game if the defense makes an impact here.