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Posted at 2:15 PM EST. 

MINNESOTA +14 over Ohio State

Thursday, September 2nd, 2021

Huntington Bank Stadium – Minneapolis, MN

8:00 PM ET. Recency bias is an influential factor in this market, as it is swaying public perception grossly here and we’ll explain how. You see, Ohio State, despite cultivating an Oklahoma or Clemson-like reputation and thus expecting to be a shoe-in to win the B1G on an annual basis, took it a step further in 2020 when it landed in the National Championship Game, albeit they lost to Alabama by a considerable margin. The Buckeyes in 2020 did not find themselves on the outside looking in on the College Football Playoffs (CFP) nor did they make a hasty exit, as they walloped Clemson and punched their ticket to the big dance for the first time under the administration of skipper Ryan Day. Though the Buckeyes came up short against the Tide, Day has venerated to an Urban Meyer-like status and the expectations in Columbus this year are perhaps at the highest under his stewardship. On the contrary, Row The Boat’s “market credibility” has all but vanished.

In 2019, Minnesota put together what was classed as a historic campaign. The Golden Gophers went 11-2 and obtained a signature home win against a then #4-ranked Penn State to mark their first victory over a top-five team in two decades. The Gophers also started off 9-0, a feat not achieved since Scott Joplin was playing The Cascades at The World’s Fair (1904). After Minnesota knocked off Auburn in the Outback, which “Row the Boat Man” himself, P.J Fleck described as a “hallmark win over an elite college program”, Minnesota was also expected to yet take another step forward in 2020. Row the Boat-mania swept the football starved region. Unfortunately for the Golden Gophers, their follow-up season to the 2019 run was nothing short of a train-wreck, as Minnesota went 3-4 obtaining triumphs against B1G bottom feeders and disappointments that included losses to Illinois, Nebraska, and Purdue. It was only last year that so many expected Row the Boat to power past a ranked Michigan team in their 2020 opener but instead, Fleck and his cult were routed by 25 points to a Wolverine club that also turned out to be a shell of its former self.

Ohio State has never been bereft of “high-flying” assets or lacked the ability to churn out NFL-caliber talent on a yearly basis. This team is no different in that regard in many aspects. However, for the first time in a long time the quarterback play of the Buckeyes remains a question mark. The Buckeyes don’t have the luxury of a transfer like Justin Fields orchestrating the offense or a Dwayne Haskins or a JT Barrett, who was groomed to take the reins. Named starter C.J. Stroud has never taken a snap at the college football level, and if we were to forget that he plays for the Buckeyes for a moment, this is quite a precarious predicament for one to find themselves laying this quantity of points on the road.

Let’s not forget that last year the stands were void of fans. This year, fans will be back in full droves and whether or not that was a factor last year is anyone’s guess but home field advantage was absolutely missing for many teams and perhaps the Gophers were one of them. What we know for sure is that Minnesota returns key personnel at quarterback, running back, and offensive line, and they also bring back a litany of defensive players who were present for the 2019 run. While Ohio State may have one of the finest receiving corps in the country, the question remains as to how Stroud will fare with getting the ball to them in hostile confines without any previous game experience. We surely don’t recommend laying inflated points to find out.

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