The undefeated Ohio State Buckeyes will head on the road to take on the 4-1 Illinois Fighting Illini for a Big Ten matchup on Saturday afternoon.
The Buckeyes should dominate on both sides of the ball, and I’m taking them to cover in my early Ohio State vs. Illinois predictions.
Let’s take an early look at this Week 7 clash in my free college football picks for Saturday, October 11.
Ohio State vs Illinois predictions
Here are our early thoughts on the spread and total for this week’s game. We will have a full game preview (with a best bet and SGP) later in the week.
Early Ohio State vs Illinois spread pick: Ohio State -14.5
Ohio State is the near-consensus No. 1 team in the country, and with good reason. The Buckeyes have been excellent on both sides of the ball, but the defense is the star of the show, as no team has reached 10 points against them.
The 25 total points Ohio State has allowed this year would rank about middle of the pack nationally on a per-game basis.
Julian Sayin has been incredibly efficient at quarterback, completing over 80% of his passes. Bo Jackson is averaging 7.5 yards per carry on the ground.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes' defense is allowing only 3.8 yards per play and ranks in the Top 20 nationally in virtually every relevant category. Can Illinois really compete with that?
We’ve already seen the Indiana Hoosiers blow out the Illini by 53 points this year, and the Illinois defense is giving up 387.8 yards per game.
That’s all without having played an offense that can put up the kind of numbers with the range of weapons OSU brings to the table.
This game could get out of hand early, and I don’t think two touchdowns are nearly enough. I’m laying the points with Ohio State.
Early Ohio State vs Illinois total pick: 51.5
Ohio State should be able to score against the Illini, but the real question is how much Illinois will do against this Buckeyes' defense.
At first glance, Illinois appears somewhat one dimensional offensively. Quarterback Luke Altmyer has been nothing short of outstanding, throwing for 12 touchdowns without an interception this year.
However, the Illini average a paltry 3.7 yards per rush on the ground, which ranks outside the top 100 in the nation.
That’s somewhat misleading. Both Calil Valentine and Kaden Feagin have been solid on the ground, combining for eight scores and over 300 yards each.
The overall numbers have been dragged down a bit by Altmyer — he has negative yardage on 39 carries — but the Illini have better balance than the numbers suggest.
The Buckeyes will mostly shut this down, as they have every other opponent, but I suspect Illinois can at least be the first offense to get to 10+ points against Ohio State. C
Combine that with a big day from the Buckeyes' offense, and I’m leaning hard towards the Over in this game.
Ohio State vs Illinois odds
- Ohio State vs. Illinois spread: Illinois +14.5
- Ohio State vs. Illinois moneyline: Ohio State -710, Illinois +490
- Ohio State vs. Illinois Over/Under: 51.5
How to watch Ohio State vs Illinois
- Ohio State vs. Illinois matchup
- Date: Saturday, October 11, 2025, 12:00 p.m. ET
- City: Champaign, IL
- Venue: Memorial Stadium
- TV: FOX
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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