Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Indiana Hoosiers Complete Game Preview

One week after walking away from the winter wonderland that was Minnesota with a 31-24 victory, the Ohio State football team will head home to Columbus to host its final two games of the regular season. The first test left on the Buckeyes' schedule will be a date with Indiana, which currently finds itself on a five-game losing streak.

Ohio State, meanwhile, has racked up eight straight victories and is right in the thick of the race to be a part of the first-ever College Football Playoff. A ninth consecutive win for the Buckeyes would clinch them the Big Ten East championship, securing a spot in Indianapolis for a second straight conference title game appearance.

And while Ohio State enters Saturday's contest a heavy favorite, having something on the line should go a long way toward capturing the Buckeyes' attention.

Are the Hoosiers capable of haunting Ohio State? We'll find out on Saturday. But until then, here's everything you need to know about the Buckeyes' showdown with Indiana:

Date: Saturday, Nov. 22

Time: 12 p.m. ET

Place: Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio

TV: Big Ten Network

Radio: Ohio State Football Radio Network, IUHoosiers.com

Spread: Ohio State (-30), via Odds Shark

Ohio State Keys to Victory

USA TODAY Sports

Joey Bosa will play a key role in the Buckeyes' defensive game plan.

Get After the Quarterback

With Indiana down to its third-string quarterback in Zander Diamont, Ohio State should have no shortage of opportunities to make the freshman signal-caller uncomfortable. At 6'1" and a slight 175 pounds, Diamont has appeared unprepared through the first four games of his college career, throwing for 282 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions while maintaining a 46.9 percent completion percentage.

That is all the more reason for the Buckeyes to make a concerted effort to make Diamont uncomfortable early. With a defensive line that includes Joey Bosa and Michael Bennett, the Buckeyes certainly have the tools to do so, just as they did against Minnesota last weekend.

"Mike Bennett played one of his best games as a Buckeye," Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said. "Joey Bosa was ridiculous. Steve Miller was going hard and Adolphus [Washington] didn't do bad. We've just got to make sure we're gap sound, be very smart, and we're facing one of the best rush teams certainly in the Big Ten."

Maintain Momentum

With Ohio State playing as well as it has been in recent weeks, its main key to success may be as simple as maintaining its momentum. With an offense that ranks fifth in scoring, the Buckeyes have proved to be one of the hottest teams in the nation ever since their loss to Virginia Tech in the second week of the season.

But despite Ohio State's recent string of success, Meyer isn't ready to proclaim his team one of the four best in the country. That's not necessarily an indictment of the Buckeyes, but a sign that his singular focus remains on the Hoosiers.

"Not right now, no. No, I don't, because I don't want to make ignorant comments," Meyer said when given an opportunity to state his case for Ohio State on Monday. "I just don't know. I'd make the comment that we're one win away from representing the East in the Big Ten Championship Game, because I do know that."

If Meyer is looking ahead in any way, you wouldn't have been able to tell on Monday, when he declined questions about the playoff, open Florida job—as the Gators announced Sunday head coach Will Muschamp will not return—and a looming quarterback controversy with the same answer.

"I'm just worried about Indiana," Meyer said. "Nice try, though."

Indiana Keys to Victory

USA TODAY Sports

Players like Shane Wynn will need to make plays in order for Indiana to pull off the upset.

Do What They Do Best

Spearheaded by Tevin Coleman, Indiana possesses one of the best rushing attacks in the country, averaging 264.3 yards per game on the ground—good for 11th in the nation. After surrendering 145 yards and three touchdowns to Minnesota running back David Cobb, Meyer knows that his rushing defense could be called into question, especially in a conference with no shortage of talented running backs.

"They're doing it against some of the top rush defenses in the country," Meyer said of the Big Ten's collection of running backs. "That's one thing I noticed about it; I was just looking at our conference, rush defenses, and who we've faced the last few weeks, they're very good against the rush."

And while the Buckeyes' effort last weekend may not bode well for their prospects against Coleman and Co., Meyer insists that Ohio State didn't play as poorly defensively as it may have seemed against the Golden Gophers. A missed tackle here or there could have made all the difference for the Buckeyes, but Meyer knows that those issues will need to be cleaned up down the stretch run for Ohio State.

"We played much better than I anticipated watching the film," Meyer said. "We had some missed tackles, safety position missed a few tackles, bad ones, and we have to work on that."

Empty the Playbook

With not even a bowl game to play for, Indiana would best be served letting it hang all out on the field on Saturday, as the Hoosiers really don't have anything to lose. Look for trick plays and gimmick formations from Kevin Wilson's squad, which has won just five of its 30 Big Ten games since the former Oklahoma offensive coordinator took over the program in 2011.

The Buckeyes are clearly the more talented team, but don't be surprised if Indiana finds a way to get playmakers such as Coleman and Shane Wynn involved on a regular basis. The former has proved to be one of the Big Ten's best at his position, and the latter—a product of Cleveland Glenville—has been a consistent thorn in Ohio State's side over the past three years.

If Indiana is going to have any chance of an upset on Saturday, it's going to take some creativity as the Buckeyes should be able to control both lines of scrimmage. Nevertheless, look for the Hoosiers to attempt to get their best players in space in hopes of turning Saturday's showdown into a shootout.

Ohio State Players to Watch

Ann Heisenfelt/Associated Press

J.T. Barrett has cemented himself as a Heisman Trophy contender.

J.T. Barrett

Now a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate, J.T. Barrett picked up his sixth Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor after totaling 389 yards and four touchdowns against Minnesota. On Monday, Meyer endorsed the redshirt freshman's unlikely Heisman campaign, which has landed him fifth on SI.com's latest watch list.

"I don't know if my endorsement matters, but I have statistically been fortunate to coach some guys that have been in New York," Meyer said. "And he's a Heisman candidate."

The numbers back up Meyer's assessment, as Barrett is currently on pace for 4,065 total yards and 49 touchdowns over the course of a 13-game schedule. Statistics like that would undoubtedly land him in New York as at least a finalist for the sport's most prestigious individual award, based on recent trends.

Ultimately, Barrett's Heisman candidacy could make for one of Saturday's most intriguing storylines. With a game that's expected to be in hand for Ohio State early, it will be worth watching how long Meyer opts to keep his star signal-caller in the game with a Heisman Trophy potentially on the line and a likely appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game right around the corner.

Jalin Marshall

While he may have played his best game as a Buckeye statistically, totaling 107 yards of total offense and a touchdown, freshman H-back Jalin Marshall also played the role of goat, losing two fumbles, including one as he entered the end zone.

Marshall's ball-security issues were only made more problematic by his status as Ohio State's top punt returner, leading Meyer to reconsider his options heading into the Indiana game.

"He's real aggressive on punt returns. That's something that I'm getting ready to make a change at punt returner, and then [wide receivers coach] Zach Smith and I had a long conversation, we went and watched every one of his punt returns. He's very aggressive to the ball. They don't drop very often on him. He'll go get it, and we don't want to lose that. So we've just got to make sure we're taking care of business, getting the reps."

Given his struggles in Minnesota last week, it will be worth watching if Marshall bounces back after the heavy scrutiny that he faced following his most recent performance. With Dontre Wilson out with a broken foot, Ohio State doesn't have much choice but to rely on Marshall, who had recently emerged as one of the Buckeyes' most versatile weapons.

Indiana Players to Watch

SAM RICHE/Associated Press

Tevin Coleman is one of the Big Ten's best running backs.

Tevin Coleman

Only in the Big Ten does it seem a player can rush for 300-plus yards in a single game and still have his performance overshadowed.

But that's exactly what happened with Coleman last weekend, when the Hoosiers running back ran for 307 yards and a touchdown in Indiana's loss to Rutgers. Only Coleman was shut out of any individual honors from his conference, thanks to Melvin Gordon's NCAA record-setting 408-yard rushing day for Wisconsin.

Nevertheless, Coleman will get another chance to prove that he deserves to be mentioned among the Big Ten's best on Saturday in a game against a Buckeyes rushing defense still trying to prove itself. And while Meyer admitted that he hasn't seen much of Coleman on film just yet, he knows that numbers like his rarely lie.

"I see his statistics; they're ridiculous," Meyer said. "I met with our defensive staff again this morning, last night and this morning, and they think he's an outstanding, great back. Not real big but fast, extremely fast."

Zander Diamont

Assuming Ohio State sells out to stop Coleman and the Hoosiers' impressive ground game, the ball will be left in the hands of Diamont, who is still far from proven at this point in his college career.

Entering the season as Indiana's No. 3 quarterback, even he has to be surprised to currently find himself in this situation—which the Buckeyes will undoubtedly attempt to exploit on Saturday—but is not without challenges of its own.

"There's not really too much film on him, so you can't really study the little tendencies that he may have," OSU cornerback Eli Apple said. "We're just going off of the whole offense's tendencies and trying to get a feel for that."

If that's the case, then the Buckeyes will likely see a team whose quarterback is currently more comfortable running the ball than he is throwing it at this point in the season. How that manifests itself on Saturday remains to be seen, but Ohio State seems to be well-aware of the advantage that it possesses over the inexperienced Indiana passing game.

What They're Saying

Ann Heisenfelt/Associated Press/Associated Press

Urban Meyer is well aware of what's on the line for his team this weekend.

While the Big Ten is perceived to be going through a down period in its history, Meyer insists that's not necessarily the case. While programs like Indiana may not be carrying their weight right now, the third-year Ohio State head coach knows what he's seen in the past two weeks in Michigan State and Minnesota and what could be around the corner in a conference championship game.

"The Big Ten Conference, it's no secret, the difference between that and the other top conferences is not one through five. I think it's the whole thing, and I see teams getting better," Meyer said. "Northwestern goes in there and beats Notre Dame, and Northwestern to me is last year I remember they were 15th in the country or 16th in the country, so the consistency of teams in our conference, I think, is the only thing lacking at times. But that's without studying it, but the top five teams in our conference, they can play anywhere."

And while the Hoosiers may be struggling, yet to pick up a win in conference play, they do own a road victory over Missouri, who is currently sitting in first place in the SEC East.

"They beat Missouri at Missouri, and I think Missouri is first in the East, in the SEC," Meyer stated in an attempt to not sell Indiana short.

As for the Hoosiers, they have been eliminated from bowl contention but remain with plenty to prove on Saturday. That was evident in the words of Shane Wynn, who knows how much an upset against a team the caliber of Ohio State would mean for the Hoosiers.

"Just pride. Heart. Fighting for each other," Wynn said to The Associated Press when asked how Indiana would stay motivated (via USA Today). "We play for an audience of one. We don't play for everybody else. We play for the guys to our left and the guy to our right."

Prediction

Ann Heisenfelt/Associated Press

The Buckeyes should be able to make quick work of Indiana this weekend.

While Indiana may not move the needle, it's hard to imagine Ohio State not coming out with one of its better efforts of the season with a Big Ten East championship on the line. Meyer may not say it, but he knows that the Buckeyes left some style points on the field against Minnesota, and the Hoosiers present the perfect opportunity for Ohio State to make up some of that.

Look for the Buckeyes to get off to a hot start and never look back, as Barrett and Co. should be able to move the ball at will on Saturday. Perhaps the only factors that remain in question for this game are how long Meyer will leave his emerging star quarterback in the game to continue his Heisman campaign and whether the OSU defense will be able to preserve a shutout.

I expect Barrett to play well into the third quarter with his numbers in mind but for the Buckeyes defense to give up a big play here and there, with at least one resulting in a score. Don't be confused, however. This game should be over before it starts, with Ohio State furthering its playoff push with another lopsided win.

Final score: Ohio State 63, Indiana 7

Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Ohio State Lead Writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com and recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.