Army Black Knights vs. Ohio State Buckeyes: Odds, College Football Betting Pick

Is Ohio State overrated? Against the spread, apparently the answer is yes.

Coming off a bad loss to Oklahoma, the Buckeyes are now just 1-4 ATS over their last five games, and they were lucky to cover the one time they did.

Ohio State faces another large spread when it hosts Army on Saturday afternoon at the Horseshoe.

College football point spread: The Buckeyes opened as 30.5-point favorites, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark. (Line updates and matchup report)

College football betting pick, via OddsShark computer: 38.0-21.3 Buckeyes (College football picks on every game)

Why the Army Black Knights can cover the spread

The Knights are off to a 2-0 start to this season after beating Buffalo on Saturday 21-17.

Army gave up a couple of big plays to fall behind the Bulls 17-7 in the second quarter and still trailed by that margin heading into the fourth quarter.

However, a pair of short Darnell Woolfork touchdown runs—the second on a fourth down with five minutes to go—gave Army the lead for good, and a first down on a fake punt iced the victory.

On the day, the Knights outrushed Buffalo 322-119 and won time of possession by a 34-26 margin. Senior quarterback Ahmad Bradshaw, after rushing for 177 yards in a season-opening romp over Fordham, ran for 147 against the Bulls; Woolfork, after adding 95 yards in Week 1, added 91 on Saturday. And the defense pitched a shutout in the second half.

Cooper Neill/Getty Images

Army now owns a five-game winning streak, its longest since 1996.

Why the Ohio State Buckeyes can cover the spread

The Buckeyes are looking to bounce back from a 31-16 loss at home to Oklahoma on Saturday. Ohio State led the Sooners 13-10 late into the third quarter, but they gave up three touchdowns over an eight-minute span and couldn't recover.

On the evening, the Buckeyes outrushed Oklahoma 167-104, as the Ohio State defense limited the Sooners to 2.8 yards per rush. But the Buckeyes' passing game had a rough night, and a fourth quarter JT Barrett interception set OU up on a short field for the game-clinching score.

Ohio State opened this season with a 49-21 win at Indiana, covering at minus-20. The Buckeyes trailed the Hoosiers in the third quarter, but exploded for four unanswered touchdowns.

Smart pick

The Knights are probably catching Ohio State in a bad mood. The Buckeyes are looking for somebody to beat up on, and they will own a considerable advantage in the trenches. Meanwhile, Army can't throw the ball.

Finally, Ohio State is 4-1 ATS the last five times it's been favored by four touchdowns or more. The smart money here on the college football lines bets the Buckeyes.

College football betting trends

The total has gone under in five of Ohio State's last seven games in September.

Ohio State is 1-4 ATS in its last five games.

Army is 7-2 ATS in its last nine games in September.

All college football odds and betting trends courtesy of Bleacher Report’s official odds partner, OddsShark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and the OddsShark YouTube page for picks and analysis, or download the free odds tracker app.