What prop bets can you make on the Ohio State vs. Indiana 2023 football game?

Sports betting officially became legal in the state of Ohio on Jan. 1 of this year, and while there have been opportunities to bet on both college football and the Ohio State football team since then, this is the first time that you will really be able to do both, so why stick with the basic winner against the spread and over/under lines?

That’s boring, tired, and basic. Yes, Ohio State opened as a 30-point favorite over the Indiana Hoosiers and the game had a 60-point total to hit, and the Buckeyes’ line has remained the same, although the o/u has dipped to 59 according to DraftKings SportsBook. I mean, go ahead and bet on those if you want, it’s your money, I’m not going to judge you. But, I do think that there are a lot more entertaining ways to get your get your gamble on.

So, I’ve selected a handful of potential bets that you could make — independent of or in addition to — the conventional lines. All of the odds come from DraftKings SportsBook so get your money in now before the Ohio State and Indiana game kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS on Saturday.

Longest Touchdown

There are two ways that you can look at this one, in my mind. Either it’s not worth betting $360 just for the chance to win $100, ooooooor, the far more exciting option is, “There’s no way that Ohio State doesn’t win this one, so this is essentially a free hundo.”

If I lived in a state in which sports gambling was legal, I would almost certainly be betting the farm (I don’t have a farm) on this one.

First Scoring Play

This one is fun, and a little terrifying, because there is always a fairly substantial element of luck in these “first score” type of bets. So much depends on the coin toss, a random bounce of the ball, the hype and emotions surrounding the opening of a game (and a season in this case). While the longest touchdown bet has an element of luck as well, even if IU hits a nice 69-yard score in the first quarter, the Buckeyes have the rest of the game to beat it. By definition, that’s not possible in these types of bets.

Obviously, if I had to pick what I though was most likely to happen, I would probably go with the Away Touchdown option, but I don’t know if the odds are worth it on this one. However, if I simply had to make a bet, I would probably put $1 down on each potential safety option for the chance to turn my $2 into $800.

Largest Lead of the Game

This one is simple, do you think that Ohio State is going to lead Indiana by 32 points at any time in the game? If so, hammer the over. If not, then go under. I personally am predicting a 53-13 win for the Buckeyes, so I would feel pretty comfortable taking that bet for tomorrow.

Race to Points

These numbers are kind of wild. If you want to win $100 on the Buckeyes to score 20 points before the Hoosiers do, you have to put up $20,000. That seems... less than worth the investment. Hell, even though I don’t think it’s gonna happen, I could be tempted to put some money on Indiana to score 20 first, because at +1100, it’s worth a little bit of a risk that something goes wonky tomorrow.