Michigan vs. Ohio State Headlines Stacked Upcoming Ohio Sports Calendar
Sports fans in The Buckeye State have a lot to look forward to over the final three months of 2022.
The Ohio State Buckeyes’ football program and the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns are in the early stages of their respective 2022 seasons. The Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball are playoff-bound, and the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers and NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets will begin their 2022-23 campaigns in October.
The final quarter of 2022 will be full of action and drama for Ohio sports fans. But in terms of confirmed and scheduled sporting events, the Buckeyes-Wolverines Nov. 26 showdown at Ohio Stadium takes the cake as the top must-watch upcoming event in the state.
Sports betting in The Buckeye State is set to launch on Jan. 1, 2023, and FanDuel Ohio will be among the top sportsbooks available to state residents. It’s also expected that FanDuel Ohio will offer new customers a risk-free bet of up to $1,000 upon signing up.
At FanDuel, the Buckeyes have the third-best odds (+230) of winning the 2023 National Championship, behind only Georgia (+175) and Alabama (+200). Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines have the sixth-best odds at +3000, also trailing USC (+1600) and Clemson (+1800).
Heading into the month of October, the Buckeyes and Wolverines were ranked third and fourth, respectively. Their games are always must-watch television, but the Nov. 26 showdown could very well decide if one or both teams qualify for the 2022-23 College Football Playoff National Championship.
Cleveland Guardians American League Wild Card Series
The MLB tweaked the postseason format for 2022. Instead of having six division winners and the four wild card teams in one-game playoffs, both leagues will now carry six postseason teams.
The top two division winners in each league will get a first-round bye to the Division Series. The lowest-seeded division winner (No. 3 seed) will play the third wild card team in each league (the No. 6 seed), and the first and second wild card winners (the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds) will also square off. The Wild Card Series will be a best-of-three, with the higher seed hosting each game.
Cleveland doesn’t know their opponents yet, but we do know that they’ll host Games 1 and 2 of the Wild Card Series at Progressive Field on Oct. 7 and Oct. 8, respectively. If necessary, the Guardians will play in Game 3 on Oct. 9.
Terry Francona’s squad hasn’t won a playoff series since the 2016 ALCS, when they eliminated the Toronto Blue Jays in five games en route to a heartbreaking World Series defeat at the hands of the Chicago Cubs.
Cleveland holds the longest World Series drought at 74 years, having last won it all in 1948. “The Land” will be ready for October baseball as the Guardians try to put this painful championship drought to bed once and for all.
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Kansas City Chiefs (Dec. 4)
In a rematch from last year’s AFC Championship Game, we’ll see Joe Burrow and the Bengals host Patrick Mahomes’ Chiefs at Paycor Stadium in Week 13 on Dec. 4, of which clearly the favorites are the chiefs on Kansas sports betting sites.
The game is in the late CBS afternoon window (4:25 p.m,), so that likely means the network’s top team of Jim Nantz and Tony Romo will be on the call. Burrow is 2-0 against the Chiefs, having also led his team to victory in Week 17 last year.
This game could go a very long way in determining the playoff fates of one or both teams, and potentially home field advantage come January.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Milwaukee Bucks (Dec. 21)
Having made a blockbuster trade for Utah Jazz superstar Donovan Mitchell, the Cavaliers are officially in “win now” mode.
Well, the revamped Cavaliers will get a chance to prove themselves as a legitimate contender when they host Giannis Antetokounmpo and the powerhouse Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 21 at the Mortgage FieldHouse.
Cleveland took three out of four regular season meetings against Milwaukee last year, so it’s safe to say the Bucks were relieved about not having to play them in the opening round of the postseason (the Cavs lost two play-in games and thus didn’t qualify).
This will be a good mid-season test for the Cavaliers, and Mitchell vs. the two-time NBA MVP could be one of the game’s most entertaining battles for may years to come.
