After three and a half weeks, the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes will be back in action tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET when they play in the Cotton Bowl for the third straight season. This time, the game will be a College
Football Playoff Quarterfinal and will pit the Buckeyes against the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes, who beat No. 7 Texas A&M in the CFP First Round, 10-3. The Bucks and Canes will face each other in a game airing on ESPN, with multiple alternate broadcasts happening across the ESPN Family of Networks.
While the Buckeyes have played on three different broadcast networks (CBS, Fox, and NBC), one cable channel (Big Ten Network), and exclusively on a streaming service (Peacock) this season, the rest of the OSU’s schedule — all in the CFP — will be played ESPN, with streaming available in the new ESPN Unlimited streamer. So, with all of the moving broadcast pieces, it can be tough to keep up with where and how to watch your favorite team.
As cord-cutting has become far more the norm than the exception across the United States, it would not be a surprise if you gave up your cable or a live-streaming service following last season, only to realize that it’s the day of the game and you have no way to watch it.
And I know it can be incredibly confusing to find the best way to watch a game in today’s entertainment landscape. Fortunately for you, I am something of a streaming expert… no, really, I write about streaming services for a living. So, I am going to walk you through the best — and cheapest — ways for you to stream today’s game.
How can I watch the No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Miami college football game?
Game Date/Time: Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Alternate Broadcasts: ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, ACC Network, ESPN Deportes
Broadcasters: Dave Pasch, Dusty Dvoracek, Taylor McGregor, Quint Kessenich
Betting Line: Ohio State -9.5 | o/u 41.5
Best streaming option for all college football games:
DIRECTV MySports | 5-day free trial
While there are a lot of streaming options to watch the game, this is my top recommendation, because it comes with a five-day free trial, and while it normally only costs $69.99 per month, if you sign up now, you can get a $10 discount on each of your first two months.
DIRECTV MySports carries all of the major broadcast network channels — all of which have college football — ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC, in almost every market. It also has ESPN, ESPN2, Big Ten Network, FS1, FS2, ESPNU, CBS Sports Network, SEC Network, ACC Network, and the NFL Network (yes, they have college games) without having to sign up for any sports add-on plans. In addition, the package also carries other sports channels like the Golf Channel, MLB Network, NBA TV, NFL Network, NHL Network, TBS, TNT, truTV, USA, and a handful of cable news channels.
On top of all that, you also get free access to the new ESPN streaming service at no extra cost. So, not only can you stream everything on all of ESPN’s cable channels, but you’ve also got all of the sports on ABC, and streaming exclusive games, on-demand content (including the “30 for 30” library), WWE Premium Live Events, alternate broadcasts, and more.
Other streaming options for the Ohio State and Miami Game:
- Sling TV: While Sling does not offer a free trial, it does give you the option to sign up for short periods of time. The service offers 1-Day, 3-Day, and 7-Day Passes that range from $5 to $20. Those packages will give you access to ESPN and ESPN2, and you can add on the Sling Sports Pack for as little as $1 to get all of the alternative broadcast channels as well.
- Hulu + Live TV: This is more expensive than DIRECTV’s MySports Genre Pack, at $89.99 per month, but there are some substantial benefits. Hulu + Live TV comes with all of the channel options as DIRECTV’s Signature packages, but it also offers the complete Disney Bundle, so you won’t have to pay more for Disney+, Hulu, or the new ESPN Unlimited streaming service.
- Fubo: $84.99 per month, with at least a one-day free trial
- YouTube TV: $82.99 per month, with at least a two-day trial
- Fox One: This is another interesting option, as Fox launched its own streaming service just before the start of the season. While it does include both Fox and the Big Ten Network, there aren’t any other channels included that cover sports. But it does come with a seven-day free trial, so if you are just looking for a cheap option to watch this game, it would do the trick. Also, its $19.99 price tag isn’t terrible either.
- Over-the-air antenna: While they fell out of fashion in the height of the cable era and into the early days of streaming, over-the-air antennas are quietly coming back en vogue as cord-cutters look to rein in their spending. Since this game is set to appear on a broadcast channel, you will be able to pick up the signal using either an indoor or outdoor antenna, assuming your antenna is strong enough and you live somewhere close enough to pick up the broadcast.
Join the conversation
Below is your Ohio State vs. Miami game thread. Be respectful, be kind and — as always — keep it classy, BuckeyeNation. If you like GIFs, lay ‘em on us. In all, be good fans, cheer for your teams, be cool to each other (even if somebody else isn’t) and everyone wins. Let’s finish the season strong!
