The Big Ten has locked in a major early October spotlight game: Ohio State’s trip to Iowa will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Oct. 3.
That matchup comes with plenty of attention baked in. Iowa is sitting at No. 17 in this week’s AP Poll and will first face No.
16 Michigan on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
The Hawkeyes will then get another featured 3:30 p.m. ET slot the following week against the Buckeyes, giving them back-to-back games in that window.
For Ohio State, the meeting at Kinnick Stadium is part of a familiar Big Ten rivalry that has stretched across 20 games since 1989. The Buckeyes have controlled the recent history, going 8-2 over the last 10 matchups. But Iowa has made life difficult in Iowa City before, and Ohio State’s last trip there ended in a 55-24 loss in November 2017, before Ryan Day took over as coach two seasons later.
The Buckeyes will be looking for their first road win of the season, and if they get one in Iowa City, it would be their first victory over the Hawkeyes at Kinnick since the 2010-11 season, when they pulled out a 20-17 win.
Ohio State and Iowa have met once since then in Columbus, with the Buckeyes rolling to a 35-7 win in October 2024. That result is part of Ohio State’s 3-1 edge in the most recent four meetings.
Iowa enters the game at 3-0 after surviving a tight 16-13 CyHawk win over Iowa State in Week 2. The Hawkeyes also blanked Northern Illinois and Northern Iowa, outscoring those two opponents 95-0 combined.
Ohio State has had a much smoother run through its first three games, aside from the Week 2 loss to Texas. The Buckeyes handled Ball State and Kent State with ease, topping 50 points in both wins while allowing just six points total.
With tougher games ahead, the Oct. 3 meeting gives both teams an early measuring stick. It will show where Day and Kirk Ferentz stand, and whether Ohio State can finally handle a road setting that has caused problems in previous years.
In Other News...
Ohio States Easy Win Couldnt Quiet One Big Concern
Ohio State handled Kent State 59-3 and put the game away early, taking a 35-0 lead into halftime and never letting the outcome feel in doubt. The Buckeyes still found enough balance to lean on the run, finishing with 145 rushing yards on 38 attempts, with Bo Jackson leading the way with 73 yards and a touchdown.
Even in a blowout, though, the ground game remains a point worth watching. Ohio States rushing offense is still inconsistent overall, sitting 79th nationally at just under 159 yards per game, and that leaves a gap between what this roster can be and what it has shown so far. The schedule will get less forgiving from here, and the Buckeyes will need more than a comfortable win to answer that concern. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Got A Clear Warning About Illinois Saturday
Illinois followed its loss to Duke with a much cleaner performance against Southern Illinois, and the part that should have Ohio State paying attention is how much more settled the Illini looked at the line of scrimmage. The offensive line showed progress, the run defense was sturdier, and the overall operation came across as a team that had already made some useful corrections before the matchup in Columbus.
Katin Houser also gave Illinois a steadier passing game by spreading the ball around, which matters because it hints at a more functional offense than the one that stumbled a week earlier. The defense, meanwhile, flashed enough improvement against the run to suggest this is not a team the Buckeyes can afford to overlook, even if the bigger question still hangs over whether those adjustments travel against a much faster and more talented opponent. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Fans Got A Big Noon Reminder Nobody Wanted
A rout should have sounded like a showcase, but Ohio States 59-3 win over Kent State came with a broadcast that drew as much attention as the score. FOX Sports announcer Gus Johnson delivered the game in a flat, muted tone, and he also made a factual mistake while discussing a players touchdown history, a rough combination in a matchup that was already struggling to hold viewers attention.
The bigger issue is one college football keeps circling back to every fall: games like this are increasingly hard to sell, even for a blueblood with a massive fan base. Ohio State can only do so much when the opponent is overmatched, and the broadcast only amplified the sense that fans, and maybe networks, would rather see a more competitive nonconference slate than another predictable Saturday afternoon tune-up. [Read more 🡒]