No. 5 Ohio State heads into Kinnick Stadium on Saturday with a chance to show it can handle another road test, this time against No.
14 Iowa in a 3:30 p.m. Eastern/2:30 p.m.
Central kickoff on CBS.
The Buckeyes arrive at 3-1 overall and 1-0 in Big Ten play after beating Illinois 42-19 last week. Iowa is unbeaten at 4-0 and 1-0 in the conference after escaping Michigan 20-19 on a touchdown on the final play last Saturday.
For Ohio State, the first order of business is simple: start fast. In its previous road game at Texas, the Buckeyes jumped ahead 20-3 by halftime and effectively silenced the crowd. Doing something similar in Iowa City would go a long way toward muting a home field that is expected to be loud and eager.
The challenge is that Iowa brings a defense that has been stingy from the start. The Hawkeyes are No. 1 nationally in points allowed, No. 10 in yards allowed and No. 12 in pass defense, which makes Julian Sayin’s follow-up act worth watching closely. Sayin was sharp against Illinois, throwing for 367 yards and four touchdowns while also running for a score.
Ohio State also needs more from its ground game. Bo Jackson and Ja'Kobi Jackson have not broken off a run of 20 yards or longer in any of the last three games, and the Buckeyes are sitting 76th nationally in rushing offense at about 157 yards per game. That is not the kind of production that tends to travel well against a front like Iowa’s, which ranks 19th in rushing defense and allows just under 90 yards per game.
That puts even more pressure on the Ohio State offensive line, especially with right tackle Phillip Daniels out for the third straight game. The line has been starting with Austin Siereveld at right tackle and Gabe VanSickle at right guard, and it handled Illinois well last week. The same unit now has to keep Sayin upright against a defense built to make quarterbacks uncomfortable.
Jeremiah Smith is another central piece of the Buckeyes’ offensive puzzle. He erupted last week with career highs in catches (12), yards (217) and touchdowns (four), and Iowa will surely test him with different coverages to keep him from taking over again. Ohio State could also use another receiving threat or two to step forward.
There is work to do on the other side of the ball as well. Iowa’s running game has been stuck in neutral in its two Power Four games, producing just 93 yards against Iowa State and 58 against Michigan. Ohio State, meanwhile, gave up 199 rushing yards to Illinois last week, so the Buckeyes need a much cleaner showing in the front seven if they want to keep Iowa from finding rhythm on the ground.
Hank Brown adds another layer. He is 4-0 as Iowa’s starting quarterback, and while he was quiet for three quarters against Michigan, he delivered two fourth-quarter scoring drives to help the Hawkeyes pull out the win. Ohio State’s goal is to force him into one of his colder stretches.
The Buckeyes also have to be alert to chunk plays. Illinois had 13 gains of 15 yards or more against Ohio State last week, even if the Illini could not fully cash them in. Iowa has enough at receiver, including Reece Vander Zee after his heroics last week, to make those kinds of opportunities matter.
Special teams could also tip things. Ohio State’s third phase is usually steady without being a major storyline, while Iowa had a kick return touchdown last week and has a habit of producing one or two plays that swing games.
And then there is the larger road picture. Under Ryan Day, Ohio State is 28-4 in road games and 27-3 in road Big Ten games. The Buckeyes did lose their last road trip at Texas, but that experience is part of what they are bringing into Kinnick.
There is also the bigger question hovering over the afternoon: are these Buckeyes still a real Big Ten and national championship contender? Poll voters have Ohio State as the highest-ranked team with one loss, but a 3-2 start is not what anyone expected from the preseason No. 1 team and Big Ten favorite. Saturday is another chance to prove this group is moving forward, not slipping back.
In Other News...
Ohio State Just Delivered The Kind Of Road Win Fans Needed
Ohio State went into Kinnick Stadium and delivered the sort of response win its fans had been waiting for, beating Iowa 31-14 and handing the Hawkeyes their first loss of the season. The Buckeyes controlled the game on both sides of the ball, piling up 484 total yards while keeping Iowa to 238 and a paltry 39 rushing yards, which made this feel less like a tense road test and more like a statement about the gap between the two teams.
Jeremiah Smith was at the center of it, turning the trip into one of those performances that travels well beyond the box score. He finished with 11 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns, giving Ohio State a dynamic edge whenever it needed one and helping offset a couple of turnovers forced by the defense. For a team that needed a clean, convincing road result, this was exactly the kind of night it was looking for. [Read more 🡒]
Jeremiah Smith Just Put Ohio State Fans On Notice Again
Jeremiah Smith kept the Buckeyes moving in Iowa City, turning a road test against the Hawkeyes into another showcase for Ohio States passing game. The freshman wideout tied the Ohio State touchdown record while finishing with 11 catches for 206 yards and two scores, a performance that helped push the Buckeyes to a 4-1 start and add another layer to what has already become a must-watch season in Columbus.
Smiths latest breakout only raises the stakes for what comes next, because Ohio State now heads back home to face Maryland with its young star drawing even more attention. For a team that has spent the early part of the season trying to establish its identity, his ability to create production anywhere on the field has become one of the biggest reasons the Buckeyes keep looking like a contender. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Earned The Big Ten Spot Fans Wanted Most
Week 5 brought a clearer picture of the Big Ten race, and Ohio State came out of it looking like the conference team fans expected to see at the top. The Buckeyes handled Iowa in a game that carried more weight than a typical early-season road test, adding a quality win to a rsum that is starting to separate from the pack as the league standings and the national picture begin to take shape.
The rankings around them still have plenty of movement left, with Indiana continuing to push forward, Oregon and UCLA drawing attention for different reasons, and Michigan still trying to sort out its own path. But Ohio States recent momentum is the kind that can hold up as October approaches, especially if the Buckeyes keep matching style points with results in the weeks ahead. [Read more 🡒]