College GameDay has made only two trips to Iowa City, and both times Ohio State walked out of Kinnick Stadium with the win.
That pattern will be on the line again Saturday, when ESPN’s pregame show returns to Iowa for the third time and the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes meet once more in a spot that has already produced two Ohio State spoils.
The first came on Oct. 26, 1996, when No. 2 Ohio State beat No.
20 Iowa 38-26. The Buckeyes didn’t just win that day - they turned the game with defense and special teams, piling up big plays while building a lead Iowa couldn’t fully erase.
Ohio State opened the scoring with a first-quarter punt block by Rob Kelly, which Kevin Griffin recovered in the end zone for a touchdown. Damon Moore then picked off Matt Sherman on Iowa’s next possession, setting up a 17-yard touchdown pass from Stanley Jackson to David Boston and a 17-3 Buckeye lead. When Iowa failed to handle the ensuing kickoff, Dan Colson recovered it at the 22-yard line, and Ohio State needed only a short field to make it 24-3 on Jackson’s 3-yard touchdown pass to John Lumpkin.
The Buckeyes kept stacking plays from there. Soon after, Orlando Pace, who would go on to win the Outland Trophy and become the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick, bulldozed 50 yards downfield to spring Joe Montgomery to the 1-yard line, and Montgomery finished the drive with a touchdown run on the next snap.
Ohio State’s defense kept the pressure on all afternoon. The Buckeyes intercepted four passes, including three by Moore, a total that still stands 30 years later as the last three-interception game by an Ohio State player. Andy Katzenmoyer also had a huge day, intercepting a pass, forcing a fumble, finishing with nine tackles and adding a sack.
After Pepe Pearson scored on Ohio State’s first possession of the second half, the Buckeyes’ offense stalled, and Iowa finally found some life. Tim Dwight sparked the Hawkeyes with a 19-yard reverse touchdown and then an 86-yard punt return for another score.
A 43-yard return on Brent Bartholomew’s next punt helped set up another Iowa touchdown and trimmed the margin to 12 with 10:46 left. But Iowa couldn’t get any closer, failing to cross midfield on its next drive, and Ohio State ran out the clock.
The Buckeyes moved to 7-0 with the victory and went on to start the season 11-0 before a 13-9 loss to Michigan in the final regular-season game. They finished as Big Ten champions and No. 2 in the country after beating Arizona State in the Rose Bowl.
Ten years later, GameDay returned to Iowa City for another matchup with Ohio State, and the Buckeyes delivered again. On Sept.
30, 2006, No. 1 Ohio State beat No.
13 Iowa 38-17 in a night game at Kinnick Stadium.
This time the Buckeyes struck first through the air, with Troy Smith finding Anthony Gonzalez for a 12-yard touchdown on the opening drive. Ohio State led the whole way, though Iowa stayed in it longer than the 1996 team had.
The Buckeyes stretched the margin to 14-3 early in the second quarter on Antonio Pittman’s touchdown run, and Iowa answered with a score of its own. From there, Ohio State took control, scoring the next 17 points and sandwiching touchdowns around halftime to put the game away.
Smith, who would later win the Heisman Trophy, threw four touchdown passes for the first time in his career. Gonzalez was his favorite target, catching five passes for 77 yards and two touchdowns. Pittman added 117 rushing yards as Ohio State rolled up 214 yards on the ground.
The defense did its part, too, intercepting Drew Tate three times. Brandon Mitchell picked him off on the first play of the second quarter, and Marcus Freeman and James Laurinaitis closed the game with interceptions on Iowa’s final two possessions.
That win was Ohio State’s second road victory of the season, following a 24-7 win at Texas in Week 2, and it pushed the Buckeyes to a 12-0 regular season. They capped it with a 42-39 win over Michigan in the “Game of the Century,” earned a second BCS National Championship Game berth under Jim Tressel, and then lost 41-14 to Urban Meyer’s Florida Gators.
Now GameDay is back in Iowa City again, and Ohio State gets another chance to keep the streak going. The Buckeyes and Hawkeyes kick off at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Kinnick Stadium, with CBS carrying the game.
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 🡒]