Scarlet and Game
Fansided

Ohio State Football: No reason for No. 6 Buckeyes to lose at Iowa

By Willie Lutz

LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Ohio State Buckeyes before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 14: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Ohio State Buckeyes before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Ohio State Buckeyes should be sitting pretty when they face the Iowa Hawkeyes.

When we last saw the Ohio State football team, Ohio Stadium was flooded with fans as the Buckeyes pulled-off a wonderful comeback against the then No. 2 Penn State Nittany Lions. Meanwhile in Iowa, the Hawkeyes took a 17-10 victory over the Minnesota Gophers.

The two teams are in very different places as far as it pertains to their seasons. Ohio State finished No. 6 in the first unveiling of the College Football Playoff poll, with JT Barrett a top-5 Heisman Candidate. Meanwhile, the Iowa Hawkeyes sit at 5-3 and is essentially playing football to set themselves up for a better bowl.

Week in and week out, everything is on the line for Ohio State. JT Barrett’s senior season and his run for his own NCAA Championship weighs heavy; another loss destroys the potential of that happening.

Standing in their way is the No. 12 scoring defense in the country. Iowa’s defensive unit has allowed just 17.4 points in their 8 games this season. This is a unit that held the No. 12 scoring offense in the country, Penn State to just 21 points, despite the Nittany Lions eventual, last-second 21-19 victory in Iowa’s Kinnick Stadium. 

Take their performance against Penn State for whatever you choose, but this red-hot Ohio State team needs to take the Iowa Hawkeyes to task. 

More from Scarlet and Game

Coming into the weekend, Ohio State’s offense ranks No. 2 in the country in scoring, averaging 46.3 points per contest.

If there is a weakness in Iowa’s defense, it’s in the passing game, where the Buckeyes have thrived since their week two loss to Oklahoma. Iowa ranks 69th in passing yards allowed (223.4 yards per game), but 20th in passing touchdowns allowed, giving up just 8.  

JT Barrett’s 25 passing touchdowns to just 1 interception gives a good indication of what the Ohio State plan of attack should look like against the Iowa defense.

The Buckeyes’ stout defense should have no problem containing the Hawkeyes who average just 25 points per contest, and rank 104th in total offense accounting for 346 yards-per-game.

Next: Week 10 Defensive Spotlight: CB Damon Arnette Jr,

This game is a total mismatch for Iowa, eliminating what they do well and emphasizing where they struggle. Essentially, this weekend should yield a result symbolizing an “all-Buckeyes” victory. Any other result means Urban Meyer‘s bunch were under prepared and/or didn’t play hard.

Home/Ohio State Football