Facing its largest test of the season, then-No. 3 Ohio State (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) eventually looked the part.
Though Iowa (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) hung around for a half, the Hawkeyes were their own undoing in the second half. Iowa graduate quarterback Cade McNamara turned the football over on three straight possessions to start the second half.
Ohio State made the Hawkeyes pay, too. The Buckeyes converted each of those Iowa giveaways into a trio of touchdowns as a 7-0 Ohio State halftime lead quickly ballooned.
By day’s end, it all added up to a 35-7 blowout victory for Ohio State over Iowa.
As the dust settles on Week 6 of the college football season, USA TODAY Sports featured Ohio State as one of its “winners” following the Buckeyes’ impressive victory over Iowa.
The No. 3 Buckeyes’ first test of the season went down smoothly in the second half. The first wasn’t great: OSU led just 7-0 against Iowa at the break after committing two turnovers with another turnover on the downs.
But the offense came alive in the second half, sparked by freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and established veteran Emeka Egbuka with a boost from the Hawkeyes’ own giveaways. Smith made a ridiculous one-handed touchdown grab to make it 14-0 five minutes into the third quarter, quarterback Will Howard ran one in after an Iowa fumble and Egbuka scored twice in the second half and three times overall as the Buckeyes pulled away to win 35-7. – Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY Sports.
The trip to the Horseshoe represented a prime opportunity for the Hawkeyes to make a national statement. Instead, Iowa was part of another laugher against one of the nation’s best teams.
Following its 35-7 loss at No. 3 Ohio State, Iowa has been outscored 208-31 in its past six games against ranked opponents. That stretch dates back to Iowa’s 27-14 loss versus No. 4 Michigan on Oct. 1, 2022.
With junior running back Kaleb Johnson’s 28-yard touchdown trot in the fourth quarter, Iowa registered its first offensive touchdown against a ranked foe since that loss versus Michigan in the 2022 season.
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