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5 things we learned from the win

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5 things we learned from the win

Here are five things we learned from Ohio State’s 35-7 win over Iowa on Saturday:

The Buckeyes can win in the trenches

There was little doubt that Ohio State controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

The backfield duo of Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson ran for a total of 139 yards on 24 carries, an average of 5.8 yards per attempt.

The Buckeyes totaled 203 yards on the ground, just the fifth time in three years that a team ran for 200 or more yards against the Hawkeyes.

That included Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson, a Hamilton native who was the second-leading rusher in the Football Bowl Subdivision for five weeks.

Johnson had gained at least 100 yards in each of his first four games, but Ohio State’s defense held him to 86 yards and a touchdown. Even that stat line was a little skewed. A majority of those yards came on two 28-yard runs in the second half. His other 13 attempts went for 30 yards.

“That was the challenge,” Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said. “Run the football. Stop the run.”

In a physical test, their attack and defense lines passed.

The red zone offense remains successful

The Buckeyes reached the red zone five times against Iowa. Five touchdowns followed.

This continued a season trend as they have now scored 20 touchdowns in 21 drives inside the 20 yard line. Of the 134 FBS teams, only Navy had a higher touchdown percentage in the red zone.

Quarterback Will Howard’s accuracy near the goal line made the difference against the Hawkeyes.

All four of Howard’s red zone pass attempts hit targets, including three to wide receiver Emeka Egbuka.

Although Iowa’s defense conceded three red zone touchdowns on three occasions in the first four games, it was often difficult when backed up against its own end zone. The Hawkeyes ranked in the top 10 in opposing red zone touchdown percentage in 2023 and 2022.

Sonny Styles took a step forward

It was late in the second quarter when Styles put together perhaps his most impressive sequence as a linebacker.

With Iowa facing a first-and-10 from its 7-yard line with 1:35 left before halftime, Styles slipped into the backfield and tackled Jaziun Patterson for a 2-yard loss.

On third-and-12, he intercepted a pass to Johnson and brought him down, giving a gain of just 4 yards, prompting the Hawkeyes to punt.

Styles finished the game with seven tackles, including two for a loss, to lead the Buckeyes and rebound from a performance the previous week at Michigan State that highlighted the learning curve that comes with moving from safety.

“The more Sonny plays,” Day said, “the more he can learn and diagnose games quicker.”

The aggressiveness on fourth down continues

On fourth down, Day was ready to go again.

The results were mixed. Facing a fourth-and-2 at the Iowa 42-yard line early in the second quarter, Howard attempted to gain a first down but was stopped a yard short of the marker.

On a fourth-and-2 from the Hawkeyes’ 32-yard line late in the third quarter, Howard completed a pass over the middle to sophomore receiver Brandon Inniss for 21 yards.

Through five games, the Buckeyes already have more than half as many fourth-down attempts as they did last season.

When deciding whether to go for a punt, a field goal or a fourth down, Ohio State attempted to gain a first down 10 of 27 times (37%), including two of four times against Iowa.

Jeremiah Smith is still growing

Midway through the second quarter, Smith was ready to set the Buckeyes up deep in Iowa territory.

Smith caught a pass at midfield and then ran for 17 yards.

But when he tried to overpower linebacker Jay Higgins, he failed. Higgins hit the ball out of his left arm. The ball rolled toward the home sideline and Higgins recovered it at the Hawkeyes’ 28-yard line.

Smith shined in his first season, making another one-handed touchdown grab in the third quarter, the second straight week he made such an acrobatic catch for a score.

The early sales were a reminder that it’s still growing.

Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. @joeyrkaufman or send him an email at [email protected].

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