Jeremiah Smith hits the Heisman pose for Ohio State (Photo by Ohio State Athletics)
The Sayin to Smith show continued as Ohio State won on the road in Iowa City!
Ohio State 31, Iowa 14
Ohio State started hot right out of the gate. On the third play from scrimmage, Kenyatta Jackson Jr., the senior defensive end, had a strip sack of Iowa quarterback Hank Brown. Two plays later, Julian Sayin and the offense struck. Sayin found Devin McCuin for a 15-yard touchdown pass, and Ohio State had the early 7-0 lead. OSU held Iowa to a field goal and got right back to work on offense. A couple of false start penalties slowed the Buckeyes down, and they had to settle for a red-zone field goal attempt. Connor Hawkins knocked down a 28-yard field goal to make the score 10-3. Another Iowa field goal would make it 10-6 heading into the second quarter.
Despite some movement by both teams, the score would stay 10-6 until late in the second quarter. With 1:48 in the half to go, Ohio State would go on a nine-play, 84-yard drive that would take 1:36 off the clock. The Buckeyes would go to what has worked the best for them for the past three seasons: #4 Jeremiah Smith. Sayin found Smith for another 10-4 touchdown. This one was from 12 yards out, and Smith would get the touchdown through sheer grit and extra effort. Ohio State would lead 17-6 at the half.
Second Half
Both teams would struggle early in the second half. Ohio State would fail to convert a 4th and 1 after Jeremiah Smith had his arm hooked on 3rd and 1 with no call. The Bucks seemed to lose some momentum with that sequence. The defense bowed up and got the stop, and the Buckeyes had the ball back on offense, and they kept firing. Julian Sayin found Jeremiah Smith for a 57-yard touchdown that gave Smith the career receiving touchdowns title at Ohio State. OSU would lead 24-6 going into the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter
Ohio State would look to end this game early in the fourth quarter. The Bucks got another big drive going offensively, thanks to a Jaylen McClain interception. OSU went on a 10-play, 70-yard touchdown drive that was fueled by a 34-yard reception from Devin McCuin and finished off by a seven-yard Ja’kobi Jackson touchdown run. Ohio State would lead 31-6. Iowa would get a touchdown in the fourth quarter to cut it to 31-14. The Buckeyes would go on a dream drive led by Coach Day, Sayin, Smith, and the running backs. Ohio State would go on a 16-play, 55-yard drive that would chew up a whopping 9:30 off the clock and allow Ohio State to finish the game in victory formation.
Best of the Buckeyes
Who else but Jeremiah Smith and Julian Sayin? These two were again elite. Sayin was 20 of 27 for 324 yards and three passing touchdowns. Smith had 11 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns. Smith is now the career leader for Ohio State in receptions and touchdowns after breaking the yards record against Illinois last week. Jeremiah Smith has 207 catches for 3,381 yards and 36 touchdowns in his career. Smith averages close to six catches a game for nearly 100 yards, and a touchdown a game in his 35 career games for Ohio State. His 400-plus yards and six touchdowns in the last two games seem to be just the beginning for Smith. He’s determined to make a run at the Heisman in his final season at OSU.
10-4 or Old Demons?
The good news is the strengths remain the same, but the struggles do too. The offensive line is inconsistent, which is surprising given their experience. It’s that way in both run and pass blocking. The special teams are still bad. Missed field goals and mediocre punts make things harder for this team and will cost them on big stages, as they have for years. The defense is justifiably reloading after all they lost from the past two seasons.
This boils things down pretty simply for Ohio State. Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith are Atlas, holding Buckeye Nation on their shoulders. Every challenging game will require over 300 yards and three touchdowns from Sayin, and 200 yards and two touchdowns from Smith for them to win a championship either in the Big Ten or nationally. Smith and Sayin are good enough to do it; it’s just a matter of seeing if it happens over the rest of the season.
Up Next, Maryland
Ohio State will be at home this coming Saturday against 2-3 Maryland. The Terps are struggling, and you just get the impression that they’re on the verge of a coaching change if they don’t turn things around. That makes them dangerous. Ohio State will have the chance to continue to try to sharpen themselves for their big run against Indiana, USC, and a surging Northwestern.
