Ohio State hosts Iowa in what’s expected to be the toughest test of the season to date for the Buckeyes. While Ohio State largely cruised through September, winning all of their first three games by at least 31 points, the Hawkeyes bring one of the nation’s best rushing offenses and a strong defense – particularly against the run – to the Shoe for the Buckeyes’ fifth game of the year.

RELATED Ohio State vs. Iowa Preview: Hawkeyes Set to Test Buckeyes’ Ground Game on Both Sides of the Ball

With an increased challenge on tap today, we delve into our biggest questions for Ohio State entering today’s game and pick our top players to watch before making some predictions for how the game will play out.

Questions

Can Ohio State win the ground game?

The answer to this question could make all the difference between a comfortable Buckeye win or a tight four-quarter battle.

Ohio State’s passing game is far more explosive than Iowa’s, giving the Buckeyes a clear advantage on paper. But few teams in college football are better at controlling the game on the ground than Iowa.

Iowa’s rushing offense and run defense are both by far the best Ohio State has faced so far this season, and the Hawkeyes could threaten an upset if they can put together long drives with their run game and bottle up the Buckeyes’ rushing attack. On the other hand, Ohio State could make the game a blowout if it can continue running the ball as well as it has so far this season and force Iowa to make plays through the air against an Ohio State secondary that’s much better than Iowa’s receiving corps.

– Dan Hope

Will Ohio State win the turnover battle and field position game?

On The Ryan Day Radio Show, Ohio State’s head coach called Iowa “the epitome of winning the turnover battle and field position game.” He then explained that the Hawkeyes excel at taking care of the football while also forcing their opponents to make mistakes. They are also satisfied with an offensive drive that stalls at the 50-yard line if it means they can pin a punt inside the 5-yard line. All of that said, the Buckeyes will need to be to protect the ball and have a Rolodex of plays ready if their backs are against the wall on Saturday.

– Chase Brown

Do the linebackers take a step forward?

With the threat Iowa poses on the ground, gap-sound and decisive linebacker play will be important for the Buckeyes to separate from the Hawkeyes on Saturday. The unit’s faced some criticism for their play against Marshall and Michigan State, particularly Sonny Styles, though he does lead the team with 23 tackles. Arvell Reese should also see plenty of time in 4-3 packages against some of the Hawkeyes’ heavier fronts.

– Andy Anders

Is there a little bit of a lull before Ohio State’s biggest game of the year?

Ryan Day has gone out of his way to avoid complacency and praise Iowa all week, but considering most of the players are between 18-22 years old, you have to wonder if there might be just a little bit of a lull in the start of Ohio State’s matchup against the Hawkeyes considering the Buckeyes face what could be their stiffest test of the year against Oregon next week. I’m not expecting that this team will let that happen, but it’s certainly happened before to other teams a week before big matchups.

– Garrick Hodge

Players to Watch

Tyleik Williams

Ohio State’s defensive line hasn’t looked as dominant in the last two games without Williams as it was in the first two games without Williams. Having Williams return at full strength today would go a long way toward slowing down that’s rushed for more than 200 yards in all four of its games so far this season.

– Dan Hope

Will Howard

I picked him last week; I’ll pick him again this week. Iowa’s defense is one of the best in college football. According to Bill Connelly of ESPN and his SP+ model, the Hawkeyes have the best defense in college football. With solid performances in Ohio State’s wins over Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall and Michigan State, I’m looking to see how Howard looks against Phil Parker’s well-renowned unit. How many times will he throw it? How many times will he run it? Can he take care of the football and make the routine plays routinely?

– Chase Brown

Jeremiah Smith

Pass defense is easily the weaker portion of Iowa’s defense as the Hawkeyes rank 69th nationally in pass yards allowed per game. Smith has been Ohio State’s brightest star at wide receiver through four games; expect the freshman sensation to post another big outing as his legend grows.

– Andy Anders

Cody Simon

Similar to Dan’s reasoning with picking Tyleik, Simon will be instrumental in helping to slow down Iowa’s vaunted rushing attack, primarily standout running back Kaleb Johnson. The linebackers will need to have a big day on Saturday, and that starts with Simon.

– Garrick Hodge

Predictions

Will Howard has his first 300-yard game as a Buckeye

Will Howard has one career 300-yard passing game and came up eight yards short of the mark in his second game with Ohio State against Western Michigan in Week 2. He’s yet to play four full quarters, which he could be in store for if Iowa manages to keep this one a little closer, and the secondary is once again the matchup for the Buckeyes’ offense to expose. Seems ripe for a big day throwing the ball.

– Andy Anders

Denzel Burke gets a pick-six

There might not be any player on Ohio State’s roster who’s hungrier for revenge against Michigan than Burke. The senior cornerback could get a small slice of revenge on Saturday by picking off Cade McNamara, who quarterbacked Michigan to a win over Ohio State during Burke’s freshman season in 2021. Burke leads the Buckeyes with two interceptions this season; I think he gets his third against the Hawkeyes, and I’ll take it a step further by saying he predicting he returns said interception for his second career pick-six.

– Dan Hope

Caleb Downs records an interception or a forced fumble

I won’t be as bold as Dan and predict a pick-six, but I think the standout safety will force his first turnover of the season against Iowa via either an interception or a forced fumble. In doing so, Downs will continue his “activation” at the backend of Ohio State’s defense, as Jim Knowles called it this week.

– Chase Brown

Cade McNamara is held to less than 100 passing yards again

Maybe this isn’t as bold as you may think considering McNamara has done this feat in two of his three games against FBS opponents this season, but it could be a testament to how stout OSU’s secondary may be considering I expect OSU to get ahead early and force Iowa to lean on the pass a little more than it would like. The Buckeyes’ cornerbacks see better skill position players in practice daily than any of Iowa’s receivers, and that should be reflected in OSU’s pass defense statistics this week. 

– Garrick Hodge