My Thoughts.....IOWA

         What was thought to be a springboard off of the come from behind win over Penn State turned out to be a nightmare as Ohio State suffered the letdown of all letdowns and were thoroughly embarrassed at Iowa.  Where to begin?

A couple of the key moments was when Nick Bosa was ejected for targeting in the second quarter, a penalty that kept a Hawkeyes’ drive alive when the score was tied.  On the next play, Iowa quarterback Nate Stanley found tight end Noah Fant for a 25-yard score.  Also in the second quarter, Ohio State offensive linemen Jamarco Jones and Demetrius Knox suffered leg injuries on back-to-back plays and had to leave the game.  It obviously affected the offensive line’s performance and cohesion the rest of the game.  As a result, J.T. Barrett went from perhaps his best game of his career to his worst, throwing four picks.  Barrett did add three scores through the air, including two to Johnnie Dixon , who now leads the team in touchdown receptions with eight on just 17 catches this year.  

When Iowa came to Ohio State in 2013, Hawkeyes tight ends Jake Duzey, C.J. Fiedorowicz and George Kittle combined for 11 catches for 183 yards and two touchdowns. While the Buckeyes didn’t give up as many catches or yards to Iowa’s tight ends in Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, they allowed the tight ends to do more meaningful damage, as T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant each scored two touchdowns apiece.
Those accounted for four of Nate Stanley’s five passing touchdowns in Saturday’s game, with the other being scored by a fullback (Drake Kulick). While Ohio State’s cornerbacks were mostly effective in Saturday’s game, holding Iowa’s wide receivers to only seven total catches for 59 yards, the Buckeyes’ linebackers and safeties were frequently victimized in pass coverage – much like they were in Ohio State’s only other loss this season to Oklahoma – and especially by Hockenson and Fant.  While Iowa scored five of its six offensive touchdowns through the air, with Young scoring the only rushing touchdown on the Hawkeyes’ final possession, it was the ground game making big plays and moving the chains down the field that set up those passing touchdowns, all of which came inside 25 yards.  Ohio State’s defense struggled mightily on Saturday, as Iowa – which had scored less than 20 points in four of its last five games – scored more points than a team coached by Meyer had ever allowed in his entire career.

The Hawkeyes accumulated 487 total yards – 244 passing yards and 243 rushing yards, and more total yards than Iowa had gained in all but one game this season.
It’s back to the drawing board for Coach Meyer and the Buckeyes as they have Michigan State coming to town.  Although out of the playoff, the Buckeyes still control their destiny as far as a B1G title is concerned.  Wins in their last three games, or wins against Michigan State and Illinois coupled by a Michigan loss to Wisconsin on November 18, would put the Buckeyes in Indianapolis on December 2.