Ohio State vs. Iowa: 2026 game preview and prediction
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Following a 42-19 win over Illinois in Columbus in their Big Ten opener last week, Ohio State hits the road in conference play for the first time this season when they travel to Iowa on Saturday for a ranked showdown with the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Last week, Jeremiah Smith had one of the best performances in a game by a Buckeye wide receiver. Now the junior will look to continue to state his case to be this year’s Heisman Trophy winner.
Wrapping up the Illinois game
Despite the Ohio State defense having an uncharacteristically poor game last week, the Buckeyes were never really threatened by the Fighting Illini.
After Illinois trimmed the lead to 14-7 late in the first quarter, Jeremiah Smith’s third touchdown of the game with four minutes to go in the second quarter restored a double-digit lead for the Buckeyes. The Fighting Illini wouldn’t get closer than 11 points the rest of the way.
With the victory, Ohio State now has a 993-338-53 record all-time, which translates to a .737 winning percentage, the highest in college football history. Buckeye head coach Ryan Day improved his record to 56-5 in Big Ten games.
The 23-point win was Ohio State’s 57th triumph by at least 20 points since Day took over as head coach of the Buckeyes in 2019.
Ohio State’s history with Iowa
Now Ohio State will turn their attention to Iowa, who enters this week’s contest with a perfect 4-0 record after beating Michigan last week in Ann Arbor. This will be the third time Day has matched wits with Kirk Ferentz, with the Buckeyes winning the first two meetings with Day in charge.
Back in 2022, Ohio State trounced the Hawkeyes 54-10 and in 2024 the Buckeyes won 35-7. Both of those meetings happened in Columbus. The last time Ohio State traveled to Iowa City is a game Buckeyes Nation would love to forget, as Iowa destroyed Urban Meyer’s squad 55-24.
Saturday will mark just the third trip by Ohio State to Iowa City since 2010. The last time these two programs squared off with both ranked in the top-15 was back in 2006, which saw the Buckeyes head home with a 38-17 win. 2006 was also the last time ESPN’s College GameDay visited Iowa City for a game.
Smith & Sayin connection paces Ohio State’s offense
The star of Ohio State’s victory last week was wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. The junior was outstanding, hauling in 12 catches for 217 yards and four touchdowns. Since the beginning of the 2024 season, Smith has 196 catches for 3,175 yards and 34 touchdown receptions.
Smith needs just 10 catches and two touchdown receptions to break Ohio State’s career records. Last week’s game marked the 14th 100-yard game for Smith at Ohio State, which is one away from tying Marvin Harrison Jr. for most in school history. Through four games this season, Smith has 33 catches for 617 yards and seven touchdowns.
While Smith saw most of the targets in the game, wide receiver Devin McCuin and tight end Nate Roberts each finished with four receptions against the Fighting Illini. McCuin is the only other Buckeye receiver with at least 10 catches this year. The UTSA transfer enters this week’s game with 13 catches for 165 yards and a touchdown.
In last week’s game against Illinois, freshman wide receivers Chris Henry Jr. and Brock Boyd saw more action earlier in the game. Henry and Boyd each had a reception in the game, but it was encouraging to see them on the field more with the starters.
After struggling in the second half against Texas, quarterback Julian Sayin has bounced back with two strong starts. Last week Sayin completed 27 of his 36 pass attempts for 367 yards and four touchdowns. The junior now has completed at least 75 percent of his passes in three of four games this season, while throwing only one interception.
Sayin also used his legs more in the win over the Fighting Illini, rushing for a career-high 29 yards. Just before halftime Sayin found the end zone from seven yards out, recording his second rushing touchdown of the season, as well as his college career.
While Sayin doesn’t have to turn into J.T. Barrett when it comes to running the football, there have been opportunities where he could have picked up some easy yards with his legs.
Most of the heavy lifting in the running game will be done by Bo Jackson and Ja’Kobi Jackson. Last week Bo Jackson was pretty quiet, finishing with 53 yards on 11 carries, marking the first time this season where he didn’t rush for at least 70 yards in a game.
Ohio State’s leading rusher against Illinois was Ja’Kobi Jackson. The Florida transfer finished with 56 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. Jackson now has five rushing touchdowns this year, with at least one in each games. The 206 yards rushing Ja’Kobi Jackson has amassed through four games only trails Bo Jackson’s 283 yards rushing for the team lead.
The Buckeyes look to bounce back on defense
Despite allowing Illinois to score 19 points and roll up over 462 yards last week, the Ohio State defense is still one of the best in the country.
Since the start of the 2025 season, the Buckeyes have not allowed more than 24 points in a game. While the Fighting Illini were able to move the football during the game, they had a hard time putting enough points on the scoreboard to keep up with the Buckeyes.
On the defensive line, Kenyatta Jackson Jr. is starting to find his stride. The senior registered a sack last week and now has two sacks this season.
Along with what Jackson is doing in the trenches, defensive tackle Jason Moore is earning himself more playing time with the way he is starting the season. Moore has 10 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss.
The other Buckeye with two sacks this season is linebacker Riley Pettijohn, who is establishing himself as Ohio State’s most dynamic linebacker.
The sophomore has 15 tackles, four tackles for loss, and an interception in 2026. Even thoughn Payton Pierce and Christian Alliegro each have more tackles this season, it’s quite obvious there is a gap in athleticism between Pettijohn and the other two starters.
The secondary has been led by safety Jaylen McClain, who has upped his play this season after Caleb Downs left for the NFL following last season. McClain had four passed defensed last week against Illinois, and for the season has 17 tackles and an interception. Earl Little Jr. leads the team with 23 tackles after transferring from Florida State.
Last week Illinois picked on cornerback Devin Sanchez, but the sophomore cornerback is still a big part of Ohio State’s plans in the secondary. Sanchez leads the team with five passes broken up and has 17 tackles on the season, which is one more than fellow cornerback Jermaine Matthews Jr.
The secondary could be without Jay Timmons after the freshman defensive back went down with an injury last week in the second half. Timmons’ status for Saturday’s game is currently unknown. If Timmons isn’t able to play against Iowa, Duke transfer Terry Moore Jr. could see more playing time.
How Iowa enters Saturday’s contest
Iowa enters this game after a thrilling victory last week over Michigan. The Hawkeyes won when Reece Vander Zee hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Hank Brown to register their first walk-off touchdown since 2009 when Marvin McNutt Jr.’s score beat Michigan State.
The win was Iowa’s first Big Ten victory on the road over a ranked opponent since 2015.
With the win over the Wolverines, Iowa is 4-0 for the first time since the 2021 season, and the seventh time under Kirk Ferentz. Now in his 28th season as Iowa head coach, Ferentz has a 213-128 record, with a 134-91 mark in Big Ten play.
The Hawkeyes are one of seven programs with at least 12 straight winning seasons entering this year. During the playoff era, Ferentz has led Iowa to 104 victories, which is the most among Power 4 teams who haven’t made the College Football Playoff.
Now the Hawkeyes will turn their attention to Ohio State. With a win on Saturday, the Hawkeyes will secure their first season where they beat both Michigan and Ohio State in the same season since 1962. Iowa will be hoping for a repeat of 2017 when the Buckeyes came to Iowa City and were humbled by the Hawkeyes to tune of 55-24.
The offense of the Hawkeyes has some confidence
Taking the snaps for Iowa will be Hank Brown, who is in his first year as starting quarterback for the Hawkeyes.
Last week Brown made his first road start, completing 60 percent of his passes, tossing two touchdowns, and finishing with a season-high 227 yards passing. So far this season, Brown has yet to throw an interception through four games.
Iowa will hope to get their ground game going on Saturday afternoon since they have a number of running backs who have found success this year.
Four running backs have already rushed for at least 100 yards in a game, with three hitting triple digits in the win over Northern Iowa a couple weeks ago, marking the first time the Hawkeyes have accomplished that feat since 1983.
Kamari Moulton has seen the most carries of any Iowa running back in 2026, entering this week with 39 totes for 284 yards and two touchdowns. Xavier Williams has scored the most touchdowns of any Hawkeye running back, finding the end zone three times. Williams ranks third on the team with 167 yards rushing, one behind Braeden Jackson. Nathan McNeil is the other running back who has gone for 100 yards on the ground in a game this season.
Jackson made a massive play last week when he returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown immediately after a Michigan touchdown. The return touchdown helped Jackson earn Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. The kick return was the seventh-longest in school history. Iowa has now returned a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown in three straight seasons.
Leading the Iowa receivers is Tony Diaz, who has 20 receptions for 247 yards this season. Last week’s hero Reece Vander Zee has 11 grabs for 143 yards and two scores, while D.J. Vonnahme is the third Hawkeye with at least 10 catches and 100 yards through four games. The Buckeyes will also have to keep an eye on tight end Addison Ostrenga.
Despite losing three starters to graduation, Iowa’s offensive line has a couple of top prospects returning. Right guard Kade Pieper was named preseason first-team All-American and will likely be one of the first guards taken in the NFL Draft.
Joining Pieper is left tackle Trevor Lauck, who didn’t allow a sack in 2025. Through four games, opponents have only allowed to record three sacks against Iowa this year.
Iowa brings a stingy defense into this game
The calling card of the Hawkeyes is their defense, which is led by defensive coordinator Phil Parker. The Hawkeyes already have two shutouts this season and are allowing just 8.0 points per game, which is the best mark in the country.
Iowa is the only team in the country with two shutouts this season where they have won by at least 40 points. Since 2018, the Hawkeyes have recorded 11 shutouts, which is the most among FBS schools.
Iowa is 10th in total defense, averaging just 239.8 yards per game allowed, and have given up three touchdowns. By forcing Michigan to punt on their first drive last week, the Hawkeyes have no forced their opponent to punt the football away in each of the last 10 games.
The Iowa secondary will have their work cut out for them on Saturday as they try and slow down Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith. Likely to be heavily involved in keep tabs on Smith is Zach Lutmer. The safety was not only named to the preseason All-America team, he was also named to watch lists for the Nagurski, Bednarik, and Lott IMPACT awards. Lutmer enters this week with 20 tackles and four passes broken up.
The ballhawk among Iowa’s defensive backs is Deshaun Lee. The cornerback has two interceptions this season, which leads the Hawkeyes. Likely to be the other starters in the secondary are cornerback Jaylen Watson and safety Tyler Brown.
Iowa’s leading tackler so far this season is Cam Buffington, who has 38 stops and three tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Buffington has come up big in Iowa’s biggest games so far this year, making 15 tackles in the win over rival Iowa State, followed by an 11-tackle effort last week against Michigan.
Another linebacker Ohio State can’t afford to lose track of is Jayden Montgomery. The senior from Wisconsin has 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack to go along with his 16 tackles. Iowa will likely round out their linebackers with Landyn Van Kekerix at the other starting spot.
It feels like Iowa’s defensive linemen are still trying to find their footing this year, but that doesn’t mean they are to be taken lightly. So far this season the starters at the defensive end spots have been Kenneth Merrieweather and Iose Epensea, with Will Hubert and Bryce Hawthorne lining up on the interior of the line.
Prediction
Iowa will certainly test Ohio State with the defense the Hawkeyes play. In the last two meetings the Buckeyes haven’t had a hard time figuring out what defensive coordinator Phil Parker wants to do, but things will likely be different at Kinnick Stadium.
Speaking of the home of the Hawkeyes, it is never easy to go into Kinnick Stadium and blow Iowa out. Strange things can happen in Iowa City. Just ask Urban Meyer and the 2017 squad.
What will be obvious is Ohio State will have the best player on the field on Saturday in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. If Iowa doesn’t have a plan to try and take away the junior then it will be a long afternoon for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa may test the Buckeyes early but in the end the talent gap will allow Ohio State to pull away. Ryan Day’s team has a little too much tempo and firepower for the Hawkeyes to keep pace.
LGHL score prediction: 38-17, Ohio State
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