If the last few weeks are any indication, it may be fair to start calling Ohio State a second-half team.
After holding just a meager 7-0 lead into the half, the Buckeyes exploded in the second half — outscoring the Hawkeyes 28-7 across the game’s final 30 minutes — to secure a 35-7 victory over Iowa on Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
We offer three key stats that allowed the Buckeyes to improve to 2-0 in Big Ten play.
KALEB JOHNSON HELD BELOW THE CENTURY MARK FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS SEASON
Prior to Saturday’s contest, Ohio native and Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson made headlines by declaring that he wouldn’t have attended Ohio State if he had received an offer to play for the Buckeyes because he wanted to beat them.
Johnson, who had cleared the 100-yard rushing mark in each of Iowa’s first four games, was largely held in check against the Buckeyes. While his 86 yards on 15 carries — with a garbage-time touchdown thrown in for good measure — is still impressive, it marked the first time Johnson was held below the century mark this season.
The Hawkeye star churned out just 19 yards on eight attempts in the first half. The lion’s share of Johnson’s yardage came on two carries — the aforementioned 28-yard touchdown run and an earlier 28-yard jaunt during the third quarter. Without those two carries, Johnson netted just 30 yards on 13 attempts.
Before Iowa’s road trip to Columbus, Johnson averaged 171.3 yards per game — ranking second nationally behind Boise State phenom Ashton Jeanty. Well, it’s fair to say his average took quite a hit after meeting the Silver Bullets on Saturday.
BUCKEYES FLIP THE TURNOVER BATTLE IN THE SECOND HALF
Ohio State’s first-half offensive struggles could be linked to one major source: turnovers.
The Buckeyes opened the game on a high note, going 88 yards in 14 plays to find the end zone on their opening drive. From there, Ohio State was held scoreless for the rest of the half, largely linked to a pair of turnovers — a fumble from Jeremiah Smith and a Will Howard interception. The Buckeyes also turned the ball over on downs in plus territory during their second drive of the game.
After losing the turnover battle 2-0 in the first half, Ohio State quickly flipped the script during the game’s final 30 minutes. Iowa’s first three drives of the second half resulted in turnovers, and the Buckeyes took advantage of them by scoring off all three.
Jack Sawyer knocks the ball loose for the Buckeyes pic.twitter.com/4mJDp4abTp
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 5, 2024
All three of Iowa’s second-half turnovers involved quarterback Cade McNamara, who fumbled twice and also tossed an interception across the Hawkeyes’ first three drives of the half. This allowed the Buckeyes to extend their lead to 35–0 before Johnson’s garbage-time touchdown during the fourth quarter.
Davison Igbinosun gets the interception pic.twitter.com/Hf4PWeCA1c
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 5, 2024
OHIO STATE STAKES OUT TIME OF POSSESSION ADVANTAGE
Aided by their trio of takeaways, Ohio State was able to beat Iowa at their own game: maintaining possession.
The Buckeyes maintained possession for 34:46 of game action, controlling the ball for nearly 10 more minutes than the Hawkeyes — which has made its living on controlling possession and emphasizing field position during Kirk Ferentz’s long tenure as head coach.
Ohio State’s opening drive spanned 7:36 and was the longest possession of the contest. The Buckeyes also managed a driving lasting 5:17 on their first drive of the second half.
The Ohio State defense was quick to get Iowa off the field, as the Hawkeyes registered three possessions that spanned less than one minute — two of which resulted in turnovers. The Hawkeyes only had one possession last longer than five minutes, though they did not get any points out of it after missing the drive-ending field goal attempt early in the second quarter.
