Kirk Ferentz Says Jeremiah Smith “Might Be As Good As I’ve Seen at That Point,” Calls Ohio State’s Talent “Really Impressive”

Ohio State’s 35-7 victory over Iowa on Saturday was a tale of two halves.

The Buckeyes struggled with turnovers throughout the first half and could only muster a 7-0 lead heading into the locker room, allowing Iowa to hang around. The second half took on a much different complexion, with Ohio State forcing turnovers on each of the Hawkeyes’ first three drives of the half while turning all three of those takeaways into touchdowns — pulling away from Iowa for the 28-point win.

Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz recognized the momentum shift into Ohio State’s favor after the first half and noted that his squad did not play to the level needed to knock off the third-ranked Buckeyes.

“The first half went probably about the way we wanted it to. Obviously, it would have been good to score some points there, but to be down seven at halftime was encouraging, certainly. The second half, obviously, things didn't go our way. We gave up a drive and then three turnovers. To beat a team like this, it's going to be tough to win or lose the turnover battle. It ended up being the way it went. There was some turbulence out there. Certainly, I thought our guys kept playing. We ought to be proud of that way. But the bottom line is you've got to play clean football against a team like this. We weren't able to do that. They get some credit on that, too.”

A major piece of Ohio State’s success against the Hawkeyes was its defense’s ability to slow down Iowa’s star running back Kaleb Johnson. An Ohio native, Johnson still rushed for 86 yards, but was held below 100 yards for the first time this season. With Johnson’s productivity taking a dip against his home-state team, Ferentz wished the Hawkeyes could have gotten him more involved in the game earlier in the contest.

“It wasn't perfect today, but we did some good things. Obviously, it would have been better if we got Kaleb going a little bit faster and what have you. But again, our opponent had something to do with that. There's no magic formula.”

With Ferentz in his 25th season as Iowa’s head coach, he’s faced plenty of outstanding Ohio State teams — including a pair of national championship-winning teams. As he’s seen his fair share of dominance from Ohio State, he noted that this iteration of the Buckeyes boasts plenty of talent but emphasized that there’s still plenty of football to be played this season before he can make any judgment about how they stack up with previous OSU teams.

“It's like everything that we all want to speculate on. But it's how things go over 12 weeks or 12 games that you really make that assessment. You watch or look at their talent and evaluate it. It's really impressive. They're a veteran up front. The receivers are really good players and [Jeremiah Smith] might be as good as I've seen at that point. And then, two good running backs and the quarterback has done a really nice job. That was a really good fit for them, I think, in getting him to be here. So, you know, you look at them, they can run the ball, they can throw it. They've got a good scheme. [Offensive Coordinator Chip] Kelly does a great job, and I know [Ryan Day is] involved with that too. So they're a good football team. But you've got to play out the season. You never know what's going to happen.”