Ohio State welcomes Iowa to The Shoe on Saturday, wearing the all-gray alternate uniforms. It will be a major test for the Buckeye offense.

The 4-0 Ohio State Buckeyes will return home to Columbus this Saturday as they host the 3-1 Iowa Hawkeyes. The game is set for a 3:30 pm EST kickoff on CBS, and the scarlet and gray will be debuting the gray jerseys for the first time this season.

Both teams have momentum after a combination of road wins and bye weeks the past two weekends. With Big Ten play starting to be in full swing, here is a look at how the two familiar opponents will fare in the early-October affair.

The World-Famous Ohio State Buckeyes

The world-famous Buckeyes, as Gus Johnson likes to call them, are coming off of another dominant victory in week five. They defeated the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing 38-7 and didn’t allow a second-half score as they cruised to a victory.

Will Howard suffered a tough hit that knocked him out for a few plays, but the Buckeyes finished the drive without him with a touchdown. Howard is up over 1,000 yards passing on the year with eight touchdowns and two interceptions. Devin Brown came in and threw a touchdown pass in Howard’s short absence against the Spartans late in the first-half.

Touchdown Will Howard‼️ Buckeyes pouring it on 38-7
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— The Silver Bulletin (@tSilverBulletin) September 29, 2024

Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson continue to make game-changing plays for the offense. Judkins has 390 rushing yards on the year while Henderson has 276. Both average 8.3 yards per carry or better, and both have found the endzone at least four times. The offensive line has done a good job opening holes for the explosive backs, which, in turn, has helped open up the passing game.

Jeremiah Smith made highlight play after highlight play last game and did not seem fazed by his first road environment one bit. He’s up to 364 receiving yards and six total touchdowns through his first four games as a Buckeye. Emeka Egbuka has returned to his old self and leads the team with 21 catches, to go with his 362 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. Carnell Tate continues to be a great third receiver. Tate has 14 receptions, 219 receiving yards, and a score. Tight end Gee Scott Jr. found the endzone for the first time this year and had three of his four catches this season against Michigan State.

Out of words to describe Jeremiah Smith 🤯
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— The Silver Bulletin (@tSilverBulletin) September 29, 2024

On defense, Jack Sawyer and Sonny Styles recovered a fumble and Denzel Burke picked off the Spartans in last-weeks three-turnover defensive showing. The Silver Bullets added seven tackles for loss, four sacks, and two passes defended. The defense gave up just one score and forced very timely turnovers when it looked like Michigan State was going to make it a game in the red zone. More turnovers and sacks by the defense will be critical to help keep opponents off the scoreboard while also letting the offense build up leads.

The Hawkeyes Fly to Columbus

The 3-1 Iowa Hawkeyes opened the year with a 40-0 thrashing of Illinois State, followed by a one-point loss to rival Iowa State. They’ve since followed it up with back-to-back wins over Troy and at Minnesota.

The Hawkeyes found lots of success running the ball in their Big Ten opener against the Golden Gophers last week. Their running back Kaleb Johnson ran for 206 yards and three scores, while their starting quarterback Cade McNamara threw for just 62 yards on 19 attempts.

McNamara, the fifth-year senior and former Wolverine, has continued to underwhelm in his second season with the Hawkeyes. Through four games he has just 588 passing yards with three passing touchdowns and two interceptions.

The biggest bright spot on offense has been Johnson, who has 683 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns through four games. No other player on Iowa besides the quarterback has more than two touchdowns. They have two other backs that have netted 124 rushing yards or more in Johnson’s relief.

Often referred to as Tight-End University, three of their top five receiving leaders in 2024 have been tight ends. Northwestern transfer Jacob Gil leads the team with 13 catches and 145 receiving yards and has found the endzone once. Tight end Luke Lachey will be playing on Sundays next year and is second on the team in catches with 12 and receiving yards with 97. Wide receiver Reece Vander Zee leads the receiving group with two touchdowns.

Linebackers Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson anchor the defense with 34 and 25 total tackles respectively. Higgins and defensive back Jemari Harris both have two interceptions on the season. The defense as a whole has ten sacks and five interceptions through four games and has not given up more than 21 points in a game this season.

Outlook for the Buckeyes’ First Home Conference Game

This year’s Iowa Hawkeyes are not much different than the usual Hawkeyes. They opened the year right at No. 25 in the Top 25 and moved up to 21 before their loss to Iowa State. The 3-1 Hawkeyes are a scrappy bunch who rely on defense, the run game, and tight ends in the passing game.

Kaleb Johnson has been great for the offense but if the Buckeyes build a big lead, this could limit his touches. McNamara has never been a huge threat in the passing game, and if he throws more than the 19 times he did last game, I expect the defense to force some turnovers as they did against Michigan State.

The offense may not see as many possessions and score as many points if the Hawkeyes play their brand of football and stick to it. Ohio State needs to be careful as this is a big look-ahead spot with the Oregon matchup looming next week.

A fast start by the offense and the veteran playmakers will be vital to this game not being stressful down the stretch. I see the running game continuing its success with the passing game hitting on another big play or two. The defense shouldn’t have too much trouble with an offense that’s ultimately one-dimensional with minimal big-play ability.

Ohio State has won six of the last seven against Iowa, with their last matchup being a 54-10 explosion in 2022. The Buckeyes win comfortably and, assuming they win as well, set up a huge undefeated matchup with the Oregon Ducks.

Prediction: Ohio State 38 Iowa 10