COLUMBUS, Ohio — After a disappointing 35-7 loss that saw Iowa hold Ohio State to a one-score game in the first half, there are understandable questions that need to be answered — quarterback play, defensive secondary, inopportune timeouts, etc. 

And while an Iowa win over the third-ranked team in the country would’ve been a massive upset, it was another case of two halves, with the first half giving Hawkeye fans a glimmer of hope that they could do what Vanderbilt did to No. 1 Alabama just hours after. 

Here’s how Iowa grades in various parts of its game versus Ohio State:

Iowa Offense: D

Though Cade McNamara finished with 98 passing yards and one interception, his first half looked pretty okay individually. He logged 72 yards on 11 completed passes that included multiple double-digit completions, his longest being 22 yards to Jacob Gill in the first quarter. 

And though the Iowa offense never reached the red zone in the first half, they did complete four third-down conversions and three three-and-outs. 

The second half is when things took a turn for the worse. McNamara didn’t see much of a clean pocket like he did in the first half, and two of those pressures led to fumbles recovered by the Buckeye defense. Against a top team like the Buckeyes, turnovers have to be avoided, and the Hawkeyes weren’t doing themselves any favors on Saturday. 

Kaleb Johnson reached 89 rushing yards and one touchdown on the day thanks to two big runs totaling 54 yards. But it’s the first game this season where he didn’t surpass the century mark in rushing yards. It’s not a bad number to finish with, but underwhelming considering some of his explosive performances through the first four games. 

There were some good takeaways today from the offense. And if Kirk Ferentz still has some belief in McNamara and the offense, then maybe followers of the team should too. 

Iowa Defense: C-

The Iowa defense is held to a higher standard than the offense — it’s been the backbone of the Hawkeyes for many years now. But I’ll save some grace as well for how the first half went. 

To hold an explosive Ohio State offense that features NFL talent out wide to seven points through the first 30 minutes is very impressive. Not many defenses have that ability, but Iowa’s defense is one of the few that do. 

Despite giving up its first opening-drive touchdown in 27 games, and letting up 199 total yards of offense in the first half, the Hawkeyes caused two timely turnovers on defense. After Ohio State completed consecutive 20-yard plays, Jay Higgins punched the ball out AND recovered it five yards from where he made the play — a momentum killer certainly.

After the Buckeyes began its drive near the 50-yard mark with about 90 seconds to go in the half, Sebastian Castro came up with the interception to eliminate any chances of a late-half score. 

The second half, however, saw the Ohio State offense go for four straight touchdowns. The first one was made possible with a Will Howard 53-yard completion to Jeremiah Smith to put the Buckeyes at the four-yard line. Besides that, there were no big plays, just steady offense that the Hawkeyes had no answers for. 

It’s no secret that Ohio State rosters a ton of talent on offense in Smith, fellow wideout Emeka Egbuka, and running backs TreVeyon Henderon and Quidshon Judkins, and sometimes there’s nothing that can be done to change the outcome. This is one of those situations. 

Special Teams: C-

There weren’t many opportunities for the Iowa offense to put points on the board. Besides Johnson’s 28-yard touchdown run, the only other time the Hawkeyes were in reaching distance to score was Drew Stevens’ missed 51-yard field goal attempt. Stevens was perfect this season and has made 50-yarders before, so it was a little shocking to see the miss. 

Rhys Dakin had himself a busy day, logging five punts for 219 yards. One of his punts was a 22-yarder that landed way out of bounds to the OSU 28. His longest, however, was 55 yards. Not to mention he had another 50-yard punt earlier in the game. 

On the 55-yard punt, Ohio State’s Brandon Inniss attempted to return and was tackled three yards away from the catch, forcing the Buckeyes to play from their 10. Though late in a game that was four scores apart, it’s still a good play by special teams. 

All in all, special teams could be better.

Coaching: B-

The one play that raised questions was a moment in the second quarter when Iowa was sitting at fourth and inches around the 50-yard line. The Hawkeyes were in punt formation, the only difference was fullback Hayden Large being slightly to the left of the long snapper Luke Elkin. 

The ball was snapped, Large received it and crossed the first down marker. But Kirk Ferentz called a timeout beforehand, wiping out the play. 

Ferentz said he noticed Ohio State linebackers creeping up to the line of scrimmage before the snap, prompting him to call the late timeout. Hindsight is 20-20, but had the play not worked the Buckeyes would have been in a good position to score. 

Of course, actually going for it would’ve been an option as well after the timeout, and that would’ve been a great time to bring in Brendan Sullivan. But the ever-conservative Ferentz remained focused on field position.