By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Jerry Burns coached the Iowa football team from 1961-65, replacing Hawkeye legend Forest Evashevski at a time when Iowa stood proudly as an elite program.

To say that Burns struggled to sustain what Evashevski had built would be an understatement as Iowa quickly fell from elite status, finishing 16-27-2 in Burns’ five seasons as head coach.

But there is one thing that Burns accomplished as the head Hawk that still to this day sets him apart from every other Iowa head coach.

Burns is the only Iowa head coach to beat Michigan and Ohio State in the same season.

It happened in 1962 when current Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz was just seven years old, and when Michigan wasn’t very good, finishing 2-7 that season, and when Ohio State was ordinary by its high standards, finishing 6-3 in Woody Hayes’ 12th season as head coach.

The Buckeyes began the 1962 season ranked No. 1, but dropped from the rankings after losing a second game in late October to Northwestern.

Iowa handed Ohio State its third loss that season, winning 28-14, on Nov. 3, 1962 in Iowa City.

Iowa also defeated Michigan by the same 28-14 score on Nov. 17 in Iowa City.

But Iowa would only finish 4-5 in 1962, and Burns would last just three more seasons before being fired by Evashevski, who was Iowa’s athletic director at the time.

Kirk Ferentz, meanwhile, already has cemented his legacy as a Hawkeye legend in his 28th season as head coach, but he still hasn’t defeated Michigan and Ohio State in the same season.

Ferentz is half way to achieving that elusive milestone with Iowa having defeated Michigan 20-19 on the final play of the game last Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and with the Buckeyes coming to Iowa City on Saturday.

This marks just the fifth time in program history that Iowa has played Michigan and Ohio State in consecutive weeks, and the first time since 1997.

In order to match what Burns did in 1962, Ferentz’s Hawkeyes will have to beat a Buckeye squad that already has one loss, but that also has maybe the best and most explosive offense in all of college football.

Jeremiah Smith already has established himself as one of the greatest receivers in Big Ten history, and he’s just four games into his third season. He had four touchdown catches in last Saturday’s 42-19 victory over Illinois, including three in the first quarter.

The quarterback throwing to Smith, former five-star recruit Julian Sayin, is also one of the most accurate passers in college football.

Sayin has 1,206 passing yards and 10 touchdowns in four games this season, while completing 72 percent of his passes.

If he has time to throw from the pocket in Saturday’s game, Iowa could be in serious trouble.

This marks the first time in 20 years that ESPN College GameDay will host its pre-game show from Iowa City; the last time coming in 2006 when Iowa also hosted the Buckeyes.

Unfortunately, for Iowa fans, the fun ended when the game started as then top-ranked Ohio State cruised to a 38-17 victory at Kinnick Stadium.

Something similar could happen on Saturday if Iowa brings anything less than its A game.

“A lot of interest and excitement in town and all that stuff, and it’s all good for everybody,” Kirk Ferentz said. “That’s what’s great about college football. The key for us is to really do our best to get ready between now and then because as I mentioned we’ve got our hands full and it’s going to take basically a perfect game for us.”

Iowa played a near-perfect game against Ohio State in 2017, winning 55-24 at Kinnick Stadium in what was one of the most stunning upsets in program history, considering that Ohio State team finished 12-2 under head coach Urban Meyer.

However, that 31-point win now appears to have been a fluke since Iowa just a week later lost at Wisconsin 38-14, gaining just 66 yards on 50 plays.

Both of Iowa’s touchdowns came on pick-sixes by former All-America cornerback Josh Jackson.

Iowa would go on to finish just 4-5 in the Big Ten in 2017 and 8-5 overall, so the Buckeye beatdown truly was an outlier.

In 2004, Iowa pounded Ohio State 33-7 at Kinnick Stadium.

It was considered an upset at the time, but Iowa would go on to finish 10-2 that season, winning a share of the Big Ten, while Ohio State finished just 8-4, well below its standards.

Ohio State holds a 17-7-2 record against Iowa in Iowa City, winning seven of the last nine meetings.

Kirk Ferentz has a 2-9 record against Ohio State as the Iowa head coach, while Ohio State head coach Ryan Day is 2-0 against Iowa and 85-13 overall.

For Iowa to pull off the upset on Saturday, it will almost certainly take a herculean effort and near flawless execution to get it done, or as Kirk Ferentz said a “perfect game.”

There is always the chance that Ohio State might lay another egg as it did in 2017, but that seems highly unlikely with this Buckeye squad due mostly to the immense firepower on offense.

Iowa would certainly help its cause and make things easier for quarterback Hank Brown by staying ahead of the chains with its running game, and by pressuring Sayin in the pocket.

Those two things, along with turnovers and penalties could go a long way in determining how Saturday’s game will play out.

Sayin isn’t a statue in the pocket, but he would much rather stay there and look for open receivers than tuck the ball and run.

Iowa does a good job on defense of limiting big plays, but few teams can match Ohio State’s big-play capability on offense.

One of the biggest challenges will be to keep Jeremiah Smith from getting open downfield as he so often does with his athleticism and with his route running.

“I’m excited for the challenge,” said Iowa strong safety Tyler Brown. “I’m excited to show everyone what we can do, and once again show our skill set and show everyone what we’ve been working so hard for.”

The Iowa defense did a lot of bending in the win over Michigan, allowing 429 yards.

But it stiffened in the fourth quarter with the game on the line, while Hank Brown played his best in the fourth quarter against Michigan, completing 13-of-19 passes for 142 and two touchdowns, both of which were 16-yard scoring strikes to Reece Vander Zee, with the second coming as time expired.

Ohio State’s defense also did a lot of bending in the win over Illinois last Saturday, allowing over 400 yards, including a whopping 199 rushing yards.

If Saturday’s game is close going to the fourth quarter, the pressure would shift to the Buckeyes, just like it did with Michigan last Saturday.

Ohio State blew a 20-point fourth-quarter lead in the 24-23 loss at Texas on Sept. 12, proving that Smith and his cohorts aren’t invincible, though a cynic might point out that Texas is now ranked No. 1 in both polls, making the comparison with Iowa a reach.

The loss to Texas also could have sharpened the focus of the Ohio State players, while Iowa’s win at Michigan probably has caught their attention, too.

Ohio State plays for national championships or bust, making this close to being a must-win for the Buckeyes in early October.

Prediction: Ohio State 31, Iowa 17

 

Total YPG	Passing YPG	Rushing YPG	PPG
Iowa	429.0	213.5	215.5	32.8
Ohio State	522.0	365.3	156.8	45.0

 

No. 5 Ohio State (3-1, 1-0) vs. No. 14 Iowa (4-0, 1-0)

When: Saturday, 2:39 p.m.

Where: Kinnick Stadium, (69,250)

TV: CBS

Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network

Series history: Saturday’s game is the 68th all-time meeting in aseries that began in 1922. Ohio State leads the all-time
series, 49-15-3, and the Buckeyes have won 15 of the last 17 contests.

Iowa is welcoming the Buckeyes to Kinnick for the first time since 2017 and just the third time since 2010.

Ohio State holds a 17-7-2 advantage in games in Iowa City, winning seven of the last nine meetings. Iowa won
the 55-24 on Nov. 4, 2017, and 33-7 in 2004.

Ohio State has been ranked in the top 10 in each of the last eight meetings.

Iowa has beaten Ohio State and Michigan in the same season just once in program history. The Hawkeyes beat both the Buckeyes and Wolverines by the score of 28-14 during the 1962 season.

Saturday’s game is the fifth time Iowa has been scheduled to play Ohio State and Michigan in consecutive weeks and for the first time since 1997.