If the Ohio State Buckeyes' offense was led by the same quarterback who was at the helm one year ago, this week's matchup against Iowa would've ended in a much more precarious fashion. After going into halftime up 7-0 against the Hawkeyes, the Buckeyes refocused and avoided a disastrous situation from playing out.
A 21-point third quarter, led by quarterback Will Howard, pushed the Buckeyes into a blowout 35-7 victory. But at halftime, the story that would've been written is that Ohio State might have made a mistake in adding Howard from the transfer portal.
Howard completed 21-of-25 throws for 209 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. He also added 28 yards and a touchdown on the ground. However, the first half brought more frustration than anything despite the relatively efficient raw stats.
His interception before halftime was an example of his limitations. Under pressure, Howard misread safety Sebastian Castro dropping into an underneath zone, and he underthrew the pass to Emeka Egbuka. This cost the Buckeyes a potential scoring opportunity, and a better Iowa offense might've flipped the script with their own score.
Short drives, some odd play calls, and missed executions plagued the Buckeyes as they started slow. By the second half, though, a switch was flipped, and that started with Howard. As soon as he threw more aggressively and attempted throws that 2023 starter Kyle McCord would've never tried, the offense became unstoppable.
All three of his touchdown connections with Egbuka were dimes. Jeremiah Smith, of course, showed his freak side with a one-handed touchdown catch. The running game proved solid against a tremendous defensive front, with stars Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson combining for 139 yards on 24 carries.
But Howard's bouncing back set the tone. Sure, he underthrew a deep ball that should've been six points. He doesn't have the physical traits that project especially well to a starting NFL role. What is there is a resiliency that was lacking at with McCord, and honestly, at times, even C.J. Stroud.
This was a needed boost of confidence and groundwork for Howard and the Buckeyes as Oregon looms next week. The Ducks haven't looked amazing, but their pass rush is solid, and their team speed causes issues. Iowa was challenging in its own way but in no way a preparatory opportunity for Oregon.
Ryan Day's continued fourth down aggressiveness results from his confidence in Howard to manage the offense and a welcomed breath of fresh air after he shelled up too much in recent years. Howard is still a check-down merchant at times, but the fact he can change gears at all bodes well for the Buckeyes' bigger-picture goals.
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