Jerry Lai – USA Today Sports

The Iowa Hawkeyes are going into a bye week this week after their disappointing loss to the Michigan State Spartans in Iowa City on Saturday. Next up for the Hawkeyes are the Ohio State Buckeyes.

A bye week this week should help the Hawkeyes prepare, but it will be difficult to do when your next opponent is a team like Ohio State. The Buckeyes also have a bye week this week to work on the things they didn’t do well against the Northwestern Wildcats. Iowa will do the same and try to improve on the things they didn’t do well against Michigan State, but Ohio State is a different team than Michigan State. Ohio State has a more explosive offense, but the Spartans’ defense is better. The Buckeyes’ defense is nothing to ignore, though. They’ve been able to contain other explosive offenses like the Wisconsin Badgers and Northwestern.

Oh, and the game is in Columbus. The Buckeyes are 29-8-1 all-time against the Hawkeyes in the Horseshoe.

This is not to say that the Hawkeyes are an awful team because they aren’t. They are 4-2 overall and have a 1-1 record in the Big Ten. It’s just that Ohio State is a better team every aspect.

The Hawkeye defense couldn’t stop a previously questionable Michigan State offense. No matter how much they prepare, they will not be able to contain Ohio State’s offense, especially if quarterback Braxton Miller is playing up to his potential and running back Carlos Hyde is as explosive as he was against Northwestern. You can’t forget about receivers Devin Smith, Corey “Philly” Brown, and Evan Spencer. They can be dangerous in their own right.

One thing the Ohio State defense did well against Northwestern was stopping them on third down. They also found a way to pressure the Wildcats’ dual quarterback threat of Kain Colter and Trevor Siemian and sacked the pair a total of five times. Putting pressure on interception-prone Iowa quarterback Jake Rudock should also prove successful for the Ohio State defense and maybe even force some turnovers.

You never know, though; maybe Iowa will shock the nation, but it is not very likely. Ohio State has too many weapons for the Hawkeyes to contain, both offensively and defensively, that it will continue to improve on going into the bye week.

Jenna Aquino is a Big Ten Football writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter, “Like” her on Facebook, or add her to your network on Google.