NOTEBOOK Ohio State vs. Iowa

Hurting on offense: The Buckeyes entered the game with the 97th-ranked offense in Division I-A football (306 yards per game). The Hawkeyes held the Buckeyes to 177 yards and only allowed them to cross midfield twice. Iowa's offense crossed midfield on its first five possessions.
Dangerous position: Iowa tailback Marques Simmons is the fourth to start for the Hawkeyes. Marcus Schnoor and Albert Young suffered season-ending knee injuries in the Hawkeyes' first two games. Jermelle Lewis was the Hawkeyes' season leader (200 yards, 57 carries) before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Simmons suffered a sprained ankle in the second quarter and was replaced by Sam Brownlee. Brownlee, a walk-on, rushed for 37 yards on 10 carries, more than any Buckeye. True freshman Damian Sims had 40 yards on nine carries.
Limited yards: Antonio Pittman led the Buckeyes with 17 yards on seven carries. Starter Lydell Ross had 9 yards on 10 tries.
Big Ten: The Buckeyes are 0-3 in the conference while the Hawkeyes are 2-1. Indiana and Penn State also are 0-3 while Illinois dropped to 0-4.
Series: The Buckeyes lead the series 42-14-3. Sixteen of the wins and two of their ties were at Iowa. The Buckeyes had won eight straight against Iowa, last losing in 1991 (16-9). The last time the Hawkeyes defeated Ohio State at home was 1983 (20-14).
Nuge: OSU senior kicker Mike Nugent has the school record for field goals with 60 but didn't have an attempt against the Hawkeyes. Nugent has 302 career points and is the fourth Buckeye to top 300. He needs 47 points to surpass Pete Johnson. He's a perfect 12-for-12 in point-after kicks and made 12 of 14 field goals. His misses were a 53-yarder against Cincinnati at Ohio Stadium and a 40-yarder in overtime loss at Northwestern. With an 80 percent conversion rate (60 for 75), he's the most accurate kicker in OSU history.
Quick change: When center John Mangold injured a leg in the second quarter, Buckeyes left guard Doug Datish of Howland took over at center. Mangold returned in the third quarter.
Streaks, milestones: The Buckeyes have scored in every game since losing 28-0 at Michigan in 1993. The last time the Buckeyes started 0-4 in the Big Ten was in 1922. ... In his 100th game as Iowa coach, Kirk Ferentz earned his first victory over Ohio State. He now has a win against every Big Ten team.
Tom Williams