Iowa football’s Luke Lachey returns to Ohio State, and his family is all-in

IOWA CITY, Iowa − At around 3:30 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, Luke Lachey will walk before roughly 103,000 fans to the “O” in the absolute center of Ohio Stadium, as a captain of the Iowa football team for the coin toss before a nationally televised showdown against third-ranked Ohio State.

For someone who grew up a Buckeyes fan, who tossed the football around the parking lots of Ohio Stadium on gamedays, whose father is a 28-year broadcaster for Ohio State football … this will certainly be a moment he and his family will never forget.

“I’ll probably take a moment, look up at the press box where my Dad is sitting … and take it all in,” Lachey said Tuesday. “At the end of the day, it’s another game. We’ve just got to be ready to play.”

Against all odds, Lachey is back for a second time to play as a Hawkeye in Columbus, Ohio, about a 3-mile walk from his family’s home in the nearby village of Marble Cliff.

Except now, Lachey is the starring tight end for the Hawkeyes. Back in 2022, during Iowa’s 54-10 loss, Lachey was playing behind starter Sam LaPorta and made one catch for six yards. Now, he’ll be a focal point of the Ohio State defensive game plan.

“Last time, I was really stressed. I felt a lot of pressure,” Lachey said. “Now I have the experience. I feel great going into it.”

It’s wild that Lachey has this second chance at Ohio State.

Prior to 2022, Iowa had played only one game in Columbus in 12 seasons. Now, the Hawkeyes will play two games at the famed Horseshoe in a span of 24 months. Iowa was originally supposed to host Ohio State this season, but the site flipped after Oregon and Washington joined the Big Ten Conference, creating a reshuffled schedule.

Iowa tight end Luke Lachey, left, is shown with his father, Jim, at Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis in July. Jim Lachey is the…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/iowa-footballs-luke-lachey-returns-194930478.html

Author : The Columbus Dispatch

Publish date : 2024-10-01 19:49:30

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