Hlas column: Different, often disconnected chapters written every week in college football

Granted, there are some things about college football that aren't great.

The BCS. An allegation of someone trying to peddle a prized quarterback to universities for six-figure amounts. Those infernal beanbag-toss games you see at every tailgate.

But the ups and downs of the teams from week to week are fantastic.

In many minds, Iowa went from being football gods against Michigan State to lucky mortals at Indiana.

Iowa State lost at home to Utah by 41 points in October, then came one play from taking down the Big 12 North's likely champion, Nebraska, in November.

I saw Utah's 68-27 win at ISU and doubted anyone would beat the Utes in the regular-season, even TCU. Saturday it was TCU 47, Utah 7.

When people ask me the timeless question “What do you think about (fill in the blank regarding college football)?” I have this stock answer:

They're college kids. It's college football. You never know what you're going to get.

You probably figured at the two-thirds point of the season with a share of the Big Ten title attainable, the Hawkeyes wouldn't be flat at Indiana after their 37-6 humbling of Michigan State. I know I did.

“You have a big win, and obviously we didn't do a good job handling that,” Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi said Saturday. He seemed as surprised about it as anyone.

Why didn't Iowa State's players buckle and cave after following the Utah loss by enduring a 52-0 loss at Oklahoma? Maybe the real question is why would they?

Had the Cyclones connected on that 2-point conversion off a fake PAT kick in overtime Saturday, they would have had a play and a win for the ages. They would have joined TCU and LSU as the weekend's toast of college football.

Nebraska has dominated Iowa State over a century-plus of football meetings. But in the last two years, Paul Rhoads' Cyclones won at Lincoln and played them to a virtual draw in Ames.

“(Rhoads) plays all out,” Nebraska defensive Carl Pelini told the Omaha World-Herald after Saturday's game. “He lets it all hang out.”

College football. Who would have guessed two years ago, when ISU was 2-10 and Gene Chizik suddenly left to chase a national-title at Auburn, that the Cyclones would be taken seriously again so soon?

Northwestern coughed up a 21-0 lead and lost at Penn State Saturday, 35-21. Amateur psychologists would say the Wildcats have to be down in the dumps this week as they get ready to play Iowa in Evanston Saturday.

Iowa's team knows better. It knows Pat Fitzgerald's Wildcats are always ready to play the Hawkeyes for some reason.

The sting of last year's home loss to Northwestern should be all the motivation Iowa needs, right? Then add what's on the line with the Big Ten race, and the Hawkeyes should be locked in from the start of their first practice of the week Tuesday. Right?

I would say it's a 99.4 percent likelihood. But they're college kids. This is college football. You never know what you're going to get.