Another missed opportunity will test Cyclones in last two games

AMES — Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads walked into the locker room and saw the looks on the faces of his players. The bid for an upset had fallen short and his players were crushed.

The Cyclones were in the lead or tied for 56:54 against No. 5 Oklahoma State and looked poised for another monumental upset against an undefeated, national championship contending Cowboys team.

But unlike that historic win in 2011, there wasn't a storybook ending for the 17 ISU seniors. It was rather just the latest example in a season sprinkled with missed opportunities.

'I think the kids would tell you there's no fairy tales and no Cinderella and all that when it comes to this game,' Rhoads said. 'It's a man's game. It's fast, it's violent, it's physical and it takes hard men to play it. That's how they went about it. They went out to win it with that in mind.'

Iowa State (3-7, 2-5) mustered only 104 yards of offense after halftime in its 35-31 loss and allowed Oklahoma State (10-0, 7-0) to convert 11-of-17 third downs. It was the 17th loss in the last 22 games and for senior defensive end Dale Pierson, the latest instance stings almost worse than any other.

'It stings a little for me because it's the last home game,' Pierson said. 'It's the last time I'll ever play in Jack Trice, but I know we all went out there and gave it our all. That's just how the outcome of the game went. I believe we were playing hard through the whole game.'

Winnable games have turned into what-ifs for Iowa State — Toledo and Oklahoma State primarily — as it now goes on the road for the final two games at Kansas State and West Virginia.

Iowa State hasn't beaten the Wildcats under Rhoads, but had chances with each in the final minutes. In the last six meetings, the Cyclones have only lost by seven points one time and will take on a K-State team next weekend that is 0-6 in Big 12 play.

'We're trying to send the seniors out with two more wins,' said quarterback Joel Lanning. 'We were playing tonight for the seniors, too, and we didn't get it done so we're going to try to go down to K-State and try to get a win there and go to West Virginia and try to get a win there for these seniors.'

Kansas State has built its identity on ball control and leads the Big 12 in time of possession at 32:53 per game. Lanning has shown an ability to control the clock, particularly in the running game after rushing 14 times for 130 yards and two touchdowns Saturday.

Iowa State has shown glimpses of putting together the recipe to go toe-to-toe with top-25 teams, but no postseason prospects on the horizon will put the Cyclones to another test.

'The next two weeks will, in large part, shape a good deal of their life, in how they respond,' Rhoads said. 'Because how they'll respond in the next two weeks is how they'll respond for a lifetime in tough, hard situations when it doesn't look like you're playing for anything.'

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