Cyclones hope third time off bye week is the charm

AMES - Paul Rhoads didn't shy away from it. The energy and expectations of the Iowa State program weren't met in its last two games, and the final bye week of the season gave him and his team time to reflect on that.

After a week off from competition, Iowa State will have a chance to get the goose egg out of its Big 12 win column with Texas Tech making the trip to Ames. Coming off its last two bye weeks, the Cyclones (2-7, 0-6) lost the next game by at least 21 points.

The problem behind those losses?

'Baylor and Oklahoma,” Rhoads said.

This time around during the bye week, Rhoads and the staff took a slightly different approach. The sixth-year ISU coach has been adamant all season that practices have gone well, with the issue lying in the translation to game day.

Rhoads said practices were more physical. Now out of bowl contention, the Cyclones priorities have turned to how to make the best out of a disappointing situation.

'It's really tough just knowing we had our mind set on one goal as a team and we were really trying to make a bowl game and really trying to do something special with the program just because of the season we had last year,” safety Kamari Cotton-Moya said. 'It's really tough because we just have to look forward and keep pounding every day - through the film, practice, weights - and try and become a better team.”

With the Red Raiders (3-7, 1-6) entering Saturday's matchup on a three-game skid, the opportunity is there for Iowa State to end its own three-game slide. Rhoads said his team will have to find a way to play themselves confident Saturday.

'Will we take the field with great energy and excited about playing? Yes,” Rhoads said. 'But if we go three-and-out our first three series on offense that gets drained really fast. You have to play your way into it and we're capable of doing that.”

Starting fast and getting into a rhythm offensively is what has plagued Iowa State often throughout the season. To find the confidence that it is possible to finish a disappointing year on a high note, the Cyclones need to look no further than last season when they ended the year with two wins.

'You kind of play with an edge where you're in a situation where teams can just overlook you and think your season is over,” junior quarterback Sam Richardson said. 'I think that's the same edge right now and hopefully it will continue throughout the season.”

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