Iowa State football seeks first 5-0 start since 1980 Saturday night against Baylor

AMES — The bass line bumped, deep and resonant, building musical tension until finally, Freddie Mercury broke in and yelled, “Let’s go!”

And the beat thrummed on from there. Queen’s classic song, “Another One Bites the Dust,” proved to be an instant hit — and on Oct. 11, 1980, it spent its second week atop the Billboard singles chart.

The same day, Iowa State thumped Kansas State, 31-7, to stand 5-0 for the first time since 1938, thrilling a crowd of 50,163 who linked that song to the Cyclones’ historic hot start.

Now, 44 years later, 16th-ranked ISU (4-0, 1-0) finds itself one win from that 1980 high-water mark: Riding a cresting wave of momentum and hitting all the right notes entering Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. Big 12 football matchup with Baylor (2-3, 0-2) at Jack Trice Stadium.

“The first thing that comes to my head when I think of that, the last time we were 5-0, I’d probably say my dad — he wasn’t even born yet,” said Cyclones tailback Jaylon Jackson, who rushed for an ISU career-high 96 yards in last week’s 20-0 win at Houston.

Jackson laughed heartily as that dawned on him, but then his smile faded, his eyes narrowed, and his voice deepened.

“I think we have a chance to do something special,” he said flatly.

That opportunity will extend past the ornery Bears if and only if the Cyclones don’t lose focus and continue to execute at a high level in all three phases of the game. Baylor’s smarting from two one-score losses to undefeated league foes Colorado and No. 17 BYU, but has proved it can compete with anyone.

“They have not been rewarded the last two weeks, maybe, with a win, but, boy, how they’ve played, especially their ability to come storming back in some of those football games — the mentality the toughness, we’re gonna get a really, really good football team, maybe the best team we’ve played all season coming in here,” ISU head coach Matt Campbell said. “(I have) a lot of respect for them.”

So there’s no theme song of sorts for these Cyclones, outside of the obscure adopted anthem “Juicy Wiggle.” ISU’s drumbeat comes from popping pads in practice and sharp whistles syncopating arduous drills. Precision and detail’s the mantra, always and forever, and the Cyclones have shined in those areas most of the season — especially on defense.

ISU ranks fourth nationally in scoring defense, allowing 7.3 points per game. What three teams rank higher in that area? No. 2 Texas, No. 3 Ohio State, and No. 4 Tennessee. That puts the Cyclones in elite company, but Baylor’s fleet of fast and experienced wide receivers will give ISU’s highly-touted secondary its sternest test of the season.

“Those guys have the experience,” veteran Cyclones defensive coordinator Jon Heacock said. “So they’ve got to play at the highest level they can play.”

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Same goes for ISU’s offense, which struggled to finish drives in the first half last week at Houston, but scored 17 unanswered points in the second half. That late success stemmed largely from a strong rushing attack as the Cyclones racked up more than 235 yards on the ground for the second straight game behind their three-tailback rotation of Jackson, Abu Sama and Carson Hansen.

The trio may need to be equally or more effective against the Bears, who boast the nation’s 20th-best pass defense, which could make it difficult for ISU quarterback Rocco Becht to compile big numbers.

“They’re not really in the wrong places a lot of times,” Becht said.

The Cyclones opened as 13.5-point favorites over the Bears, but that number dwindled to 11.5 as the countdown to a fireworks-filled game night continued. ISU plans a “whiteout” for the Fox-televised game. A drone show will delight fans at some point and then, yes, fireworks will pepper the late night sky regardless of the outcome.

And maybe the Cyclones will soar to 5-0 for the first time in nearly half a century, but their goals spiral much higher on the program’s history chart.

“We want a lot more than to be 5-0,” ISU senior defensive tackle J.R. Singleton said. “We want to be the first team in 133 years to do something special here. We want to bring a Big 12 championship back to Ames, Iowa.”

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