Cyclones look to clinch winning season against the Jayhawks

AMES - Clinching a winning season for the eighth time since 2017 with a win Saturday, Iowa State still could secure its eighth win — and will be favored to do so — next week at winless-in-conference-play Oklahoma State.

But getting there in the final home game of the season would be extra rewarding. It’s obviously been a tough season for the Cyclones (6-4, 3-4), but if they win out, they still could become just the third team in program history to notch nine or more wins.

Keys to victory

Reignite Rocco

Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht’s been dealing with multiple injuries in recent weeks, and he’s unlikely to be anywhere near 100 percent fully healthy as the regular season winds down.

His performance has tracked alongside the harder hits he’s been taking, too. Becht’s thrown just three touchdown passes to seven interceptions in the past four games. He’s also completed just 45 percent of his throws in the past two games — but still made the key plays necessary to help spark a fourth quarter comeback to beat TCU two weeks ago in Fort Worth.

Becht’s receivers haven’t done him many favors, as ill-timed drops have hindered the passing game all season.

So how can the Cyclones help Becht become comfortable in the pocket again? By keeping it simple and leaning on the run game. Kansas ranks 14th in the Big 12 in rushing defense, allowing 169.5 yards per game. ISU should be able to open up big holes for top tailbacks Carson Hansen and Abu Sama, both of whom should strike for a handful of big plays.

That could help Becht’s receivers get open as the Jayhawks commit to curtailing the run, and if he’s on the money as he’s generally been until his recent struggles, he can regain the efficiency in the passing game we’ve seen for most of his career.

Celebrate the senior

Sixteen seniors will be honored before Saturday’s 11 a.m. kickoff and, as head coach Matt Campbell’s said, they all have unique stories. Thirteen of those 16 players competing in Jack Trice Stadium for the last time have been in Campbell’s program their entire college careers. And one of them — offensive tackle Tyler Miller — brings a remarkable 37-game starting streak into the home finale

Defensive tackle Domonique Orange’s start streak may be even more remarkable, even though it only spans 14 games. That’s because Orange has been playing through pain all season while retaining strong hopes of being selected in the first two days of next spring’s NFL Draft.

These types of players should be celebrated — and will be. Injuries have forced ISU to play a lot of underclassmen, particularly in the secondary, and those younger players will undoubtedly seek to play their best football of the season for the seniors as their college careers draw to a close.

Make Daniels work

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels sliced through the Cyclones defense with ease in last season’s 45-36 win, throwing for 295 yards and two touchdowns, and rushing for 68 yards and another score.

He’s thrown just one interception in the past seven games, but hasn’t topped 200 passing yards in the past three. So Daniels has been efficient but less explosive than usual.

That could change, however, against ISU’s banged-up defense. Daniels rushed for a season-high 74 yards in the Jayhawks’ most recent loss to Arizona — and he threw for a season-high 445 yards in another close setback to Cincinnati in late September. The Cyclones must limit his effectiveness in the passing and running games, and if they can do that, a win becomes far more likely.

PREDICTION

Fun fact: The first time the Cyclones faced Jayhawks quarterback Jalon Daniels, Brock Purdy was a junior leading his team to its first New Year’s Six bowl win over Oregon in the COVID-framed 2020 season.

Daniels wasn’t good that day, but he’s been a thorn in ISU’s side (when healthy) ever since and presides over an offense that’s scored 31 or more points six times this season — but just once since Sept. 27. The Cyclones could and should ensure they forge a winning season for the eighth time since 2017, but the passing game must get on track to help score the requisite points.

It does — and Rocco Becht shines.

Iowa State 35, Kansas 30

Comments: robgray18@icloud.com