Barnett, Cyclones focus on another upset - or two

AMES - After midnight Saturday, a short time after the Jack Trice Stadium field had been emptied of throngs of jubilant fans and the afterglow of Iowa State's BCS-busting upset of previously unbeaten Oklahoma State had begun to fade, Cyclone quarterback Jared Barnett found his way home.

The red-shirt freshman couldn't sleep.

So at 2 a.m., Barnett tuned in for ESPN's rebroadcast of the game he totaled 460 yards in - and gained a fresh perspective on the program's biggest triumph ever.

“I was up until about 6 o'clock watching the game,” he said.

But by the time Barnett, who is 3-0 as a starter, let his head hit the pillow, thoughts migrated from a historic win to the effort and precision required to achieve another one.

“Right after that, I was, ‘OK, now it's time to get ready for Oklahoma,'” said Barnett, whose team rides a three-game win streak into Norman for Saturday's 11 a.m. matchup with the No. 12 Sooners. “Make sure I'm preparing right.”

Friday night provided ISU players, coaches and fans with a timeless memory; an effort and result that captured the attention of the entire college football world.

“It was everything you dreamed of and wanted,” said Cyclone linebacker Jake Knott, who recorded 13 tackles and tipped the pass intercepted by Ter'Ran Benton in the second overtime of the 37-31 win over the Cowboys. “It was right there. And it couldn't have happened to a more deserving bunch of guys, coaches and fans. That's one of the things that you're going to be able to look back on. It's one of those things that's going to be written in history. It's great for the entire Cyclone Nation.”

Pretty good for his Twitter cred, too. How many follow requests did Knott receive late Friday?

“A lot,” Knott said, smiling. “I'm getting up there now ... You don't get those after losses, I‘ll tell you that. About 100 mentions after a win, about one after a loss.”

ISU was an afterthought nationally going into the game. While national sports pundits mused about how great the annual Bedlam game between Oklahoma State and Oklahoma would be in two weeks, considering the obvious national championship implications it would carry, folks in Alabama, for instance, loudly cheered the Cyclones.

Also, for obvious reasons.

“I did have a text from an Alabama number,” ISU Coach Paul Rhoads said of postgame correspondence. “Don't have any idea who he was.”

While the Crimson Tide reestablished itself as a likely national title contender along with top-ranked LSU, the Cyclones offered more evidence of progress made since Rhoads became their head coach three years ago.

Difficult never equals impossible. Blue collar. Hard hat. All in.

“Senior night, home game, Friday night, ESPN, lights are on,” said ISU safety Jeremy Reeves, who had nine tackles. “We were like, ‘Why not this one? And why just this one, why not the next two?' We've got to keep game-planning like we were and practice hard.”

Rhoads said even with another solid effort from his team, the Cyclones will need uncharacteristic flaws to crop up for the Sooners, who were shocked by Baylor, 45-38, Saturday on the road.

Oklahoma has never lost back-to-back Big 12 games under Coach Bob Stoops. ISU - again a four-touchdown underdog - is 5-68-2 all-time against the Sooners and last won in Norman in 1990.

“We played a great football game,” said Cyclone linebacker A.J, Klein, who had 14 tackles against the Cowboys and was named the Big 12 defensive player of the week. “But we had great preparation that went into it. Without that great preparation, it won't happen again.”

Injury update

Rhoads said he's hopeful injured players such as wide receiver Josh Lenz, offensive linemen Brayden Burris and Ethan Tuftee, and special teams platers Tyler Leo will be available Saturday. He said the latter three ran on Sunday. Lenz, he said, is limping somewhat, bothered by a calf injury.