Iowa State faces first Big 12 road test Saturday at resurgent Kansas

AMES — Brock Purdy reeled off four touchdown passes in the first quarter.

The record-setting former Iowa State quarterback’s backup, Hunter Dekkers, rambled for a 41-yard rushing touchdown two quarters later, helping to put the finishing touches on another rout of long-beleaguered Kansas last season at Jack Trice Stadium.

The final score: 59-7. The gulf between the two teams? Seemingly infinite. But one year later, that seemingly unbridgeable gap has virtually vanished.

“They’re playing with heart and effort,” said Cyclone wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson, who hopes to help his team (3-1, 0-1 Big 12) beat the resurgent Jayhawks again at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Lawrence. “I think they really believe in their head coach (Lance Leipold) and whatever they have going on down there in Lawrence, Kansas, the players have bought into it.”

The Jayhawks (4-0, 1-0) lost their 14th consecutive conference game last season in Ames. They’d lose four more in a row before breaking through with a 57-56 overtime win at Texas. That triumph bolstered belief. It also broadcast the arrival of star quarterback Jalon Daniels, who leads Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud and Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker on ESPN’s quarterback rating chart with a stunning score of 98.3 out of 100.

“I said to our staff (Tuesday) morning that one of the things that’s so impressive about him is you look at him and you’re like, ‘Man, I want to be around that kid,’” said ISU head coach Matt Campbell, who is 6-0 against Kansas. “As a coach and an opposing coach, I think how he carries himself, how he plays the game, you just have a real appreciation for him.

“You can tell the kids believe in him. He believes in him. He’s having fun playing.”

The Cyclones, of course, aim to wipe Daniels’ ever-present smile off his face. That’s a titanic task, though. Daniels has completed 71 percent of his passes for 890 yards and 11 touchdowns. He’s thrown just one interception. He’s also rushed for a team-best 320 yards and four touchdowns, so Daniels is the total package — and forcing him into mistakes is imperative, yet extremely difficult.

“He’s a good quarterback,” ISU safety Malik Verdon said. “So we’ve just got to do our jobs, one through 11.”

Is it that simple? Perhaps, but the Cyclones will need to be creative while pressuring Daniels, who boasts elite escapability when plays break down, and never seems to be rattled by adverse situations.

Those have been few and far between this season for the Jayhawks, who have yet to face a defense of ISU’s caliber. The Cyclones rank 14th nationally in total defense (266 yards per game) and 16th in yards per play (4.4). Kansas is eager to pit its high-powered offense against such a challenge.

“They're physical and well-coached,” Leipold told reporters this week. "Matt does an outstanding job, and as I've said before, that's a program in many ways that we look to be like.”

With help from the transfer portal, the Jayhawks now look a lot like ISU, which has been piping in simulated crowd noise to practices, preparing the team for a rare hostile environment at Memorial Stadium.

That’s nothing new to veteran players such as senior center Trevor Downing.

“I expect it to be a hornet’s nest walking in there,” the first team all-Big 12 selection from Creston said. “Kind of like Iowa. Luckily for us, we’ve played at Iowa so I don’t think anything’s going to be quite that loud and hostile, I guess, so it will be fun.”

And competitive. What a difference a year makes. Kansas is confident. It’s homecoming week. The revivified Jayhawks aren’t doormats anymore, and winning against them is no longer a foregone conclusion.

“I’m happy for them,” said Hutchinson, who caught the first of Purdy’s touchdown passes against Kansas last season. “But at the same time, you know, I’m only worried about Iowa State and what Iowa State can do. So, once again, we’ll meet and I hope the ball bounces our way.”

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