Iowa State rolls to 42-10 season-opening win as Hunter Dekkers, Xavier Hutchinson connect for 3 touchdowns

AMES — It took new Iowa State starting quarterback Hunter Dekkers six completions to find his All-Big 12 target, Xavier Hutchinson, for a 33-yard touchdown on a tense fourth-and-3 play.

Three completions later on the following drive, the Cyclones’ pass-and-catch partners combined to score another six points that spanned the same distance.

It was that kind of Saturday for heavily-favored ISU in a fireworks-filled 42-10 season-opening win over FCS Southeast Missouri State before 57,142 fans at Jack Trice Stadium.

“‘X’ got open all the time,” said Dekkers, who became the Cyclones’ first debut starting quarterback to throw for as many as four touchdowns in at least 23 years. “In my opinion that kid can’t be stopped one-on-one. They kind of manned him up quite a bit, which I thought kind of hurt them and we ended up capitalizing on that.”

Dekkers and Hutchinson linked up for the Cyclones’ first three touchdowns in their first full game as fellow starters. Dekkers completed 25 of 31 passes for 293 yards, the four touchdowns and one interception late in the first half.

“I think for me with Hunter in January, February, March, April, May, June, July and August, man, I could have told you I really felt confident that he would play well today,” ISU head coach Matt Campbell said. “His preparation and detail, his commitment to process — I love what he’s about. I love his process of how he gets himself there and obviously (he’s) a great competitor. He wants to be the best.”

Hutchinson snared eight of Dekkers’ pass attempts and finished with 128 receiving yards while notching the first three-touchdown game of his career — and the Cyclones’ first since Quenton Bundrage made three touchdown grabs in a 27-21 loss to Iowa in 2013.

“Today was a great day, man,” said Hutchinson, who notched his seventh career 100-yard receiving game, which ranks sixth all-time at ISU. “I'm just happy that I could go out there and make plays for the team and re-instill that confidence in Hunter. He can still look my way and I can still make plays.”

So it was a historic day, but not a blemish-free one.

The defense clamped down in the second half after giving up 247 yards in the first.

Dekkers threw an interception late in the first half — the only flaw in an otherwise sterling performance.

But that’s nitpicking — and does a disservice to a generally “great day” in which the Cyclones posted their most lopsided season-opening win in the Campbell era.

“You just kept seeing the growth of this team and I almost feel like you watched it through the game today,” said Campbell, whose team faces Iowa in next Saturday’s 3 p.m. Cy-Hawk game. “That’ll be the challenge for this group. We’re gonna have to only continue to grow and get ourselves better.”

That’s true any season, but especially when Brock Purdy — the program’s winningest quarterback — is no longer running the offense and several other former standouts such as Breece Hall, Charlie Kolar, Enyi Uwauzrike and Jake Hummel have also moved on to the NFL.

“A lot of young guys have been hungry and got to show it a little bit today,” said graduate transfer linebacker Colby Reeder, who tipped a fourth-down pass in the first quarter that redshirt freshman defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim intercepted. “I think it’s a credit to our program how we’re kind of growing players and just (trying) to replenish. The great players that leave hopefully replenish and just keep the talent rolling through.”

Dekkers did that. So did several others, including tailback Jirehl Brock, who rushed for a career-best 104 yards and a touchdown.

“Just trying to get to the end zone every time,” said Brock, who like Dekkers, bided his time as a backup to one of the school’s all-time best players. “Just to help this team.”

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