Iowa State seeks a third straight win Saturday at Oklahoma State

AMES — History not only is written by the victors.

It’s penned by those who persevere; who weather storms riven with random bad luck and a handful of miscalculations and misadventures.

The 2025 Iowa State football team is now poised to chronicle its own topsy-turvy fall-into-winter history — from five straight wins, to four straight losses, and the chance to finish the regular season on a three-game win streak.

Next up for the Cyclones (7-4, 4-4 Big 12): Saturday’s 11 a.m. road date (ESPNU) with heavy underdog Oklahoma State (1-10, 0-8).

“This group has continued to pound away at the process that it takes to be really good at the sport of football,” said ISU head coach Matt Campbell, whose team has already recorded the most wins (25) in a three-season stretch in program history. “I think we’ve always tried to be our best at the end, and some years we’ve been really good at the end, and some years we haven’t.

“I think that’s what’s special about this group. We’ve got (a short time) left to really prove that we had the toughness and the courage to just stay the course and continue to get ourselves better.”

Saturday in Stillwater should serve as a suitable testing ground in that regard. It’s senior day for the Cowboys, who have dropped 17 straight conference games, but led UCF 14-0 last week before crumbling late and tumbling to a 17-14 loss. So Oklahoma State — which recently hired its next head coach, Eric Morris, of North Texas — is seeking to prove itself, as well, after its most brutal two-season stretch in recent memory.

“I don’t think their record reflects their play,” said ISU junior wide receiver Chase Sowell, who ranks second on the team in receiving yards with 446. “They play hard. They’ve got a lot of talent. We’re gonna go about it like every other game. Just have respect for those guys, do our part, and I think we’ll be fine.”

History indicates that’s a wise approach. The Cowboys have just enough playmakers on both sides of the ball to set the stage for a possible upset of the Cyclones — if the visitors revert to self-inflicted wounds mode. And ISU’s interested in making some modest history of its own by retaining hope of winning nine games in a season for the fifth time ever, and third time under Campbell.

That might not seem like a big deal after the Cyclones played for a Big 12 title last season while recording 11 wins for the first time in program history, but it is to Campbell — and his players, as well. Especially first-year transfer players such as Sowell, who’s never experienced anything remotely close to a winning season at the Power Four level.

“Coming from programs like Colorado and East Carolina, where things didn’t go right early on, like, this generation, we want instant gratification,” Sowell said. “And that obviously didn’t come my way early in my career. I think that’s kind of helped me on the back end of my career, helping me stay the course and learn how to put the work in, and work through adversities.”

That’s something the Cyclones’ defense has had to do for the second straight season in which a spate of key injuries forced several young players to play in big moments — ready or not. But even as results have been erratic, the players’ commitment has not been.

“The injuries (and) the things that have happened the past two years on our side of the ball has kind of been crazy,” ISU’s veteran defensive coordinator Jon Heacock said. “I’ve not been through any of that in 43 years, so the last few years have been a first for me. But nothing’s ever wavered here. Nobody is ever,’ Woe is me,’ or anything like that. It’s always been, ‘How are we all gonna do a little bit more to solve the problem?’ Everybody here always seems to look for solutions instead of whining or complaining.”

And history — whether major or minor — is never written by the whiners. Nor is it pre-determined. It’s a living document, and edits remain until the final horn sounds.

“You’re gonna tell your story at the end,” Campbell said.

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