Iowa State survives, moves to 7-0 by rallying past UCF in closing seconds

AMES — Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht joked early this week that all he wants to do when he runs the ball is gain 4 yards every time.

But Saturday night against UCF, a 1-yard plunge sufficed.

Becht’s short run to the end zone with 30 seconds left helped the No. 9 Cyclones cement an odds-defying 38-35 comeback triumph — and make his team 7-0 for the first time since 1938.

“I knew I was gonna score,” said Becht, whose team is 4-0 in Big 12 conference play for the first time. “There was no doubt. I was going in there with all I had and we had the look we had, and (quarterbacks) coach (Jake) Waters told me in the helmet, ‘Go get this. Go win it.’ I just put my pads down and did it for this team.”

The Jack Trice Stadium crowd of 61,500 erupted. A 14-point second-half rally was nearly complete. After a successful two-point conversion and cornerback Jontez Williams’ interception in the closing seconds, ISU could collectively exhale — and take stock of matching the program’s best start in hits 133-season history.

“The (team’s) leadership, the resolve, I think, just showcased itself,” said Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell, who watched Becht drive his team 80 yards in 1:18 to win the game. “I don’t think there (are) a whole lot of words that probably can put what happened (in perspective), but it’s a credit to our kids believing and executing in critical moments. Sometimes a game doesn’t go the way you want it to. It certainly didn’t tonight, but I thought our ability to just have resolve and kind of hang in there — it’s kind of what you had to do.”

ISU trailed 35-27 with 11:38 left after Becht’s second interception set up Knights tailback R.J. Harvey’s 1-yard run. But ISU’s defense stiffened as Becht went to work. A promising drive fizzled out in the red zone, so Cyclones kicker Kyle Konrardy drilled a 30-yard field goal to make the score 35-30 with 8:53 left. The defense eventually got the stop it needed with 1:48 left when it forced UCF (3-4, 1-3) to punt and set the stage for Becht’s heroics. Then Williams — who has intercepted a pass in four straight games — sealed the win to keep ISU tied with BYU atop the conference standings.

“I barely heard the crowd,” Williams said. “But I was just looking at my teammates, loving those guys. Those guys give me all the confidence in the world to go out there and play.”

Becht completed 20 of 46 passes for 270 yards — 226 of which came in the second half. He also rushed 20 times for a career-high 97 yards and two touchdowns. Cyclone tailback Carson Hansen rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns before suffering an apparent injury Campbell doesn’t think is severe. ISU receivers Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins tallied 153 and 58 yards through the air, respectively, and Higgins snared a 12-yard touchdown pass from Becht.

The Cyclones — who gave up a staggering 354 rushing yards — outgained the Knights 172 to 71 in the fourth quarter and won their eighth straight regular-season game dating back to last season.

“It literally just comes down to the belief and the love we have for each other,” said senior captain and defensive tackle J.R. Singleton. “(And) not just the belief we have for each other as players, but (also) the belief and love we have for the coaches, which I think is really hard to do in this day and age, because coaches are just trying to move on just like players are just trying to get money. So, you know, what we have here is special.”

None of that is lost on Becht, who endured his least efficient game as a Cyclone passing-wise, but shined with his arms and legs when it mattered the most.

“It feels good going into a bye week,” said Becht, whose team is off until a Nov. 2 home date with Texas Tech (5-2, 3-1). “Momentum is big for us. We needed that win. We needed that tough win, you know, that adversity.”

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