Iowa State pushing for another upset of playoff hopeful Oklahoma State

AMES - It's the game Iowa State fans often speak of, and one that often is mentioned when a top team's championship hopes are dashed.

Iowa State was nearly a four-touchdown underdog to No. 2 Oklahoma State on Nov. 18, 2011 and the Cowboys needed just two wins to all but ensure a spot in the national championship. The Cyclones thwarted that opportunity with the biggest upset in school history on their way to becoming bowl eligible.

Can history repeat itself?

'There's certainly a lot of similarities with the date of the game and with their high ranking and playoffs on the line for their football team; being at home and our group being in sort of a spoiler role,” said Iowa State Coach Paul Rhoads. 'But we're also playing for something. We need three wins to get to the postseason.”

No. 8 Oklahoma State (9-0, 6-0) will invade Jack Trice Stadium on Saturday just three wins away from a possible College Football Playoff berth, which would be a first for the Big 12. Iowa State (3-6, 2-4) meanwhile, is readying to play its fourth ranked team this season - the latest serving as its home finale.

Seventeen seniors will be playing a home game for the final time Saturday, leaving Rhoads curious as to how many were a part of that historic upset in 2011. Despite the similarities between the situations, the number of ISU players left on the roster - all of whom were red-shirting that season - is eye-opening.

'There are only (10) current members of our roster that were a part of that team in 2011,” Rhoads said. 'These guys don't really remember that game. They hear of it and so forth. Maybe some of them watched it on ESPN that night.”

One of those watching on TV was sophomore receiver Allen Lazard. Well, he was sort of watching.

'I was at friend's house. I remember and we were watching Twilight, not by my choice,” Lazard said. 'We kept flipping back to it and stuff and finally in the fourth quarter I was like, ‘I've got to watch the game.' So I remember watching it upstairs in the living room.”

Growing up an Iowa State fan, Lazard knew at the time just how big of a win that was. It also carried weight for the current group of seniors, particularly Brock Dagel.

For an Iowa native who has battled injuries throughout his career and has helped running back Mike Warren reach the cusp of 1,000 rushing yards, Saturday will be bittersweet. The odds are against the Cyclones, but in five years in Ames, Dagel has seen some pretty incredible moments.

'It's a long journey. The days are slow and the years are fast here,” Dagel said. 'It's meant the world to be a Cyclone.”

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