Down 14-7 at the end of the first quarter, the ISU football team appeared to be gaining momentum heading into the second quarter with the ball and a pumped-up crowd.

On the first play of the second quarter, quarterback Sam Richardson was flushed out of the pocket. He threw a left-handed pass to a nearby receiver, getting intercepted in the process.

“I couldn’t help but laugh walking off the field. It was just dumb,” Richardson said. “It was a stupid play, obviously, and it’s something I’ll have to learn from.”

Baylor (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) went on to outscore Iowa State (1-3, 0-2 Big 12) 21-0 in the second quarter, allowing the nation’s No. 7 team to cruise to a 49-28 victory.

Although fans may not be laughing at the ill-advised interception, they may be breathing a sigh of relief as the Cyclones’ schedule eases up after their matchup with ranked Oklahoma State on Oct. 4. There are only two more ranked teams in the final seven games of the season. But coach Paul Rhoads was happy with how his team played for three quarters of the game against a team poised to challenge for the Big 12 Championship.

“This Baylor team, in my opinion, is better than the one a year ago,” Rhoads said. ”To do some of the things we did against them, I thought we improved, certainly.”

Perhaps the most obvious improvement was forcing the nation’s No. 1 offense to go three-and-out five times, after they were forced into three-and-outs three times in the first three games combined. However, the Bears’ No. 1-ranked offense was often too quick for the Cyclones to stop.

Led by quarterback Bryce Petty, Baylor was able to do what it needed to pull out the win and Rhoads was not shy about his feelings towards the quarterback.

“I think he’s the best football player in college football and I told him so after the game,” Rhoads said.

Petty threw for 336 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for two more touchdowns in three quarters of play. With previously injured receivers Antwan Goodley and Corey Coleman both cleared to play, the duo combined for 268 receiving yards.

The Bears also used power running back Shock Linwood to roll in for three touchdowns. Baylor quietly rushed for 244 yards on 47 attempts while keeping the ISU defense on their toes in the passing game.

Averaging 654.3 yards through their first three games, Baylor’s 601-yard performance against Iowa State came as no surprise. More surprising was Iowa State burning two redshirts on the offensive side of the ball with wide receiver Jauan Wesley and running back Martinez Syria both seeing their first action of the season.

“We’ve got three wide receivers in our two-deep that have been lost for the season through three ball games,” Rhoads said. “We need receivers so we made a decision that Jauan was the next man ready to go and you will see him the rest of the season.”

Wesley’s insertion was needed as the Cyclones struggle to keep receivers healthy, but Syria’s insertion at running back late in the first half came as a change of pace for a backfield struggling to get anything going.

“There is no running attack … it needs drastic improvement,” Rhoads said. “[Syria] will be part of a rotation in the backfield [going forward].”

Iowa State takes on its third ranked-Big 12 team in Oklahoma State next week in what may be the toughest three-game Big 12 opener in the conference. The Cyclones will take on the Cowboys at 11 a.m. on Oct. 4 in Stillwater, Okla.