Rush offense, turnover margin, kick return, and net punting are the only NCAA-kept statistics Iowa State measures in the top half of the nation in.

There are no teams whose opponents have a higher Football Bowl Subdivision winning percentage through 10 weeks than Iowa State’s. Yet, the Cyclones are 5-4, sit in third place in the Big 12 North, and are preparing for a nationally televised afternoon home game against the No. 9 team in the country.

Taking a personal day

Three Sundays in a row the Cyclones have been able to take a day off. One of just two teams in the Big 12 without a bye week this season, and with the rigor of the conference schedule, the coaching staff has deemed it necessary to give players the day after the game off.

“It’s truly a matter of, we’re playing fresh right now,” said ISU coach Paul Rhoads. “We went through a stretch there where we played a lot of snaps as football players, and our conditioning because of that, how we practice, is good. We’re not losing any conditioning when it comes to that.”

Adding to the necessity have been a injuries and wear and tear. Linebackers A.J. Klein and Jake Knott have played nearly every snap on defense this season because of the injury to Matt Tau’fo’ou in week two. The two are in the top 25 in the country in tackles per game, and with the thin ranks in the defensive front seven, the squad appreciates getting a day to get some more relaxing in.

“It’s key getting our legs back under us and going into Tuesday and Wednesday practice,” said senior defensive end Rashawn Parker.

Mondays remain a film day for the Cyclones, with practices Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday usually in full equipment and full speed. Fridays are travel or walk-through days, where the team goes through plays and formations without hitting, and adding more pressure to their weekly grind. For players with constantly nagging injuries during the course of the season, getting an extra day can set things right mentally and physically.

“We got guys that are banged up and have been playing a lot of snaps every Saturday,” said quarterback Austen Arnaud. “We’re winning games thankfully, so it makes it easier to give us a break, but in the same sense we have to keep working harder and harder on Tuesday and Wednesday.”

Upside-down Big 12 race

Linked to the cellar for years, the Baylor Bears are sitting at the top of the Big 12 South. Perennial power Texas has lost three games in a row at home. Iowa State and Missouri are within a game of Nebraska, the year before the mighty Cornhuskers take off for the Big Ten. It’s been a weird year for the conference, but maybe some programs are just figuring things out.

Rhoads said he didn’t have recollection of filling out the infamous Big 12 preseason coaches poll, where Baylor and Iowa State were picked to finish last in their respective divisions.

“That doesn’t surprise anybody I don’t think, where they picked people to finish, based on returning players and what teams have done in 2009, or traditionally where teams have been,” Rhoads said.

Baylor has been the surprise story of the Big 12 so far this season, but the Bears still have tough divisional opponents Oklahoma and Oklahoma State left on the schedule. The Bears haven’t been to a bowl game since 1994, but lead their division heading into Week 10.

“I’ve got a gritty group of players that like to play, and I hear [Baylor coach] Art Briles say that week in and week out that he’s got the same type of guys that are hungry and desire to win football games. I think we’re probably very similar to each other and how we’re playing,” Rhoads said.

Iowa State was able to knock off Texas two weeks ago, the first ISU win over the storied program ever. Baylor’s victory in Austin exasperated things, and last year’s national runner-up are now fighting for a bowl bid, sitting at 4-4 overall. The Cyclones have built momentum from that win and it carried over to the Kansas victory.

While Iowa State is getting notoriety for still being competitive in the Big 12 North, Rhoads insists the race isn’t that close.

“We’re not in the Big 12 race, in the Big 12 North,” Rhoads said. “Maybe numerically speaking we are, but we’re just out there trying to improve. The sportswriters are talking about Nebraska and Missouri, that’s who they’re talking about, and that’s OK. Our kids know how the numbers read.”

Both Nebraska and Missouri have remaining schedules where the opponents are under .500 combined. The record of Iowa State’s remaining opponents is 17-7.

Early injury update

Former starting middle linebacker Tau’fo’ou returned to the field against Kansas on Saturday and made two tackles in just his third game of the season after breaking his leg against Iowa. The 5-foot-11-inch, 239-pound junior will be worked back into the lineup, but is still not listed as the starter at his old position yet.

“He was out there, he played fast and he played physical,” Rhoads said. “We were thrilled to have the opportunity to put Matt out there, and he’ll work his way right back into our two-deep this week, and I expect him to be out on the field Saturday afternoon.”

Klein and Knott are beneficiaries of Tau’fo’ou’s return, and while it may not take them off the field in all the nickel formations the Cyclones run, his play provides experienced support and some pressure relief.

“I think it’s going to help our rotation a bit, keep us a little more fresh,” Knott said. “He almost looks like he gained a step back; he looks real fast, quick and explosive.”

Starting center Ben Lamaak missed last week’s game after getting hurt late in the Texas game. Former center Alex Alvarez snapped to Arnaud against Kansas, and backup Sean Smith filled in at guard. With Lamaak’s hurt knee not expected to keep him out long-term, the coaching staff will keep Lamaak as a game-day decision to be on the offensive line.

“It will be about how much stability and strength he gets by Saturday,” Rhoads said. “I would not be concerned about practice time. He’s started way too many games in this league to make me say I can’t play him.”

The running game was still successful, going more than 200 yards against Kansas with Alvarez and Smith moving over, but after the game, Rhoads said that the team missed Lamaak up front.

“The position he plays in our offense, he makes all the checks. When you’re the voice of that group, they’re used to that,” Rhoads said. “He’s a good player. We think he has a chance to keep playing this game when he gets done at Iowa State. We missed his leadership and physical level of play.”

The guy taking the snaps, Arnaud, said having both Alvarez and Lamaak as centers as different point in his career makes his preference open, and that he still has confidence in the protection and delivery of both seniors.

“My level of comfort with both of them is very good,” Arnaud said.