Hopefully for the Cyclones, the night is darkest just before the dawn.

Iowa State stumbled to 10 straight losses in 2008 and finished the season at 2-10 in Gene Chizik’s second season as head coach.

After going 2-6 in Big 12 play in 2007, Iowa State went 0-8 this season, despite not playing the three best teams in the Big 12: Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech.

The Cyclones weren’t overmatched in many of their contests, but one or two critical plays usually spelled doom for the cardinal and gold.

In four of Iowa State’s losses the Cyclones were either leading or tied in the fourth quarter.

On offense, the Cyclones saw a dramatic improvement from a year ago. They improved in points per game, from 18.2 to 25.3. Iowa State averaged more than 386 yards per game, which ranks as the fifth-most in school history and the most since 2000.

The defense took a similar leap in the opposite direction. The Cyclones defense ranked No. 111 nationally, out of 119 teams, allowing over 452 yards per game. Only four other teams allowed more passing yards than the Cyclones.

The Cyclones’ defense did have a knack for forcing turnovers, with 26, but 15 of those came in the first five games of the season.

Iowa State only kept one Big 12 opponent under 30 points, and three teams scored 49 points or more on the Cyclones.

The Cyclones started the season winning two home games by a combined 47 points. The Cyclones downed South Dakota State 44-17 in the opener and then followed that up with a 48-28 win over Kent State.

The Cy-Hawk Trophy headed east after Iowa State lost to rival Iowa 17-5 in the third game of the season. The loss came despite Iowa State out-gaining the Hawkeyes.

The Cyclones drove inside the Iowa 30-yard line six times but only managed three offensive points.

UNLV sent Iowa State back to .500 after its 34-31 overtime win over the Cyclones in Las Vegas. Iowa State made an improbable 21-point comeback only to fall in overtime.

The turning point of the season may have come at halftime against No.16 Kansas. The Cyclones held a 20-0 lead over the Jayhawks in the Big 12 opener only to see the lead disappear in the third quarter. Iowa State lost the game 35-33 and backup quarterback Phillip Bates left the team the following week to start the downward spiral of the Cyclones season.

Iowa State lost the next four Big 12 games to Baylor, Nebraska, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State by a combined score of 181-69.

A yard separated victory from defeat in the Cyclones’ visit to Colorado in the 10th game of the season. Down by four with time for one play and standing at the one-yard line, Iowa State dialed in the play to try to win the game. The option had worked earlier on the goal line, but as the clock struck zero the Buffaloes tackled Alexander Robinson in the backfield to continue the Cyclones’ road losing streak.

Quarterback Austen Arnaud set the school record for completions and passing yards in Iowa State’s final two losses of the season. Arnaud completed 36 passes in Iowa State’s 52-20 loss to Missouri, and in the final game of the season Arnaud threw for 440 yards in a 38-30 loss to Kansas State.

Iowa State has now seen its win total drop the last three seasons. The Cyclones are a combined 9-27 the past three seasons, with a 3-21 conference record, the lowest in the Big 12 in that time period.

Chizik shakes up coaching staff

After a disappointing 2-10 season, coach Chizik has decided to replace his offensive and defensive coordinators. The two coordinators, Robert McFarland and Wayne Bolt, will not be fired but will serve as position coaches under Chizik next season.

McFarland ran the Cyclones’ offense for the last two seasons, but will serve as  the offensive line coach next year.

Bolt’s demotion may come as less of a surprise because of the performance of the defense this past season. Bolt will stay on with the team and serve as the linebackers’ coach.

Quarterbacks coach Tony Peterson and secondary coach Shawn Raney will not return next season. Both coaches were let go after two years under Chizik.

Chizik said a national search for offensive and defensive coordinators is already underway.