ISU coach Gene Chizik knew what Austen Arnaud could do.

On Saturday, Arnaud, the backup quarterback, proved it when he led Iowa State on two scoring drives in the Cyclones’ 31-20 victory over Kansas State.

“We’ve always felt like he could go in there and play,” Chizik said. “I think the most important thing is that he has confidence that he can go in there and move our club.”

That’ll be even more important now, as Arnaud will now get more playing time, Chizik said. The redshirt freshman from Ames guided the Cyclones on an eight-play scoring drive that took them 90 yards and into the end zone. Chizik said he will try to get Arnaud, who was under center for 19 plays against the Wildcats, in for as many plays, if not more, against Colorado on Saturday.

“We’d like to always play him the next two games a minimum of that, possibly more, depending on the flow of the game,” Chizik said. “I thought it was a good twist to be able to use two quarterbacks.”

It was also a good learning experience for Arnaud, who had playing time against Northern Iowa, Nebraska and Texas. In all three games, he did not enter until the games were out of reach. Against Kansas State, Arnaud first entered the game with 5:08 remaining in the first quarter and the Cyclones leading, 7-0.

“He stepped up in some crucial situations, not just mop up duty or not just getting in there for a series here and there where the game really isn’t on the line or anything like that,” said senior wide receiver Todd Blythe. “He got in there in some critical times and made some big plays.”

Some of the big plays included the longest play of the season from the line of scrimmage. Arnaud completed a 51-yard pass to Blythe and added 25-yard and 35-yard passes. On the afternoon, he finished completing 5 of 7 passes for 130 yards.

“I thought I played decent,” Arnaud said. “There’s enough to still improve on.”

Arnaud said some of that improvement will have to come in his footwork and receiver reads. And despite the more playing time he’s built up, he said there’s no added pressure.

“It’s just going in there, focusing, and doing what I’m supposed to do,” he said. “That’s what they’re expecting me to do.”

On Saturday, Arnaud and the Cyclones will square off against another young quarterback. Colorado quarterback Cody Hawkins is a freshman who has saw immediate playing time since arriving in Boulder. Hawkins has completed 199 of 355 passes. Still, Arnaud said he’s enjoyed learning from starting senior quarterback Bret Meyer the past two years.

“Colorado’s a very good football team and with [Hawkins], he’s going to learn on the run, which is good for him,” Arnaud said. “Either way, I think it’s pretty good, it’s playing time.”

Whatever amount of playing time Arnaud gets, Blythe said fans should be excited about what the future holds for him.

“That’s [Saturday’s game], just a taste of what you guys are going to see in the next two or three years from him,” Blythe said. “He’s got a big arm, he’s a big kid, he’s going to be a load to bring down when he’s running the football and I think he’s going to make a lot of big plays here.”