For any wide receiver, catching four touchdown passes in a single game is remarkable.

For Todd Blythe, it simply means he’s back.

“It feels really good,” Blythe said, grinning.

Before Iowa State’s game against Oklahoma State on Oct. 22, Blythe hadn’t put together the season fans, coaches and teammates expected.

He had caught just one touchdown pass, and that came in the season opener against Illinois State.

Everything seemed to turn around for Blythe against the Cowboys, where he caught four passes for 91 yards.

“Okie State really helped me get it back, just to be able to go out and catch everything and make some plays,” he said. “Before that game, for some reason, I didn’t feel like myself out there – just as far as confidence goes and being comfortable out there.”

Then came Texas A&M.

Quarterback Bret Meyer found Blythe eight times, totaling 214 yards and four touchdowns. Not only did that game help him break out this season, it brought the national spotlight shining down upon him once more.

Blythe was named co-offensive Big 12 Player of the Week, national offensive Player of the Week and was nominated as the Cingular-ABC Sports Player of the Week.

“Better late then never,” said fellow receiver Austin Flynn. “He’s got his swagger back.”

That swagger has made a complete difference in the sophomore’s play on the field. The level of confidence he was lacking early in the season appeared to come back the moment he caught a 20-yard pass from Meyer, somersaulting through the air between two defenders.

Blythe immediately stood up and, although admitted he was a little dazed, he also knew he was back and let the rest of his team know.

“[Blythe’s] always got a little flare when he makes the big time catches,” Flynn said. “That’s just kind of the competitor he is. No matter what happens, he’s always going to compete and make the big catches and he’s going to let you know about it. If he messes up, he’ll own up to it too.”

Cornerback LaMarcus Hicks said Blythe addressed, tackled and fixed his problems, and that’s something the whole team is benefiting from.

“He probably wasn’t making the plays that he was capable of,” Hicks said. “He has shown that he can do it again.”

With 14 career touchdown receptions, Blythe is already starting to be compared to all-time Cyclone greats.

“At Iowa State right now, I think he and Lane Danielsen are probably the two best receivers we’ve had in the program,” said coach Dan McCarney.

“Todd has a lot of career left. There’s no doubt, potentially, that he can be, and he should be, the best that we’ve ever had here.”

Danielsen holds the all-time Cyclone records in career receptions and yards with 163 and 2,690, respectively, and is third in touchdown receptions with 14.

One more touchdown for Blythe and he will tie Ed Williams and Keith Krepfle for the most in Cyclone history.

His 1,475 career yards rank him sixth, behind Dennis Ross who has 1,529.

“These last few games I’ve really gone back to how I’ve felt last year, when I was playing well to where any time the ball goes up, I’ve felt that I could go jump on it and make a play on it,” Blythe said.

Teammates have expressed complete faith in his ability and remain positive the Cyclones’ “second season” will continue to storm on.

“[Blythe’s] always been a big time playmaker for us, and everybody knows that,” Flynn said.

“It was just a matter of time before he came around.”