LAWRENCE, Kan. — On Saturday, the ISU football team rewrote much of the record books. The piece of history it couldn’t rewrite, though, may be the biggest in program history.

The stunning 24-21 overtime loss to Kansas doomed Iowa State to wait at least one more year for a chance to play in the Big 12 title game. Playing for an outright conference championship is something the Cyclones haven’t done since 1912, when they shared the Missouri Valley Conference championship with Nebraska.

Last season, the Cyclones tied Colorado for the Big 12 North crown, but Colorado owned the tiebreaker and went on to play Oklahoma for the Big 12 championship.

“It’s very rare that an opportunity like that would come around again,” said junior defensive lineman Brent Curvey. “For us to let it slip away like that, it hurts a lot, especially in overtime.”

The ISU defense forced three interceptions against Kansas, bringing its season total to 21, which ranks fourth in school history. It’s the most picks forced by Iowa State since the 1976 Cyclones forced 22.

Still, senior safety Nik Moser said the defense could have been better Saturday.

With the Cyclones clinging to a seven-point lead with under two minutes left, Jayhawk quarterback Brian Luke found Marcus Henry in a slant pattern that went for 35 yards. Henry broke Moser’s tackle, and help set up Kansas’ game-tying score with 1:05 left.

“We made some plays, but when it came down to the end, we didn’t make enough,” Moser said. “When it came down to it, I missed a tackle. I didn’t help my team.”

The offense also contributed to the rewriting of Cyclone history.

Quarterback Bret Meyer set a new mark for most pass attempts without an interception with 155. His 2,622 passing yards this season vault him into second on the all-time single-season list. His two touchdown passes give him 26 for his career, tying him with Seneca Wallace for third place in the ISU books.

Meyer also moved into fourth place with 356 completions through his 23-game career.

Receivers Jon Davis and Todd Blythe added their names to the books, as well. Davis moved into 10th all-time with 87 career catches, and Blythe set the career touchdown receptions record at 16.

Still, the Cyclones weren’t able to pull out the victory and overcome the one piece of history that has been haunting them for more than 90 years.

“This one hurts, and it’s probably going to hurt for a while,” Blythe said. “We know that we have to pick our heads back up, and our goal is to be bowl champions. I definitely think that’s something that we’re capable of.”

Where the Cyclones are going for their bowl game remains a mystery, but the Houston Bowl has become a very likely candidate.

If that’s the case, the Cyclones would match up against No. 15 Texas Christian University, who has already accepted a bid to the bowl.

“There are four bowls that choose ahead of us, so that kind of limits the options when it gets to us,” said Shawn Bouley, assistant executive director for the EV1.net Houston Bowl. “If Iowa State’s on the board, they’re definitely high on our list. We were disappointed we didn’t get them last year, and we’d be really excited to have them this year.”

Iowa State has split its four bowl appearances through the Dan McCarney era, winning two of them — against Pittsburgh in 2000 and Miami University (Ohio) in 2004.

“You have to make your own luck, I really believe that,” coach Dan McCarney said. “You have to make plays. We were sloppy tackling late in the game on defense.”