LAWRENCE, Kan. – There’s a new doormat in the Big 12 North.

A year after being outgained 511-150 in a 45-3 loss to Iowa State, Kansas returned the favor in kind Saturday, thwarting the Cyclones 36-7 and holding the ISU offense to 51 total yards over the last three quarters.

In a stadium where injuries forced Iowa State to finish a 1991 game with scout team player Ty Yohe at quarterback, the Cyclones (2-9, 0-7 Big 12) changed signal callers four times with no positive effect Saturday. Starter Waye Terry and relievers Austin Flynn and Cris Love combined to complete 9-of-27 passes for 67 yards and two interceptions.

“It’d be nice to know who our starting quarterback is heading into the 12th game,” ISU head coach Dan McCarney said. “There was just no consistency there at all today.”

Terry’s 3-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter put Iowa State ahead 7-6 – its first lead in seven conference games.

But Terry had no completions and zero rushing yards the rest of the game.

“I’m speechless about the whole situation,” he said.

Kansas (6-6, 3-5 Big 12) became eligible for a postseason game by beating the Cyclones for the first time since 1999. Quarterback Bill Whittemore, playing for the first time since being injured against Kansas State Oct. 25, sparked the Jayhawks with 306 yards of total offense. Kansas is now 6-3 in Whittemore’s starts.

“[Whittemore] made some clutch plays,” senior defensive tackle Jordan Carstens said.

The Jayhawks tallied first when receiver Brandon Rideau caught a curl from Whittemore and escaped tackle attempts by Ellis Hobbs and JaMaine Billups down the sideline for a 53-yard score midway through the first quarter.

Iowa State answered with its second drive of 12 plays or more in the first quarter, ending with Terry’s score on a third-and-goal bootleg play.

Cyclone tailback Stevie Hicks had 10 carries for 40 yards in the opening frame, breaking tackles and getting yards after contact with regularity.

He touched the ball just once in the second quarter. Kansas dominated, holding the ball nearly 11 minutes on the way to a 12-7 halftime lead.

“[Kansas] started doing a better job and they started stopping the run,” McCarney said.

After Kansas failed on a fake punt attempt and Iowa State started a drive at the Jayhawk 48, Terry threw three incomplete passes before a Tony Yelk punt.

“They were running a little bit different defenses,” senior offensive lineman Bob Montgomery said. “I think we still could have probably handled them.”

Iowa State received the second-half kickoff but threatened the Kansas lead just once. A 21-yard run by Hicks put the Cyclones at the Jayhawk 42. On second down, Flynn threw a perfect pass on a post route to senior receiver Lane Danielsen. But Remuise Johnson recovered to bat the ball away from Danielsen, who finished without a catch for the first time in 16 games.

“I don’t have any answers,” Flynn said. “Nothing seems to be working, and we keep trying new things.

“We’re at an all-time low.”

Jerod Brooks capped a 15-play, 82-yard Kansas drive with a 28-yard field goal late in the third quarter. Three plays later, safety Rodney Fowler intercepted Flynn’s overthrow of Jamaul Montgomery and ran back to the ISU 15-yard line. After Clark Green’s 2-yard scoring run put Kansas ahead 22-7, Iowa State was finished.

“You come down to a game like this and you expect to compete,” Carstens said. “And then you don’t.”

A long season ends for the Cyclones next Saturday in Columbia, Mo., against Missouri. Iowa State has beaten the Tigers four years in a row, but Missouri is 7-4 going into the noon contest, which will be televised by ABC.

The pummeling by Kansas – one year removed from a 2-10 season – was the latest disappointment in a season full of them for Iowa State.

“It doesn’t get much worse than this,” Yelk said. “We’re out there fighting; we just keep coming up short.”