Iowa State is a three-touchdown favorite for Saturday’s matchup against Kansas, leading some to ask if the Cyclones will ever be a true underdog again.

Before Saturday’s 38-31 loss to then No. 3 Florida State, Iowa State was predicted to lose by 22 points.

The final score would have been closer had Seneca Wallace’s 20-yard scramble been ruled a touchdown.

ISU head coach Dan McCarney is still convinced that it was.

“The tape that we’ve seen, there wasn’t any question that he scored,” McCarney said on Monday.

“Appeals don’t do you any good, so I’m not going to waste any time with it.”

That type of performance should open some eyes across the nation and earn the program respect, but it’s hard to measure just how much the Cyclones’ stock has improved.

McCarney said it’s not really a concern of the team. He said the pregame odds are basically meaningless to him.

“I never mentioned it once with Florida State and I’m not going to mention it this week with Kansas,” McCarney said.

“They can read about it and hear about it . but all I’m concerned with is this team getting better and improving.”

He said the improvement of the team is the next thing on the agenda in the challenge to be mentioned in the same breath as teams like Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

“If we’re going to have the season we all want, we have got to keep improving,” McCarney said. “Frankly, I could care less whether we’re favored or underdogs.”

It may not be fair, but it comes down to more victories.

Ending Iowa State’s 30-game losing streak against ranked opponents would help the cause.

The next chance to beat a ranked opponent will most likely be Sept. 28 when Nebraska comes to Ames.

McCarney said if the team expects to build its exposure, they can’t be satisfied to just stay close to high-level programs.

“Winning those games you’ll bring a lot more attention, honor and respect to a program than playing them close and losing,” McCarney said.

“We’re still a work in progress trying to get respect and trying to be a top program in the country.”

Fan support is another factor that can help the Cyclones earn the national respect that McCarney thinks his players deserve.

McCarney said the new look of Jack Trice Stadium and the near upset of Florida State should be enough reason for Cyclone fans to come out this weekend to watch the Cyclones.

“Jack Trice Stadium has got a real new face-lift to it, and we’re looking forward to having a great environment here Saturday,” he said.

“In the history of Iowa State football, why in the name of God would you not want to come out and watch this team play now? If you don’t want to come out now, I don’t know that you’re ever going to come out to this stadium,” McCarney said.

“We saw one of the greatest examples of fan support since I’ve been in college football down in Kansas City. Why not do it here at this place?”

And the fans will be a big factor in how far the team goes this year.

With a 13-game schedule, Iowa State needs seven wins to become bowl eligible.

With seven games in Ames this year, it will be important to have the fans there every Saturday.

“We’ll do our part and we want our fans to do their part and turn this into a great environment,” McCarney said.

“We’ve got seven shots at home this year and we want a home-field advantage.”

For now, the Cyclones have the chance to sneak up on big-name programs and surprise the doubters.

“It seems like anything we do is kind of a surprise anymore,” McCarney said Saturday,

“But I kind of like that so let’s hope we keep surprising people.”

There’s no doubt that the progress of the football program has come a long way in recent years.

The program hit an all-time low just eight years ago when the Cyclones went 0-10-1 under then-head coach Jim Walden.

The next year, 1995, was McCarney’s first at Iowa State. In 1997, McCarney’s third season on the job, the team went 1-10.

Now, after back-to-back bowl seasons, the program seems ready to take it to the next level.

In fact, that’s the team motto this year.

Jordan Carstens said the only way to do that is for everyone to give their best effort every week.

“We’re just trying to think that we’re going to play a tough team every week and prepare that way and look at their personnel,” he said.

“We’re just trying to prepare for every team the best we can and not look at what people are saying the odds are or the spread.”

Regardless of the odds, linebacker Brandon Brown agreed with Carstens.

He said it’s anybody’s game on any given day in the Big 12.

“The Big 12 is the Big 12,” Brown said.

“Everybody can come out ready to play any day, so we’ve got to come out ready. We can’t underestimate anybody. We don’t look into the odds. We just come out ready play no matter who it is.”