Iowa State battled the Ohio University football team along with extreme heat and humidity to earn a 25-15 victory at Jack Trice Stadium Saturday. The Cyclones fought off a tough challenge from the Bobcats to win their season opener for the second straight year. “I feel real good right now. Half of the teams in the country are 0 and1 today, and we’re proud and excited to be 1 and 0,” said Cyclone coach Dan McCarney. “We didn’t play great football today and it’s important that we learn from our mistakes.” The deciding play in the game came halfway through the third quarter. The Cyclones led 16-9 when tailback Ennis Haywood broke through a hole and bolted 73 yards for a score to put Iowa State ahead 22-9. The Bobcats never got within 10 points again. Haywood led a balanced Cyclone offense running 159 yards on 22 carries and averaged 7.2 yards per carry. The Bobcats featured a triple option offense and drove down the field easily to score on their opening drive. After that touchdown, the Cyclone defense settled down and put the clamps on the Bobcat offense. “We didn’t panic after the first drive, we stayed together and played tough,”said Cyclone defensive lineman Ryan Harklau. “We didn’t make any adjustments or changes, we just settled down and played our game and had a pretty good game after that.”

Justin Petersen/Iowa State Daily Marc Timmons (18) and Jamarcus Powers (8) juggle the ball and Breon Ansley (27) came up up with the interception.

Justin Petersen/Iowa State Daily The crowd reacts to an Iowa State touchdown during Saturday’s game against Ohio which resulted in a 25-15 Cyclone victory.