The Cyclones’ latest heartbreaking defeat, a 44-41 decision to 12th-rated Texas, is not without its positives.

Iowa State was led on offense by Sage Rosenfels. The junior quarterback, under heavy pressure all afternoon, had a career-high 291 yards passing on only 11 completions, for an average of 26 yards per completion.

Rosenfels also threw for two touchdowns and was not intercepted in the game. This is the first time that has happened since the season’s opening game against Division I-AA opponent Indiana State.

Head coach Dan McCarney was not surprised at Rosenfels’ performance, and neither were his teammates.

“This was his best game of the year, in terms of running the offense. He got hit after he released a lot of those passes, and overall, he just played a tremendous game,” McCarney said.

“Sage played with a lot of toughness. I was so proud of him out there. His tongue was bleeding, his ribs were hurting, but he stayed out there. He wouldn’t give up,” Cyclone wide receiver Chris Anthony said.

Another good performance on the offensive side of the ball came from Michael Brantley.

The fifth-year senior from New York came up big, catching two crucial passes for 96 yards and a touchdown.

The first came with 2:11 left in the first half. Brantley, who has shown a tremendous ability to run with the ball after the catch, caught a 41-yard touchdown pass to give the Cyclones a 20-10 lead.

After scoring the touchdown, Brantley stopped and looked around him before throwing the ball against his face mask. That merited him a 15-yard excessive celebration penalty, something the Cyclones could not afford.

Predictably, even with the wind, Mike McKnight continued to struggle mightily and missed the kick.

Brantley’s other catch came with 3:45 left in the contest and the Cyclones trailing 41-34. Brantley again got behind the Texas secondary and made a tremendous diving catch of a Rosenfels pass at the Texas 1-yard line.

One play later, Darren Davis powered in from 1 yard out, and the game was tied.

“Michael Brantley continues to step up. He’s done a great job with Damien Groce out of the lineup. He’s playing like he’s a senior, like there’s no tomorrow,” McCarney said.

On the defensive side of the ball, there was the play of Chris Whitaker. The true freshman linebacker had not seen the field besides special teams action since the season opener and was fabulous.

He showed a big-play ability that other ISU linebackers have not by making eight tackles, including two for losses. He also made two sacks.

“I couldn’t be any more proud of Chris. He’s truly an inspiration to our team. He hasn’t played at linebacker hardly at all, an 18-year old freshman who came out and played with enthusiasm, toughness and courage,” McCarney said.

Whitaker was called to duty after senior Dave Brcka went out with a sprained knee, which McCarney said will sideline him for at least a week.

“I had fun out there. I didn’t expect to play, but I had to step up and make the most out of it. The line really freed me up to make a lot of those plays,” Whitaker said.

J.J. Moses had an up-and-down day, but the junior from Waterloo showed his big-play ability on special teams for the first time this year. Although he had a costly fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Texas in the third quarter, he also had some big plays.

His 80-yard kickoff return allowed the Cyclones to score quickly to get the game back to a seven-point deficit, and he also added two 16-point punt returns and kick returns of 36 and 31 yards.

Finally, the Cyclones have a threat in the return game.

“I told him all week that he was going to break one, and he did. He’s a great football player, and I wouldn’t trade him for anyone in the country on the return unit,” McCarney said.

The Cyclones have to be getting tired of leading the country in moral victories. McCarney often talks of closing the gap, and indeed, the Cyclones are 14 points away from being 7-1 and the talk of the country.