Coming into the 1997 Iowa State football season the biggest questions were on the defensive side of the ball, but some of those questions were answered in the 21-14 season opening loss to Oklahoma State.

Last season the Cyclones ranked near the bottom in the nation in both rush defense and total defense.

The defense is spearheaded by the linebacking core of Dave Brcka, Derrik Clark and Michael Cooper.

Against OSU, Cooper recorded 11 tackles, Brcka added eight and Clark notched seven.

“Obviously we are much improved,” Derrik Clark said. Clark, last year’s defensive MVP, led the team in sacks, while Brcka was fourth in the Big 12 with 127 tackles.

“The linebackers are usually in the middle of it all, but it all starts up front. The line has really come along,” Clark said.

The Cyclones gave up a total of 360 yards against OSU, a vast improvement over last season in which opponents averaged a whopping 483.6 yards a game.

Head Coach Dan McCarney said, “We executed pretty well, but obviously we had some breakdowns. Holding a pretty good major college to really only 14 points is pretty good.”

The Cowboys’ third touchdown was set up by an interception returned to the two-yard line.

The Cyclone defense dominated much of the first half yielding only one long drive, ending in a 31-yard scamper by OSU tailback Nathan Simmons.

However, in the second half things changed considerably.

Starting the third quarter, the Cowboy offense began marching down the field keeping the ball on the ground. OSU had a 14 play, 80-yard drive capped by a two-yard touchdown run by Cowboy quarterback Tony Lindsay.

Lindsay replaced starting signal-caller Chris Chaloupka to solidify the option offense.

Lindsay was named this week’s Big 12 offensive player of the week.

“The change in quarterback really didn’t bother us too much,” Cyclone free safety Dustin Avey said.

Avey led the team with 15 tackles.

On its next possession, OSU went on a 50-yard drive ending with a field goal attempt which was blocked by redshirt freshman Doug Densmore.

Two turning points in the third quarter came when the Cyclones were unable to stop OSU on fourth downs on two separate occasions. “That was a little demoralizing,” Clark said. “(Lindsay) is a slippery little sucker and we just couldn’t stop them. Occasionally our containment broke down and that was the difference.”