After a solid defensive effort in the first quarter, the Iowa State Cyclones gave way to 24 unanswered points as Iowa rolled past ISU for the 14th consecutive season by a final of 38-13.

The game was McCarney’s first time back in his home town of Iowa City, where he played football and coached for the Hawkeyes. But McCarney was all business in his trip to Kinnick Stadium, neglecting to meet with Iowa head coach Hayden Fry until the conclusion of the game.

“I was busy getting my team ready before the game. I had a job to do and I don’t think what I did was unusual. I think most of the coaches don’t meet until after the game,” McCarney said.

In the first quarter, after a defensive standoff, Iowa’s Tavian Banks, who replaced Hawkeye Heisman candidate Sedrick Shaw, rumbled 89 yards for the touchdown, leaving no time left on the clock in the first quarter. Banks, who scored from 12 and 28 yards out, finished the day with 182 yards on 18 carries. Shaw, who injured his ankle, finished with 10 carries for 79 yards.

“I think Iowa has two of the best backs in the country in Banks and Shaw. They both have the size, speed and the strength. Banks really played well today and the country got to see three of the top backs in the country in Troy Davis, Tavian Banks and Sedrick Shaw,” said Dan McCarney, ISU head football coach.

Davis, ISU’s own Heisman hopeful, finished the day with 152 yards on 20 carries and scored one touchdown, despite sitting out much of the fourth quarter. Davis’ biggest run came in the third quarter when he rambled 61 yards to the Hawkeye’s three-yard line. Davis then scored two plays later.

But while Davis had a successful day, ISU’s highly touted offense was slowed, managing only 290 total offensive yards.

ISU quarterback Todd Doxzon, who had a career effort last week against Wyoming, had a tough day, completing 12 of 27 passes for 127 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Doxzon, who stands at 6-feet 1-inch, could never get in a groove, once again being constantly pressured by the swarming Hawkeye defense and having passes tipped at the line of scrimmage.

“They didn’t do anything special. They played great defense right off the bat. I think we were a little down,” Doxzon said. “With my height, it’s hard to throw over guys.”

While the Cyclones lost, ISU tailback Darren Davis gave Cyclone fans a glimpse of things to come.

Davis, despite taking noticeable verbal harassment from Hawkeye players such as linebacker Bill Ennis-Inge, finished the game with eight rushes for 35 yards and caught three passes for 37 yards. Davis also returned a punt for 17 yards.

“This was the same thing as last week. They gave it to me a little more and I showed what I can do. I heard this was the big time and I dealt with it,” Davis said.

As for the trash talking? “I stood up to them. I had to. I don’t back down from anybody. [Ennis-Inge] was a little taller than me but I still stood up,” Davis said with a grin.

With Davis continually showing signs of becoming another ISU weapon, the question is whether Davis will be used full-time soon. “He’s still just a freshman and we’re trying to bring him along. As the season goes along, he’ll play more,” McCarney said.

While ISU did lose to the Hawks for the 14th consecutive year, McCarney still remained optimistic about his team. “I really felt we had a good game plan. I feel sorry for ISU and ISU fans. I wished we could have played a better game. I’m the head coach and I’ll take the credit. I’m proud of my kids. They never gave up. I thought we tackled better, and we played more sound,” McCarney said.

The Cyclones next opponent is Div. 1-AA Northern Iowa, who is undefeated, for the last game in series history. “They are one of the top teams in 1-AA and they dominated us the last two times we played them. So they don’t need to do anything to get our attention,’ McCarney said.