IOWA CITY, Iowa — In Kinnick Stadium, which holds 69,250 fans, there was not a seat left to spare. Fans on both sides of the rivalry filled the seats in Iowa City, Iowa, as the Iowa State Cyclones and the Iowa Hawkeyes were set to battle.

It was the 69th annual meeting between the two teams, and the Hawkeyes came in with a six-game winning streak against the Cyclones. This would all change as the Cyclone defense made every necessary play to secure a 10-7 win.

“We made the plays and that was big today, and that was great for our young team,” head coach Matt Campbell said.

With all of the momentum in the series, all that the Cyclones talked about ahead of the game is that the history does not matter, the team is just focused on playing its best football. 

While the Cyclone offense was not clean by any means, with the defensive prowess of Iowa, they did just enough to get the job done.

The Cyclone offense did seem to be a bit rattled by the atmosphere, turning the ball over a pair of times in the redzone during the first half.

On top of this, the crowd noise caused a couple of false starts for the Iowa State offensive line.

Things changed in the second half. The rain started to come down, and it came down hard. With the conditions getting sloppy, the Cyclone defense rose to the occasion in a massive way.

A goal line stand and a couple of turnovers were major catalysts as the Cyclones held the Hawkeyes scoreless in the final 30 minutes.

Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras was also held to just 92 yards on 26 attempts during the game.

Campbell said that the environment was huge, but the way they prepared made the difference between a win and a loss.

“There will be more environment like this that you have to play in the rest of the season,” Campbell said.

Campbell said that what he hopes is that the experience will help his team as they take on some loud crowds during Big 12 play.

On the final play, Iowa missed a field goal wide left, providing a special moment for Campbell and his team.

Campbell was most pleased to see that his team has improved in early season situations, getting over the hurdles of both the opener and the CyHawk game.

“That’s an area that we’ve really worked to address, and that probably is the greatest reward of seeing our guys persevere through adverse situations,” Campbell said.

When the clock struck zero, and the players hit the field, that is what meant the most to Campbell and the team.

“It was just instantaneous celebrating,” said Linebacker O’Rien Vance. “I found the trophy, and that’s all that mattered.”