Iowa State’s emerging young squad has surprised many in the college football world and now sits in a familiar spot heading into the second half of the season.

Heading into the season, there was a lot of doubt that head coach Matt Campbell could make work with a young and mostly inexperienced team. With a new backfield, some key pieces on the defense going to the NFL and a new offensive coordinator, many believed that Iowa State would repeat its 4-8 record from last season and possibly worse.

Campbell has elevated this underrated squad with the help of a handful of veterans and young starters stepping up and has already tied their win total from last season and tripled the number of conference wins.

So Iowa State has already exceeded preseason expectations and has a new ceiling, but how high is that ceiling?

I’d like to take a look back at Campbell’s second, third and fourth seasons at Iowa State where he and the Cyclones found themselves in similar situations, all resulting in what would be a step in the right direction for the team this season.

In 2017, after seven games Iowa State sat at 5-2 and went 2-3 in its final five games and went 1-1 against ranked opponents highlighted by a historic 14-7 win over at the time No. 4 TCU. The Cyclones ended the season with a contest against No. 19 Memphis in the Liberty Bowl which they won 21-20, Iowa States’ first bowl win in eight seasons.

The Cyclones found themselves at 4-3 through seven games and compiled four wins through their final five games, with their one loss on the road against No. 13 Texas. A loss to No. 12 Washington State in the Alamo Bowl was discouraging after a great second half, but at the time that was Campbell’s most successful season with Iowa State and won his second straight Big 12 Coach of the Year.

The next season looked a lot like 2017 as Campbell and the Cyclones once again sat at 5-2 through seven games, and went 2-3 in their final five regular-season games with a 1-1 record against ranked opponents, with the win coming at home against No. 22 Texas. Iowa State went to its third straight bowl game with a matchup against No. 14 Notre Dame at the Camping World Bowl, which they never really had a chance in and lost 33-9.

Some similarities between these seasons: a bend but don’t break defense that Iowa State has lived off of for years now, a range of game-manager to lights-out performances at quarterback from Kyle Kempt and Brock Purdy, and the ability to get big wins at home to keep bowl game hopes alive.

Over those three seasons, Campbell had an 8-7 record over his final five games and that was when Iowa State’s ‘five-star culture’ started to become the team’s identity. When looking at the Cyclones’ final five games, a bowl game seems within reach, and they still have a slim chance at the Big 12 Championship game.

Now for Iowa State to earn a spot they may have to go undefeated with an upset win over No. 8 ranked Texas, which I don’t think is possible considering the amount of talent the Longhorns have over the Cyclones.

But if history repeats itself the Cyclones should at least get to a bowl game for the sixth time in seven years. Campbell has elevated this team which he constantly describes as one of the youngest in college football, and the way they have played throughout the season has lived up to that.

Iowa State has dealt with the growing pains of having new starters in key positions just like they did at the beginning of the Matt Campbell era, along with a talented defense that has kept the Cyclones in games all season.

The consistent growth of redshirt-freshman quarterback Rocco Becht along with the plug-and-play usage of the running back room has played a huge role in getting the Cyclones ahead of schedule, and if they continue to get better that all but furthers their chances of making it back to a bowl game.

One thing that looms over the heads of the Cyclones is that three of their last five games are on the road. But on the bright side before week eight action, Baylor, BYU and Kansas State have a combined record of 10-8 and a 4-5 record in conference play.

Campbell has never shied away from exceeding expectations, especially at the midway point of the season.

The floor for this team has risen just as much as the ceiling, and it would be too optimistic to say that will continue through the final five games. But Iowa State looks like they have started to figure things out and is prepared to play its best football when it matters the most.