Two weeks into the 2024 college football season, Iowa State looks legit. Sure, the Cyclones did not play to their full potential in week one and week two was shaky at times, but there is a lot of room for growth.
Poise and leadership are two words that have been thrown around a lot by multiple players, none more than by redshirt sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht and senior wide receiver Jaylin Noel. After the 20-19 win over then-ranked No. 21 Iowa, redshirt freshman kicker Kyle Konrardy can add his name to that list.
Konrardy had not attempted a field goal at all before the Cy-Hawk game. He did miss his first attempt, but it did not rattle him. A 54-yard field goal is tough no matter the circumstance, and it certainly is no easy feat when it’s your third field goal attempt in college.
Obviously, the offense and defense had to come through to give Konrardy a chance. Five defensive stops in a row gave Iowa State chance after chance to try and get in the lead.
The ‘bend but don’t break’ mentality may not be the best, but it sure did work to beat the Hawkeyes. Two massive goal-line stands kept the Hawkeyes from putting more points on the board, and the failed two-point conversion was arguably one of the biggest plays of the game.
To be fair, there were a lot of plays that all fed into the outcome of the game, one of those being Darien Porter’s first interception.
Becht’s 30-yard pass to Noel to set up the 54-yard field goal was a thing of beauty. Noel beat the defender on the out-route and turned upfield.
In my mind, the patience Becht showed in that moment to wait an extra half-second and throw the ball deep to Noel was another example of the winning formula from this team. This duo is already doing great things and the season is just getting started.
But let’s not forget how bad the run-defense was again. The Cyclones gave up 204 rushing yards, 187 of which were put up by Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson, who also ran for two scores.
Most of that problem came from linebacker injuries, including Caleb Bacon and Will McLaughlin. The secondary looked strong once again, but as the season goes on, the linebackers and the guys up front will need to stop the run throughout all four quarters, not just two.
Iowa State’s win over the Hawkeyes was huge. It proved the Cyclones can win on the road. It proved they can win in hostile environments. It proved the offense has big-play abilities and the defense can buckle down when it needs to.
Looking ahead, I would not be shocked if Iowa State ends up in the Big 12 Championship game.
The next three games on the calendar are all winnable, those being Arkansas State, Houston and Baylor. After that, the Cyclones travel to West Virginia.
That game, along with Kansas, Kansas State and Utah, are the toughest games left. UCF could be a trap game at home, but I digress.
I’d like to chalk those two up as wins since Kansas State is a home game and the Kansas game is at Arrowhead Stadium, which is basically a neutral site.
Again, this is from the perspective of getting Iowa State to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. If the toss-ups are wins and assuming the Cyclones win all of the home games, Iowa State can finish with 10 wins and a possible tie-breaker to get there.
If the Cyclones win those games and split the road games of West Virginia and Utah, Iowa State will be in business. To push the Cyclones further, all of the top teams in the Big 12 have a weakness.
Kansas just lost to Illinois, Kansas State and Oklahoma State survived against Tulane and Arkansas last week, Utah quarterback Cameron Rising has a hand injury, Arizona nearly lost to Northern Arizona and West Virginia proved it is not a top-tier team after losing to Penn State at home.
Growth. That is all Iowa State needs week after week. Do that, and a trip to Arlington is not out of the question.
