AMES — Senior running back Jaylon Jackson is in his fifth season of college football. Often overlooked, Jackson has bounced around from school to school but seems to have found a home at Iowa State.
In the whiteout game against Baylor, Jackson took control. He exploded for 107 yards and two touchdowns, en route to the No. 16 Cyclones 43-21 win over the Bears on Saturday night.
Now, Iowa State is 5-0 for the first time since 1980, largely in part because of Jackson’s performance.
“He’s been awesome,” Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell said about Jackson. “He was electric last week, and I thought he just has continued to grow.”
This was Jackson’s first game rushing for over 100 yards, and he did it on 15 carries.
“Shoutout to my teammates and all the coaches for putting together a good plan,” Jackson said. “It feels good.”
A true journeyman, Jackson spent two years at Lamar University, two at Eastern Michigan and will cap off his career as a Cyclone. His experience has started to show not only in his play but in the running back room as a whole.
“I’m just getting wiser,” Jackson said. “Not just what I have to do on a play, but what everybody else has to do on a play.”
Jackson ripped off his biggest run of the game in the second quarter, which went for 51 yards. That play led to a 10-yard touchdown pass from redshirt sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht to sophomore tight end Benjamin Brahmer.
“I’m so happy for that guy,” Becht said. “He continues to be a leader, a voice in that running back room for those young guys. He’s a role model for those guys. Whatever he’s doing, hopefully, those other running backs will follow in his footsteps.”
Becht threw for 277 yards, completing 16 of his 25 pass attempts for two touchdowns and an interception. Jackson praised Becht for his poise and ability to lead the offense.
“I’ve been around a lot of quarterbacks and he just takes on that leadership role better than anybody I’ve seen,” Jackson said. “I’ve been around guys older than him and he just steps into that role.”
That score got the Cyclones right back into the game after they trailed 14-3 early.
Iowa State took the lead on a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown by defensive back Caden Matson and went into halftime with a 19-14 lead. Baylor struck first in the second half with an early touchdown, but it was all Iowa State after that.
Jackson scored his first touchdown of the game and as a Cyclone on the next drive. He cut back from the right to the left, followed Becht’s block, and scored from 10 yards out.
Jackson said it was his favorite moment of the game.
For Jackson, that first touchdown was something he wanted to get at Jack Trice Stadium, especially with the atmosphere that the whiteout game presented.
“It was crazy,” Jackson said. “One of the loudest games I’ve ever been in.”
From there, Iowa State never looked back and held the lead the rest of the way. The second touchdown Jackson scored came in the fourth quarter on a shifty 20-yard rush that put the Cyclones up 40-21.
Iowa State pulled away in the second half, much like in most games this season. The Cyclones trailed 21-19 in the third quarter after leading at halftime but outscored the Bears 24-0 in the final 25 minutes of the game.
Jackson and Campbell credited the ability of the offense to spread the ball around to different players and different position groups.
Like Jackson, sophomore running back Carson Hansen had 15 carries. He finished with 97 yards, with his longest going for 33. It happened on the same drive as Jackson’s second touchdown run.
Sophomore Abu Sama III was limited in the backfield today, rushing eight times for just 17 yards.
“We’re definitely a close group,” Jackson said about the running backs. “We cheer for each other’s success.”
The big plays on offense were not limited to just the running backs. Senior receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel each reeled in multiple passes of 20 yards or more.
Three of Higgins’ catches were over 20 yards, and he caught an 11-yard touchdown, which extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown reception to seven. Higgins night finished with eight catches for 116 yards and a score.
Noel caught five passes for 98 yards. Two of his catches went for more than 40 yards.
“They can really play anywhere,” Campbell said. “Those two guys, they obviously have done great things for us and will continue to do great things for us.”
