AMES – Redshirt sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht led Iowa State to a 34-17 win over Cincinnati Saturday night. Though the Cyclone offense struggled to run the ball, Becht spread it around through the air with a unique array of players.
One of those players was redshirt senior tight end Stevo Klotz. An honorary captain for the game, Klotz caught his second career touchdown pass in the third quarter. It gave Iowa State its first lead of the game.
“What a game [Klotz] had,” Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell said. “He was incredible.”
Though he has had a quiet season, Klotz stepped up in a big way against the Bearcats. He finished with three catches for 32 yards and the touchdown. But, he did a little more than impact the passing game.
Klotz was a big part of the rushing numbers surprisingly. Iowa State ran a fake punt in the third quarter, and the ball went to Klotz.
On the fourth-and-nine play, Klotz ran 22 yards for a huge first down, and it kept him as the leading rusher for the majority of the game.
“We’ve been sitting on that one for a while,” Klotz said. “Everyone was juiced.”
The play was known primarily to the players who were a part of the fake punt. To those unaware of the call, excitement rose quickly when they figured out what was happening.
“I had no idea that was coming,” Becht said. “I was about to sit down and watch the film, and then I heard everybody scream. We had it in the game plan, I just didn’t know when they were gonna use it. That was awesome.”
It’s a play that the Cyclones have been sitting on for a while. An opportunity was presented to make it happen, and the result spoke for itself.
Besides Klotz’ run on the fake punt, rushing yards were hard to come by all game for the Cyclones. Ninty-seven of the 152 total rushing yards came in the fourth quarter.
In the end, it was sophomore Abu Sama III who led rushing with 52 yards on 12 carries. He added a touchdown with 1:09 to play for his second score of the season.
Becht followed Sama in rushing yards with 48 on seven attempts. His longest run was the longest for the Cyclones, on a 32-yard scamper down the sideline.
But it was Becht’s 15-yard touchdown run that was the highlight of his ground game. He reeled in a high snap and made the most out of a near-broken play.
Becht had two thoughts come to him when the snap came his way: Don’t fumble the ball and don’t make the play worse.
“Get vertical, get as many yards as I can and I got a touchdown,” Becht said.
Through the air, Becht played smart and completed 24 of his 33 passing attempts for 234 yards and a touchdown.
Usually, senior wide receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel have been the go-to guys all season. While they did get their targets, other pass catchers made their mark.
Higgins and Noel each had six catches, Higgins at 69 yards and Noel with 43. But it was sophomore tight end Gabe Burkle who ended up being the leader in receiving yards.
Burkle also caught six passes and had 73 total receiving yards. He and Klotz combined for a big portion of the passing game at a time when starting tight end, Benjamin Brahmer, had been sidelined due to an injury.
“It’s just so great to see,” Campbell said. “To see [Klotz] and Burkle step in and have, obviously, some critical catches.”
Another receiver who had an important impact was freshman Brett Eskildsen. He caught his first and second career passes against Cincinnati for a total of 17 yards.
Both of his catches came at crucial moments. The first went for six yards on a third and five, while the second catch was for 11 on a third and nine play.
Each catch led to a touchdown on the drive. The first was a part of Klotz’s touchdown drive, while the other was on Becht’s improvised 15-yard score.
“Guys have got to keep stepping up in critical situations and they keep doing it,” Campbell said. “[Eskildsen has] been incredible for us, really all fall on special teams. Then, boom, he gets a moment, and he takes advantage of it. I’m just really happy for him because I think he’s going to have an incredible career here.”
The fourth-quarter explosion on the offensive side of the ball allowed Iowa State to pull away. It was an effort that saw many contributors come together to make it happen.
Six players caught at least one pass, and seven ran the ball including Klotz, freshman running back Aiden Flora who had 16 yards on three carries and freshman quarterback Connor Moberly who ran once for five yards.
“I don’t think there’s a lot of true team football schools out there,” Becht said. “Without a team, you’re not going to get anywhere.”
