With a lingering injury to redshirt sophomore kicker Kyle Konrardy, the Cyclones have had to slightly adjust how they call plays and who they call on when they near what would be Konrardy’s field goal range.
During the first three games of the Cyclones’ season, they could take a sigh of relief after the offense got a little over midfield, knowing they had Konrardy on the sideline ready to drill a long kick.
Against South Dakota, Konrardy knocked down an Iowa State and Jack Trice Stadium record-long 63-yard field goal to end the first half. The very next week against Iowa, Konrardy hit a 54-yard game-winning field goal.
The Cyclones relied heavily on Konrardy during the 2024 season and continued to do so at the start of the 2025 season. Unfortunately, Konrardy suffered a groin injury during the first half against Arkansas State and was sidelined against Arizona and Cincinnati and has already been ruled out for the matchup at Colorado.
“I do know he has started kicking again, which is, I think, those things are at least positive, that’s trending in the right direction,” Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell said. “Will not be available again this week. So, you know, that is real.”
The impact has been felt with no Konrardy, both in the win against Arizona and the loss against Cincinnati. After the first touchdown against the Wildcats, the Cyclones opted against the extra point and went for the two-point conversion.
Late in the Arizona game, the Cyclones sent out true freshman kicker Chase Smith for a 34-yard field goal, which he made, but the game was already out of reach at that point.
Against Cincinnati, Smith missed a 34-yard attempt after the Cyclones put together a methodical 12-play, 53-yard drive that spanned over seven minutes. This kick had some more implications, considering the Cyclones trailed 24-7 at the time.
The Cyclones did not attempt another field goal the rest of the game, but did go for it a season high seven times on fourth down. The previous high was three times against Kansas State.
Offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser was forced to change things up, knowing that Iowa State did not have the luxury of a Konrardy-level kicker to work with. The change has been hard, considering the offense had been moving with limited hiccups to start the year.
“As the offensive coordinator, you just wonder, ‘Could I have called something different that our guys could’ve executed better?’” Mouser said. “So, it’s hard not to, you know, blame yourself, and I do that a lot of times.”
Going for it on fourth down seven times is one thing, but converting a high number of those is the most important part. Heading into the game against Cincinnati, the Cyclones were a perfect five for five, but went four for seven in the loss.
Mouser makes it seem like the philosophy will not change after the weaker showing on fourth down conversion attempts, but that it has been a little different without Konrardy. The Cyclones have been more willing to go for it on fourth-and-medium and fourth-and-long situations.
“That’s why you saw, you know, some of the runs on third down to get to fourth and where it’s a little bit shorter, because then you have your percentages go up and things like that,” Mouser said. “You treat third down a little bit more like second down.”
Without a steady kicker available, the Cyclones have needed some others to step up with the adjusted play-calling. Normally, junior running backs Carson Hansen and Abu Sama III would fill that role on the ground. With Hansen dealing with a concussion, Sama will take the bulk of the carries.
Luckily for Iowa State, Sama had his best game on the ground against Cincinnati with 96 yards. The game plan against Colorado will include a lot of Sama.
“We’re working at it every day,” Sama said. “Every day we all know the offensive line, they’re gonna give it their all and they know I’m gonna give it my all. Just knowing that we have each other’s back for any game, just complementing each other. We know that it’s gonna be big things from both of our ends.”
In the air attack, redshirt junior wide receiver Chase Sowell has stepped up the past two weeks as an effective target for redshirt junior quarterback Rocco Becht. Sowell has had nine of his 13 catches and 204 of his 236 receiving yards in the Cyclones’ past two outings.
“He’s been as consistent as anybody that we have and as trusted as anybody that we have on the offense to go out there and make plays,” Mouser said. “He’s going to have his hands full this week, too, so he’s gonna have a big week and he’s done a great job getting better each week.”
