MEMPHIS – After practice on Wednesday, seniors Joel Lanning and Allen Lazard came into the locker room at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, with smiles on their faces and rosy cheeks.

The red cheeks didn’t come from smiling, but rather the two-hour practice the Iowa State football team had in the 23-degree weather on Rhodes College’s football field. It might be smiles heading into the locker room, but the mindset is still the same no matter what week for the Cyclones.

That mindset is to win the AutoZone Liberty Bowl this Saturday.

“I’m all about an experience [and having fun],” said coach Matt Campbell. “This is still a football game… I think what ends up being fun is the locker room at the end of the game and winning.”

For Lazard and Lanning, this is the first time they’re playing in a bowl game, so balancing that fun mindset with the business side of winning a football game has been a transition. Lanning said it’s about keeping a level head and understanding why the team is in Memphis this week.

Lanning also mentioned the freedom that the team has in the afternoon to go sightseeing or just relax in the hotel room. There’s time for these players to prepare for the game and also enjoying a time that not all teams get to experience at the end of the regular season.

“It’s kind of hard to handle,” Lazard said. “We have the football mindset in the morning and then we can relax in the afternoon. It’s nice to have that schedule instead of vice versa.”

Iowa State has practices in the morning, but the mindset switches in the afternoon when the team takes trips to different locations throughout the Memphis area. For example, Wednesday afternoon the team is heading to the Civil Rights Museum and tomorrow afternoon, they will be spending time at the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

Even though there’s more flexibility for the players, Campbell has made it clear what this week means not only to themselves as a team, but also to the community of Ames, Iowa. A city that hasn’t seen a bowl victory since 2009.

This game on Saturday might be the last game of Lazard and Lanning’s college careers, but they know it’s only the beginning of the future under Campbell.

“I think it means a whole heck of a lot to Iowa State,” Campbell said on bringing a trophy back to Ames. “There’s not a ton of trophies sitting back in Iowa and for these kids, at some point, to come back with their family and to see a trophy sitting in the trophy case, it’s powerful.”

Sophomore running back David Montgomery has a couple more years left at Iowa State and he understands what this win will mean for the Cyclones future. He said it’ll not only catapult the team into more confidence next year, but it’ll also push the team to work harder in the offseason to winning more games and becoming national championship contenders.

Lazard and Lanning want to finish off their Iowa State careers on the right foot with a win and a Liberty Bowl trophy sitting in the Jacobson Building for years to come. Lanning said if Iowa State loses, this week is sort of a waste because everyone is down and nobody wants to wear the gear because it’ll remind the players of the loss they had to end the season.

In Lazard’s eyes, this bowl game will make or break the Iowa State 2017 season and how the Cyclones will be remembered this season. So, Lazard isn’t taking this week lightly because he knows what’s at stake.

The thought of playing in their last game on Saturday hasn’t really hit the two seniors yet, but they know once the final horn goes off on Saturday it’ll be an emotional moment.

“I think it’s been really fun seeing our guys enjoy this [experience],” Campbell said. “No matter what it has been, it’s been really enjoyable just to see our kids get off the plane, get to hotel room, see the game room, all those little things you take for granted as a coach.

“And seeing our kids’ eyes light up because they haven’t been here, haven’t got to experience it, I think it’s been really rewarding.”