Iowa State football is riding a two-game losing streak after back-to-back losses at West Virginia and against Oklahoma State. Due to those losses, the Cyclones are out of the AP Top 25 poll for the first time in three weeks.

During the Oklahoma State game this past weekend, some key things arose with injuries and different mindsets that could be an integral part in the upcoming game at Baylor on Saturday. Head coach Matt Campbell addressed some of these factors in his weekly press conference Monday morning.

Quarterback situation

In the second-to-last drive before halftime, quarterback Kyle Kempt had a three-and-out with the Iowa State offense. There was some discussion and then Kempt took his helmet off and sunk his head.

A few players like Allen Lazard and Jake Campos came over to pat Kempt on the back and head. Redshirt freshman quarterback Zeb Noland was warming up. Then, with 2:13 left in the second quarter, Noland stepped onto the field as the quarterback.

Noland stayed in as quarterback throughout the rest of the game and Campbell told the press after the game that Kempt was dealing with an injury to his throwing arm.

He updated the media on Monday with some news about Kempt’s status for Saturday.

“Kyle’s situation is really day-to-day right now,” Campbell said. “He was able to run around yesterday, didn’t throw the ball yesterday. It’s nothing where he needs surgery or anything… which is obviously great for Kyle and also great for us.”

The status for this Saturday is unknown, but the latest depth chart has Kempt as No. 1 and Noland as No. 2. If Kempt is unable to play this weekend, Noland will start, but the question is, who will be the backup?

Jacob Park is continuing to be out and Kempt wouldn’t be available, so who’s next in line? Campbell said Joel Lanning would probably be the backup to Noland and then it would probably be wide receiver Deshaunte Jones, who was a quarterback in high school and has had a few opportunities to play under center.

Once the game gets closer, Campbell and his staff will have a better idea of who’s playing for the Baylor game.

JaQuan Bailey and his success

Campbell was asked about the growth of the sophomore defensive end JaQuan Bailey during his press conference. Then he had some strong opinions about Bailey and his work ethic.

“The word when you say JaQuan Bailey’s name, I say maturity,” Campbell said. “He played bar none his best football game in his career on Saturday. He was unbelievable.”

He’s been impressed with how Bailey handles the different defensive formations from a three-man front to a four-man front. Campbell believes he’s been a true voice on the Iowa State defense this season.

Campbell said he’s seen the maturity grow throughout the season and truly believes Bailey has developed the characteristics of being a true leader for the Cyclones. Once this current senior class leaves, Campbell will be looking for players to step up as leaders and fill the voids.

He expects Bailey to take over one of those positions for the 2018 season.

Trever Ryen’s injury update

Redshirt senior wide receiver Trever Ryen had an early ending to his senior day last weekend when he was hit pretty hard in his helmet.

Ryen came off the field under his own power, but went into the locker room to be tested for a concussion. Campbell said Ryen should be good to go for Baylor and expects to have his senior leader on the field for punt returns and his wide receiver position.

Iowa State preparing for young Baylor team

Even though Baylor is 1-9 on the season, Campbell isn’t looking at the record as an easy win for Iowa State. He’s actually been impressed with how the team has looked over the past few weeks.

“This Baylor team reminds me a lot of ourselves a year ago,” Campbell said. “A team that’s not stopped playing football.”

Campbell is impressed with the freshman quarterback Charlie Brewer, who set the school’s record for completions and attempts last week. He likes how the future looks for the Bears and knows that his team needs to prepare the same way they did against Oklahoma and TCU.

Otherwise, Iowa State could be continuing that losing streak to three.