It is everyone’s favorite time of year again — Big 12 football time.

Iowa State, 1-2 on the season, open Big 12 play Saturday against a Big 12 foe that every Cyclone fan actually looks forward to playing in football — the 0-3 Kansas Jayhawks.

Optimism is in the air as the Cyclones are a two-plus touchdown favorite in this year’s matchup, since the Jayhawks may be one of the worst teams in all of college football. But Cyclone Nation should not get its hopes up too high too fast.

Don’t any of you ISU fans remember last year’s game?

Last season, the Jayhawks were a four-point underdog at home against the Cyclones, and all they did was beat up on Iowa State to the tune of a 20-point victory.

In that game, Kansas jumped out to a 24-0 lead before Iowa State even saw the end zone. Quarterback Michael Cummings threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns against the ISU secondary, while running back Corey Avery ran for 103 yards and a touchdown.

Like last year, Kansas is desperate for a win, as they have lost to the likes of Football Championship Subdivision foe South Dakota State as well as Memphis and Rutgers.

With ISU football, expecting the unexpected can yield accurate results, and I expect this year’s version of the Iowa State-Kansas game to have the same end result of last year’s game.

The Jayhawks do several things better than the Cyclones. One thing that Kansas does better than Iowa State is putting more points on the board. The Jayhawks have averaged 25 points per game compared to the Cyclones’ 23.

Kansas’ defense also has a nose for the football. Three games into the season, the Jayhawks have a plus-four turnover ratio, forcing fumbles effectively all year. ISU running backs have coughed up the ball a combined seven times this year. 

Turnovers have a way of turning the tide in any game.

This season, I can’t envision a blowout by Kansas as ISU quarterback Sam Richardson and wide receiver Quenton Bundrage are playing this time around. But I do see a real possibility for the Jayhawks to steal a win in Jack Trice on Saturday.

Prediction: Kansas 30, Iowa State 28