Two teams will take the field at Amon G. Carter Stadium on Dec. 6 with two completely different stories. One, an incredible success story of a team poised to play in the first College Football Playoff after finishing last season 4-8, and the other, a team winless in the Big 12 and backtracking from its 3-9 season last year.

When Iowa State (2-9, 0-8 Big 12) travels to No. 3 TCU (10-1, 7-1 Big 12), no one expects the Cyclones to pull off the upset. In fact, most of the narrative surrounding the game is, “by how much will TCU win?”

The Horned Frogs shot up to No. 3 in the College Football Playoff standings last week, leaving Iowa State as practically the only thing standing between them and a shot at the national championship.

“They’ve got a ton to play for and really, we don’t have a ton to play for,” said center Tom Farniok. “Their end goal is to get to the national championship and ours is to finish the right way because we know this is our last one, so it really gives you a ‘no sense of holding anything back’ mentality because this really is the end.”

In what has been a frustrating season full of season-ending injuries and close losses for the Cyclones, the Horned Frogs are expected be a handful. Featuring the nation’s No. 3 offense and No. 26 defense, TCU is undeniably one of the toughest matchups of the season for the Cyclones.

It is a far cry from the teams’ previous two matchups, with Iowa State winning the first and then falling to the Horned Frogs in the final minute of last season’s game. This TCU team, however, has grown quickly from those teams.

Take, for example, TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin, who has been surrounded by Heisman talk. After complimenting Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty earlier this season, ISU coach Paul Rhoads had even more to say about Boykin’s development from their first meeting.

“A tremendous football player, a different football player than Petty with what he can do with his legs,” Rhoads said. “Two years ago in 2012, he certainly wasn’t developed as he is right now…Boykin and that offense at TCU has really evolved.”

And for the Cyclones to see any success, it will need its defense to step up in a big way. The Cyclones are allowing more than 37 points per game and have given up 500 yards of offense in five straight games.

But weird things have happened when highly-ranked teams play an under-matched ISU team. Rhoads has a history of taking down ranked teams, none more notable than the upset of No. 2 Oklahoma State, which ruined the Cowboy’s national title hopes.

While the differences are obvious, the challenge remain the same for Iowa State.

“They have a lot of playoff hopes and it’s exciting for us because we have a chance to go out there and compete against them and hopefully mess up those playoff hopes,” said defensive back Kenneth Lynn.