GAME DAY: Iowa State at TCU
Unable to get back in the win column during back-to-back games at Jack Trice Stadium, the Cyclones hit the road this weekend and will try to get over the hump versus an opponent they’ve had a lot of success against in recent years. Matt Campbell’s squad has posted victories in four of the past five matchups against the Horned Frogs, with the most recent coming during the 2023 season in Ames, 27-14. Iowa State also emerged victorious in the 2019, 2020 and 2021 matchups. The lone blemish during the five-game stretch was a 62-14 defeat in the season finale as the Cyclones were limping to a 4-8 finish and TCU surging to making an eventual trip to the national championship game six weeks later. Although this season’s Iowa State team doesn’t have the exact same feel as that 2022 one, this year’s group is finding ways to lose close games it should have won in similar fashion. During the four-game losing streak, the Cyclones have lost three times by a combined 20 points and the fourth (BYU) is one they led by two touchdowns late in the first half before things spiraled downhill. Most everyone has pointed to the injury bug that has once again struck the ISU football program. That holds true on the defensive side of the ball, as the secondary continues to be plagued, with new names being added to the injured list each week. Iowa State has remained healthy for the most part on offense, but a number of things have plagued them over the past four games. It’s averaging more than three points a game less than the 2024 offense. Third year starting quarterback Rocco Becht has seen his share of struggles working with a wide receiver room that no longer consists of Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel. Iowa State’s offense had four opportunities to take the lead in the fourth quarter alone last Saturday against Arizona State but was turned away in all four. The word ‘global’ has been used to explain the shortcomings on offense, and it probably could explain the team’s woes as well. When Iowa State is at its best, it’s playing complementary football and winning in all three phases, which hasn’t happened since the win over Arizona well over one month ago. It’ll get another shot this Saturday facing a program it’s had success against, but going in, this year’s clash feels a little closer to the 2022 one than it does the four the Cyclones have won.
Iowa State’s program under Campbell and TCU’s with Sonny Dykes share at least one characteristic and that’s been their focus on roster retention and building with high school talent. Like the Cyclones, the Horned Frogs have addressed key positions via the transfer portal (i.e. wide receiver) but have chosen to be a developmental program for the most part. Eighty-five members of this year’s TCU squad began their college careers in Fort Worth. That continuity has served them well as they’re the winningest program in the Big 12 since the start of the 2022 season. More recently, TCU is coming out of a 3-1 month of October with wins over Colorado, Baylor and West Virginia, and a loss at Kansas State, and resides at 6-2 overall and 3-2 in Big 12 play. The Horned Frogs, undefeated in Amon G. Carter Stadium this season, are coming out of a bye week with an outside shot at reaching the conference title game but will need to win out in order to remain in the running. They round out the regular season with matchups against BYU, Houston and Cincinnati in the coming weeks, teams that are either currently ranked or have been at some point during the season. TCU has already become bowl eligible for the ninth time in 12 seasons as a member of the conference. Offense has carried the day for the Horned Frogs, who have leaned heavily on veteran quarterback Josh Hoover and passing attack. The redshirt junior launched his college career in the 2023 game against the Cyclones in Ames and has gone on to break school records in the two years since. On the opposite side, the defense has taken a bit of a step back in year three with coordinator Andy Avalos. TCU is allowing 377.3 yards per game to rank 78th nationally, dropping 33 spots from where the 2024 unit finished. Let’s start the breakdown of all five phases of Saturday’s rematch of last year’s Big 12 Championship Game.
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