How it Happened
The Bearcats had a huge opportunity on the opening drive after Dee Wiggins broke wide open over the middle on a post route, but Emory Jones just overthrew the wide receiver for what would’ve been an easy touchdown. In the end, resulted in a punt but the Bearcats defense would eventually hold tall and force a punt themselves following a huge sack by Danial Grzesiak on 3rd and 10, just the fourth sack Iowa State has given up all season.
The Cyclones would strike first after an early interception from Bearcats quarterback Emory Jones set the Cyclones up deep in Bearcats territory. Cyclones, defensive back TJ Tampa proved why he is such an intriguing NFL Draft prospect and came away with the first turnover of the afternoon. However, the Bearcats defense did their part in keeping the Cyclones out of the end zone holding them to just a field goal, as the Cyclones took an early 3-0 lead with 5:31 remaining in the first quarter.
The Bearcats would respond with a 10 play, 75-yard drive resulting in a 20-yard touchdown reception from Chamon Metayer. The tight end lined up as the 5th offensive lineman with offensive lineman John Williams out wide as a receiver where Metayer then broke free down the seam for an easy 20-yard touchdown reception to give the Bearcats a 7-3 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Iowa State would respond with a huge 15 play, 59-yard drive that ate up nearly eight minutes of the second quarter. The Cyclones executed a fake punt on 4th-6 to keep the drive moving deep in Bearcats territory as the Bearcats looked to stand tall, but the Cyclones thought otherwise. The Bearcats would get a huge stop with two near interceptions from defensive back Jordon Young, but a costly roughing the passer penalty on Eric Phillips would give the Cyclones new life in the redzone. Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht made the Bearcats defense pay for their mistakes after a 3-yard touchdown run made this a 10-7 game with 7:48 remaining in the first half.
The Cyclones defense would stand tall forcing a Bearcat punt as Mason Fletcher launched a 48-yard boom to set the Cyclones up deep in their own territory. However, Rocco Becht would connect with wide receiver Jayden Higgins down the right sideline in a matchup vs Jordon Young for a huge 75-yard gain, their longest gain of the season. The Bearcats defense would force a huge 3-14 following a holding penalty, but Rocco Becht stands in the pocket and connects with a wide-open Benjamin Brahmer in the back of the endzone to make this a 17-7 game with 3:43 remaining in the first half.
The Bearcats offense continued to stall as they hoped to put some points on the board before the half, but instead Iowa State forces a punt and flips the momentum. The Bearcats defense responded with a three and out of their own but could they find a grove with just under a minute to go before the break? The Bearcats would look to build some momentum there following a huge stand, but failed to convert down the stretch as Emory Jones was forced to throw up a hail Mary to end the half, which resulted in his second interception of the afternoon, this time by Jeremiah Cooper, who comes away with his fifth take away of the season for the Cyclones as they carried a 17-7 lead to the break.
Iowa State wasted no time on offense to start the second half as Jaylin Noel took the opening kickoff 72 yards to give the Cyclones prime real estate in Bearcats territory to start the second half. For the Bearcats, However, their defense would do what it has continued to do all season and that was keep teams out of the endzone, as they held the Cyclones to a field goal that would make this a 20-7 game with 10:45 left in the third quarter.
Emory Jones and the Bearcats would respond with a huge 14 play drive resulting in a 36-yard field goal from Carter Brown. The drive was highlighted by a huge Iowa State defensive pass interference penalty on 4th-6 that put the Bearcats inside the redzone. The Bearcats just couldn’t get much going following the penalty but take the points in hope for another defensive stand. The Bearcats elected to go with the short kick off shortly after, but the very next play Rocco Becht finds Jayden Higgins for a huge 30-yard gain to set the Cyclones up deep into Bearcats territory once again. The Bearcats defense came up with another huge stand forcing yet another field goal to make this a 23-10 game with 1:10 remaining in the 3rd quarter.
Iowa State came through with a dagger with 10 minutes remaining after an offside penalty on Jordan Young gave the Cyclones a first down on 4th-2. The following play, Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht would throw a 15-yard touchdown strike to tight end Jack Bjorn to make this a 30-10 game. Iowa State was looking to make a statement in the Big 12 following their 27-14 victory over TCU last week and they displayed a heck of a performance this afternoon to say the least.
The Cyclones would then hold on and defeat the Bearcats 30-10 as the Cyclones ruined the Bearcats annual homecoming performance giving the Bearcats their fourth straight loss for the first time since 2017.
Up Next
The Bearcats (2-4, 0-3 Big 12) will be back in action next Saturday at 12 pm when they welcome in Baylor (2-4, 1-2 Big 12), as the Bearcats will be in search of their first ever Big 12 victory.
