Iowa State Cyclones wide receiver Jayden Higgins (9) catches the ball for a touchdown around Iowa Hawkeyes’ defensive back Deshaun Lee (8) during the fourth quarter of the Cy-Hawk football game at the Jack Trice Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023, in Ames, Iowa. © Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK
AMES — Iowa State offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser’s eyes widened as his quarterback, Rocco Becht, flung the ball fearlessly into double coverage. It would be the first play run with Mouser in charge of the offense. Wide receiver Jaylin Noel stood tall within that cornerback-safety shawl and somehow made a 54-yard reception to kick off Saturday’s 21-3 season-opening win over North Dakota.
“I had my finger on our second and ten call,” said Mouser, whose offense will need to execute both dynamic and relatively dull plays with precision to have a chance to pierce No. 21 Iowa’s defense in Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. (CBS) Cy-Hawk game at Kinnick Stadium. “(But) when I talked with them before the game (and asked) what play do you guys want to start with, we talked through it and Jayden (Higgins), Jaylin and Rocco all said that was the one they wanted to do. So I was like, they believe in it, and when you have really good guys like that, they can make up for a lot of your shortcomings — my shortcomings — and it was an incredible play, an incredible catch.”
Explosive plays like that come sparingly against Hawkeye defensive coordinator Phil Parker’s group. Iowa’s won seven of the past eight Cy-Hawk meetings with a defense that turns gambles and mistakes into turnovers and touchdowns, not merely punts. The Hawkeyes have scored a defensive touchdown against the Cyclones in each of their past two wins in the series — including a pick-six of Becht by safety Sebastian Castro last season.
“You’re not gonna outscheme coach Parker,” said Mouser, who turned 33-years-ol during spring camp. “That guy’s a legend for what he does and he’s so good at it. Can we give our guys the opportunity to go make plays and see if our matchups are favorable out there? I think so. I think our guys are pretty good, but he does such a good job with (his) guys, it’s gonna be a good challenge.”
So ISU’s offense won’t only need to determine how best to showcase its passing and running games. The Cyclones must execute an offensive game plan that blends shots downfield with short, accurate passes and well-timed runs in order to sustain drives that produce points. It’s a difficult balancing act precisely because Iowa’s defense is so opportunistic — and ready to pounce on any risky pass, whether downfield or along the sideline.
“They know where they’ve got to be each play and they’ve been doing it for years,” said Becht, who tied for first nationally in completions spanning 60-plus yards last season. “They’re one of the best in the country for a reason, so it’s a challenge — but we love challenges.”
Being patient emerges as the biggest challenge when facing Iowa’s defense. The Hawkeyes’ propensity to play a two-high safety scheme tends to limit big plays downfield, but it does open up opportunities underneath and/or in the run game.
“Most of the time our offense has answers for those kinds of things, regardless of who we play,” Mouser said. “But you have to make sure (the reads) are just a little bit faster when you’re playing against a defense like this that finds a way to just smooth you from the outside in, and is so good up front.”
The Cyclones have scored 17 or fewer points against Iowa in the past five meetings, but have outgained the Hawkeyes in four of those games. And the one win ISU’s secured in the past eight meetings — the 10-7 triumph in 2022 at Kinnick — hinged on a remarkable, 21-play, 99-yard touchdown drive that spanned 11 minutes and 49 seconds. That’s hard to replicate, but is illustrative of the keen precision required to keep Iowa’s defense on the field — and possibly escape with a second straight Cy-Hawk road win.
“It really challenges your focus to drive the football that far in Kinnick,” Mouser said. “It’s gonna be emotional. It’s gonna be hectic. It really stresses your focus on every single play and every single drive and the precision and detail is so critical. It’s hard to replicate that, but that’s gonna be the message for us going forward: Patience and discipline and detail.”
So don’t expect many throws into double coverage, but do expect ISU to take a high-risk, high-reward shot or two with Noel, Higgins and others spreading the field.
“The trust that Rocco has with Jayden and Jaylin and those guys where you can put the football up and those guys can make contested catches … ” Mouser said. “It’s hard to do.”
