Football

THE PREVIEW: No. 16 Iowa State vs. Baylor

Iowa State will try for its first 5-0 start since 1980 on Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium, facing the Baylor Bears in its second Big 12 game of the season.

Game Day Info

No. 18 Iowa State (3-0, 0-0 Big 12) @ Houston (1-3, 0-1 Big 12)
Location: Ames, Iowa
Stadium: Jack Trice Stadium (61,500)
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m.
TV: FOX (Tim Brando, Devin Gardner, Josh Sims)
Radio: Varsity Network (John Walters, Eric Heft, Ryan Harklau)
Line: Iowa State -12.5 (via Action Network updated Thursday)
Over/Under: 45.5

Series Results

Iowa State trails Baylor 12-10 in the all-time series between the two programs.

Last 5 games
2023: Iowa State 30, Baylor 18 (Waco)
2022: No. 17 Baylor 31, Iowa State 24 (Ames)
2021: Baylor 31, No. 14 Iowa State 29 (Waco)
2020: No. 17 Iowa State 38, Baylor 31 (Ames)
2019: Baylor 23, Iowa State 21 (Waco)

Players to watch

Carson Brown, wide receiver (Iowa State)
Brown, a walk-on from Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, was one of three wideouts that caught passes for Iowa State in the win over Houston. As the Cyclones continue their search for wide receiver No. 3 behind Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel,

Kooper Ebel, linebacker (Iowa State)
In his first season as an everyday starter, Kooper Ebel is (somewhat) quietly tied with Beau Freyler for the team lead in tackles. With 27 over four games, Ebel has stepped up valiantly and it’s come up big in the absence of injured linebackers for the Cyclones – that’s not to say he wasn’t going to start this season regardless. Ebel’s a true talent and is showing great signs early in his career in Ames.

The defensive backs (Iowa State)
Baylor poses the most talented skill players Iowa State has seen so far this season. It will be a potent test for the lesser experienced defensive backs like Jontez Williams and Darien Porter, but neither have shown signs they can’t handle it. Look to see how aggressive this unit is in attacking the Baylor pass-catchers.

The rushing game (Baylor)
Baylor has ran four different running backs for 31 carries or more this season, but it’s hardly been a running back-by committee approach thus far. Bryson Washington took the rock for 13 of Baylor’s 16 carries against BYU, but totaled just 31 yards. Returning starter Richard Reese was injured after having two carries against Colorado and didn’t play in Provo, as is true with sophomore Dawson Pendergrass. In fact, quarterback Sawyer Robertson leads the team with 4.9 yards per carry. Coach Dave Aranda did not give any health updates on the running backs during his press conference, but there’s no telling who Iowa State will line up against.

Josh Cameron, wide receiver (Baylor)
The wideout has been Baylor’s most consistent threat on offense this season. Robertson has been able to find Cameron 16 times for 267 yards and a team-high three touchdowns. He’s already approaching his production numbers from the last pair of seasons and it feels like the junior is hitting his stride.

Garmon Randolph, linebacker (Baylor)
Although he didn’t play in Baylor’s last game, Aranda says the senior linebacker in Randolph should be back on the field for the Bears. In four games, the 6-foot-8, 280-pounder has totaled 12 tackles and a team-high 2.5 sacks for the Bears. He’s one to keep away from Rocco Becht Saturday.

Keys to the game

Don’t give Baylor hope
Although the Bears are 2-3, their results have been more of the unique stories in the Big 12 this season. The Bears were downed by Utah by just nine points, nearly completed a 21-point comeback against BYU and Colorado needed a pair of hail mary attempts just to force overtime. The kicker is that Baylor went 0-3 in those games, but the message stands. The Bears are close to figuring it out, and they may be a different team once they do. Iowa State can’t let up in this one.

Win the second half
Matt Campbell called Baylor the best team in the Big 12 at playing in the second half – and he might be on to something. In Baylor’s last game – a 34-28 loss to BYU – the Cougars scored touchdowns on each of their first four drives, then didn’t end a drive with a touchdown the rest of the game. The Baylor defense shutout Utah in the second half in a 23-12 loss, as well.

Make Sawyer Robertson beat you
Baylor had three possessions in the fourth quarter of its loss to BYU to take the lead, with two ending in turnovers and another resulting in a pick six. For whatever reason, Robertson and Co. can move the ball until things get tough, and Iowa State’s defense will want try and make it that way. This matchup also sets up well with Robertson having a bit of rusher in him – with the Cyclones facing a pair of dual-threat quarterbacks in their last two games.

In the Big 12

Big 12 Standings
Team OVRBig 12
No. 17 BYU5-02-0
Colorado4-12-0
Texas Tech4-12-0
No. 16 Iowa State4-01-0
Arizona3-11-0
West Virginia2-21-0
No. 18 Utah4-11-1
No. 20 Kansas State4-11-1
UCF3-11-1
Cincinnati3-21-1
TCU3-21-1
Arizona State3-10-1
Oklahoma State3-20-2
Baylor2-30-2
Houston1-40-2
Kansas 1-40-2

Friday, October 4
6:30 p.m. | Houston (0-2) @ TCU (1-1), ESPN
Saturday, October 5
3:00 p.m. | West Virginia (1-0) @ Oklahoma State (0-2), ESPN2
6:30 p.m. | Baylor (0-2) @ No. 16 Iowa State (1-0), FOX
6:45 p.m. | UCF (1-1) @ Florida, SEC Network
7:00 p.m. | Kansas (0-2) @ Arizona State (0-1), ESPN2
10:00 p.m. | Texas Tech (2-0) @ Arizona (1-1), FOX

@cyclonefanatic