Oct 12, 2024; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Iowa State Cyclones wide receiver Jaylin Noel (13) makes a catch and runs up the sideline against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the second quarter at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images
AMES — Jaylin Noel stood in the Arrowhead Stadium stands, surrounded by his Park Hill High School teammates, cheering on his hometown Kansas City Chiefs.
The Iowa State standout senior receiver was a high school sophomore, but those memories remain vivid as he prepares to actually play in Arrowhead for the first time when the No. 17 Cyclones (7-1, 4-1) take on Kansas (2-6, 1-4) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday (FS1) because the Jayhawks’ stadium is undergoing renovations.
“It was really cool,” said Noel, who hopes to help ISU rebound from its first loss of the season. “I think Alex Smith was the quarterback.”
That’s ancient history, of course, but the past informs the present for Noel, who shared a heartfelt message with his team after last week’s 23-22 setback to Texas Tech at home.
“The point of my message was, we’re not the same team as we were in the past,” Noel said. “So these points of adversity coming after a loss, in the past, we’d let that spiral and turn into two, three losses, but I think this team is different. And letting guys know that we are different in that we’re not going to let a moment of adversity stop us and hinder us from the goal we want to get to, which is the Big 12 championship. So learning from that adversity, which was the loss, and getting ready to go, going into KU this week (is important).”
Especially against a Kansas team that’s suffered five losses by an average of 3.2 points. Noel and several of his Cyclone teammates can relate. He endured ISU’s 4-8 season in 2022 that featured six one-score losses and produced a multitude of dispiriting what-if moments.
“They’re coming off a bye week and, obviously, have gotten an extra week of preparation,” Noel said. “Those guys are feeling a little bit fresher than they were — and they’re a good team. They’re very talented. Nobody’s looking past them at all.”
The Jayhawks return stars on the offensive side of the ball such as quarterback Jalon Daniels, tailback Devin Neal, and receivers Luke Grimm and Lawrence Arnold. Their top two cornerbacks — Mello Dotson and Cobee Bryant — are elite performers and the front seven ranks third in the Big 12 in sacks with 19. So it’s a bit of a head-scratcher that Kansas has only won two games, but it’s still primed to play the spoiler down the stretch, with matchups with the Cyclones, BYU, and Colorado looming on successive Saturdays.
“It’s a real challenge,” ISU head coach Matt Campbell said. “It’s a team that’s got great ability and certainly has proven it can win big football games.”
So have the Cyclones, who are navigating through a spate of injuries that have reshaped their linebackers’ corps and affected snap counts at every other position.
Campbell said standout sophomore tight end Ben Brahmer — who was on crutches last weekend — practiced on Tuesday, as did linebacker Zach Lovett.
“I think those guys are creeping closer to being back,” Campbell said.
Starting offensive lineman Dylan Barrett may be even closer to returning, Campbell said, after missing two games with an ankle injury.
“How does he look by the end of the week? We’ll see,” Campbell said. “But I do think he’s a huge piece to our football team coming back.”
ISU will need every able body to contribute as the regular season slowly winds down. Four games remain, and if the Cyclones hope to add more than one game to their postseason schedule, the mistakes that cropped up on both sides of the ball in the past two outings must be eliminated.
“I think if you have a mentality of purpose and precision, then usually good things happen,” Campbell said.
ISU’s embodied that mindset most of this season, but must refocus for the first time in the wake of a loss. Hence, Noel’s postgame speech. And hence, his bedrock belief that the Cyclones will get back on track.
“Having joy for other people’s success has gone a long way into what we’ve been able to accomplish this year,” he said. “One loss doesn’t define us. We (still) have everything we want in front of us.”
