Nov 9, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Iowa State Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht (3) passes during the fourth quarter against the Kansas Jayhawks at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — “Unacceptable.”
That unwelcome word formed a recurring theme for Iowa State senior captain and safety Beau Freyler in the wake of the No. 17 Cyclones’ dispiriting 45-36 loss to Kansas Saturday at Arrowhead Stadium.
ISU (7-2, 4-2) simply couldn’t stop the formerly snake-bitten Jayhawks (3-6, 2-4) until late in the game — and that’s concerning for a banged-up team that watched its once-high hopes of reaching the Big 12 title game careen into pie-in-the-sky territory.
“It’s unacceptable what we did today,” Freyler said. “We’ve got to have the humility to look at our mistakes, look at the weaknesses of ourselves, individually and collectively, and just go back to work.”
That’s all the Cyclones can do, of course, after suffering their second loss in a row. The same issues — ill-timed penalties, failures to execute in key moments — bedeviled ISU yet again, but a potential get-well; game looms next Saturday night when Cincinnati (5-4, 3-3) comes to Jack Trice Stadium.
“There’s not gonna be a flinch in the locker room,” said Freyler, who had six tackles. “I can tell you that. Me and the leadership, we’re gonna hold everyone accountable to that. No moping around, no excuses, no complaining, because what we put on that film is who we are. So we’re gonna go back to work and get better.”
That’s been another ongoing theme in recent weeks. The Cyclones — down several starters on defense because of injuries — have struggled to play with the “detail and precision” required to turn a historic 7-0 start into something even greater in the all-important month of November. ISU fell behind by 25 points on Saturday and despite a late second-half surge that trimmed that deficit to 10 points with 11 minutes left, a win felt out of reach as the Jayhawks scored at will on six possessions in a row.
Just how many of those recent shortcomings can be fully fixed over the final three regular season games remains uncertain, but the Cyclones are committed to “getting better” even as it’s become unlikely they can compete for a conference crown.
“I guess we’re gonna find out,” said ISU head coach Matt Campbell, whose team is bowl-eligible for the seventh time in the past eight seasons. “You can sit here on Saturday night and say whatever you want, but the reality of what shows up next Saturday? I don’t think our kids quit at all. I think our kids kept climbing and the thing I love about our kids is we’ve got great character. We’ve got great leadership. We’ve got great coaching, but the reality of it is, who are you when things aren’t going great? And we’re gonna find out. I think our kids came out ready to play, but again, detail and precision against a team like this, you’ve got to be able to do it better.”
Some of that formula will hinge on the health of Campbell’s players. They’ve been playing second-, third-, and fourth-string linebackers because of injury most of the season. The secondary’s banged up. The defensive line is down a starter. Every Cyclone must look in the mirror and ask what more can they do? And how can they help others do the same with positive reinforcement? Doing that fueled ISU’s 7-0 start — and regaining that perspective may help it rebound to record its first 10 (or more) win season ever.
That goal remains fully attainable, even as a path to the league title game has narrowed significantly.
“All the work that you put in to get to 7-0, and then those two losses coming out like that, it’s tough to move on,” said quarterback Rocco Becht, who threw for a season-high 383 yards and three touchdowns in the loss. “But we have a bunch of leaders in our locker room (who) are resilient and are gonna put this aside. We’ll focus every day in and day out, and work on the next day, and go to the next game, focusing on play (after) play and continue from there.”
