Technically, both Iowa State and Colorado are going after bowl bids. Realistically, Iowa State has the only good chance to celebrate on Saturday.
The once-moribund Cyclones come to Boulder for an 11:30 a.m. game Saturday against the moribund Buffaloes. The programs are headed in opposite directions. Iowa State (5-5, 3-3 Big 12) is one win away from its second bowl berth under second-year coach Paul Rhoads.
Colorado (3-6, 0-5) must sweep its last three games for a berth and to avoid a fifth consecutive losing season under embattled coach Dan Hawkins. While it’s a foregone conclusion that Hawkins, 19-39 in five years, will be fired after the season, if not before, Rhoads could replace new basketball coach Fred Hoiberg as the new Mayor of Ames.
“I don’t think anybody outside of our core group of guys would’ve gone into the season and said, ‘Oh, yeah, Iowa State would be headed to a second bowl in a row,’ ” Rhoads said on Monday’s Big 12 Conference call.
Much of the skepticism hung over a painfully inexperienced defense and one of the toughest schedules in the country. The Cyclones have played four teams ranked in the top 10 at the time they met. They were clobbered by Iowa, Utah and Oklahoma but fought Nebraska to the wire Saturday at home, losing 31-30 in overtime.
“We’ve survived that (schedule) and we’ve improved and we’ve put ourselves in position to accomplish that in our second year,” Rhoads said. “Now we have to remain focused.”
Iowa State fans certainly like Rhoads’ moxie. Instead of going for the tying extra point in overtime, he called for a fake. The play, a pass designed to be thrown to tight end Collin Franklin, was wide open, but the holder for the extra point floated the pass short, and it was intercepted at the goal line.
“It was a call we had ready to go throughout the entire game,” Rhoads said. “We studied it during the game to see if the soundness was still there. Indeed it was. We saw an opportunity to end the football game on one play. Unfortunately for us, we did not get the play executed.”
The Cyclones were picked last in the North Division because of a defense that lost eight starters. Last month, they were tagged for 68 and 52 points in back-to-back weeks against Utah and Oklahoma, respectively. Even though they’ve shown marked improvement since, they still rank 93rd nationally in total defense, allowing 420.9 yards per game. The recent improvement has been obvious, however.
The Cyclones won 28-21 at Texas, beat Kansas 28-16 and then held Nebraska to two offensive touchdowns in regulation.
Sophomore linebackers Jake Knott (10.3 per game) and A.J. Klein are second and third, respectively, in the Big 12 in tackles, and Rhoads is rotating eight players on an improved line. End Jacob Lattimer worked his way into a starting spot beginning with the Texas game and has been the Cyclones’ best pass rusher.
