Oklahoma St. not looking past Cyclones
Four years
AMES, IOWA — ago, Iowa State dashed Oklahoma State’s national title hopes on a chilly night in November.
An equally poor performance Saturday in Ames probably would doom the Cowboys again. Otherwise, with Baylor and Oklahoma left on its schedule, No. 8 Oklahoma State (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) could have a clear path to a playoff spot after trouncing previously unbeaten TCU 49-29 last week.
But with so much competition for the top four slots, the Cowboys can’t afford to look past Iowa State.
“We have to take this team seriously. That’s the biggest thing. People have been trying to downplay Iowa State, but they’re a really good team at home. They’re in the Big 12 for a reason,” Oklahoma State linebacker Chad Whitener said.
Whitener might be right.
The Cyclones (3-6, 2-4) could have enough to pull off a repeat of their 37-31 upset of Oklahoma State in 2011.
Four of Iowa State’s losses have come against teams ranked among the top 15 in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings.
Only one of its defeats came against a team that currently has more than one loss.
The Cyclones will also be playing for their beloved but embattled coach, Paul Rhoads, so motivation shouldn’t be a factor.
Here are a few of the crucial points to consider
as Oklahoma State prepares for its last road game.
Ridiculous Rudolph: Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph is peaking. He threw a career-best five touchdown passes without a pick in last week’s thrashing of the Horned Frogs. Rudolph is 11-1 as a starter, with six wins away from Stillwater.
Lagging Lanning: The same can’t be said for Iowa State sophomore quarterback Joel Lanning. After wresting the starting job away from Sam Richardson, Lanning had 252 yards of total offense in a 24-0 win over Texas — which nearly knocked off the Cowboys earlier this season.
But Oklahoma got so far ahead of the Cyclones last week that Lanning, a runfirst player, had to throw 51 times. Lanning racked up 260 yards passing, but Iowa State lost 52-16.
Don’t poke the Pokes: Oklahoma State’s success has been as much a product of its defense as its explosive offense. The Cowboys are second in the Big 12 with just 23.8 points allowed per game — and that’s after backto-back games against high-flying Texas Tech and TCU.
Rhoads knows: Iowa State has played every Big 12 contender, and Rhoads said Monday that Oklahoma, not TCU or Baylor, was the best team the Cyclones have faced.