Rocco Becht’s growth in pocket boosts Cyclones’ national credibility

IOWA CITY, Ia. — The sophomore quarterback is coming off a clutch performance on the road, and has a ton of momentum heading into Iowa State’s bye-week.

Rocco Becht put the Cyclones on his back, and carried them to the finish line in the victory at Kinnick Stadium. After all, he had to overcome being shutout in the first half, and the raucous crowd to pull Iowa State out of a 13-point deficit.

There’s no denying that the Hawkeyes have one of the nation’s best defenses, and they made life hard in the pocket for Becht through the first two quarters. The Florida native looked like a deer in headlights at times from all of the pressure, and felt like the walls were closing in. Iowa’s pass rush was relentless, and All-American linebacker Jay Higgins even picked off Becht, but he didn’t let the turnover get to him mentally.

“I kind of didn’t think anything of it because I’ve been there before, honestly I didn’t see the guy passing by,” Becht said. “That’s what you’re going to see is guys all around in tempo, and I gotta do a better job of seeing the field.”

Coach Matt Campbell admired the way Becht handled the situation, and kept his composure in the first half, despite what the scoreboard displayed. Campbell even emphasized to him in the locker room that the team still had another half to play, and the best is yet to come.

“I just told him to hang in there, I really felt like we were moving the football,” Campbell said.

Becht looked new and improved in the second half, and resembled the quarterback that was named the Big 12’s Freshman Offensive Player of the Year last season. He was fearless with his throws, played with poise in the pocket and made others around him better. The rest of the offense was able to build off Becht’s energy, and that’s when the explosive plays happened.

Becht connected with wideout Jayden Higgins in the corner of the endzone for a three-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Not to mention he found a wide open Jaylin Noel in the back of Iowa’s defense, and delivered a bomb that resulted in a 75-yard touchdown.

With a blink of an eye, Becht pulled Iowa State within five points after his two touchdown passes. The six-foot-one, 210-pounder had the Hawkeyes on their heels. After a 46-yard field goal by Kyle Konrardy early in the fourth quarter, the Cyclones found themselves in striking distance to win the game. The momentum was on Iowa State’s side, and Becht refused to let it slip away.

“I just needed one more shot because I knew we had something left in the tank,” he said. “I just kept my poise throughout the game, trusted my teammates, and for the coaches to put me in the best situation possible.”

Iowa State was granted one last opportunity with 34 seconds left on the clock, and Becht took advantage. He completed three passes on the Cyclones’ last drive, including a long one down to the Hawkeyes’ 38-yard line. After spiking the ball down on Iowa’s 36-yard line, Becht left the rest of the work up to Konrardy.

“I told him right before he walked out there, ‘this is just like practice’ because he hits those all the time and has no doubt,” the signal-caller said. “So I just tried to clear his mind, and he got the job done for us.”

Konrardy delivered in the clutch, and the Cyclones won their second-straight trip to Iowa City. Once the smoke cleared, Becht completed 23 of his 35 passes for 272 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Iowa State (2-0) also led Iowa in total offense, time of possession and yards per play.

Becht understands there are several areas that the Cyclones need to improve in also, including penalties and third down efficiency. Still, a win on the road, against a rival and ranked team is noteworthy. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise why Iowa State surfaced at No. 21 in the AP Poll on Sunday.

Now it appears that the Cyclones are going to be contenders, and Becht is quickly establishing himself as one of the best players in the Big 12.