Cyclones outlast Hawkeyes in thrilling fashion at Jack Trice Stadium

AMES, Iowa — The Cy-Hawk Trophy will be staying in Ames following a narrow victory by the Cyclones, and it appears they’re no longer the little brother in the state of Iowa.

Iowa State’s 16-13 win over Iowa was its’ first in the series at Jack Trice Stadium since 2011, and a crowd of 61,500 watched as the home team celebrated with the hardware. The No. 16 Cyclones never trailed in the game, and kicker Kyle Konrardy turned out to be the hero for a second-straight season.

Not to mention Iowa State has now won three of the last four meetings, which speaks volumes of what Coach Matt Campbell is accomplishing with the program. The 72nd edition of the rivalry was a flat-out, defensive slugfest. Coach Kirk Ferentz made sure Iowa matched Iowa State’s intensity, and it all came down to adjustments. The Cyclones made clutch plays down the stretch on offense, defense and Special Teams, but most importantly, they wanted it more.

“I think there’s great mental toughness right now with our team, and that part I really appreciate,” Campbell said. “You had to be mentally tough there in the second half, and I thought our kids’ character showed through the second half of the football game, but there was a little bit of physical fatigue.”

Quarterback Rocco Becht didn’t put up the jaw-dropping stats, but he didn’t commit any turnovers, and led the Cyclones on four scoring drives. He completed 18 of his 27 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown. Becht’s two-yard strike to tight end Benjamin Brahmer in the second quarter gave Iowa State a 10-point lead, which was its’ largest on the afternoon. However, Iowa battled back and pulled within three points after a two-yard touchdown run by quarterback Mark Gronowski.

Regardless, the Cyclones led by three at halftime. Campbell made adjustments, and the defense stepped up in the second half. After all, Iowa State went scoreless in the third quarter, and Iowa was able to tie the game up at 13 with a 36-yard field goal by Drew Stevens. With the game knotted up at 13 entering the fourth quarter, leaders had to step up for Iowa State.

Becht put together a 13-play drive that took over six minutes off the clock, and ended with a 54-yard go-ahead field goal Konrardy. Campbell asked Konrardy if he wanted to be the hero again, so it was a no-brainer to send him out there, and the crowd erupted when the ball went through the goalpost.

“When you got that guy you just believe in him,” he said. “You win football games with your A-players, making A-plays in A-moments, and obviously Kyle has proven now over the course of time here to be able to do that in a really powerful way for us.”

The Hawkeyes had one last chance with a final drive, but Gronowski couldn’t deliver. The Cyclones sacked Gronowski on second and third down, and he threw an incomplete pass on fourth down to seal the game. Iowa State fans started to celebrate as Iowa took the walk of shame back to the sidelines, and Campbell was glad to see them all with smiles on their faces as the team left the field.

“When there was no belief in Iowa State football, they gave you something to build on, so to be able to give them some special moments, that was really important,” the 45-year old said. “We talked about that, giving this great fan base something that they can really be proud of, and hopefully we did that today.”

Iowa State (3-0) led Iowa in total offense, yards per play and third down efficiency. Running back Abu Sam rushed for a team-high, 47 yards, and teammate Carson Hansen added 46. Becht was able to spread the wealth, and eight different Cyclones caught a pass, including six with at least two receptions. Brahmer finished with four catches, including Iowa State’s only touchdown on the day.

The Cyclones played lights out defensively, and held the Hawkeyes to 214 yards of total offense, including 83 through the air. Iowa didn’t score in the first or fourth quarter either, and only averaged 3.4 yards per play. Defensive back Marcus Neal tallied nine tackles, including two for loss and a sack. Defensive lineman Tamatoa McDonnough added five stops, and put Gronowski to the turf twice. Safety Jeremiah Cooper generated a tackle for loss, and hauled in an interception.

Campbell understands that the game wasn’t pretty by any means, and there’ll be a lot to clean up in practice next week. Still, he’s going to enjoy this nail-biting win over a bitter rival, and have his team ready for week three. The Cyclones are 3-0 for a second-straight year, and the team has a lot of momentum. Now all Campbell wants to do right is ride that wave, knowing his team is starting to crack the surface of their potential.

“That’s where I really am proud of what I watched this football team do for nine months, really pound away at their habits, who they are in the moment, having resolve when things don’t go their way, and just having the ability to keep playing.”