The Iowa State Cyclones have some added time to savor a victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes and a new national ranking. The cyclones are ranked 24th in the latest Associated Press top 25 after a 23-3 win over the Hawkeyes on Saturday and don’t return to action until a September 23rd game at Army. Cyclone defensive tackle Nick Leaders who was asked if he thought ISU would be rated after the game. He says it doesn’t matter as they don’t play for rankings, they play for wins. Leaders helped a Cyclone defense that held Iowa out of the endzone for the first time since 1978. Leaders says they were really prepared as Illinois State ran a lot of things similar to Iowa, so it was like two weeks of preparation.The Hawkeye offense committed five turnovers in the game while the Cyclone offense had a balanced attack that controlled the clock. The loss snapped Iowa’s two game win streak in the series and their nine game winning streak that dated back to a loss at Michigan in the Big Ten opener in 2004.Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says it was a thorough beating for them and Iowa State did a good jon. Ferentz says it was a frustrating day for his team as they didn’t do anything with ease. Ferentz says he thought they had a shot in the second half, but he says Iowa State held them off and came up with a big punt that kept them from getting momentum. The Hawkeyes played much of the game without starting quarterback Drew Tate who suffered a concussion after making a tackle after an interception early in the second quarter.Iowa center Brian Ferentz says it was frustrating to make the unforced errors, but he says when they made mistakes, ISU capitalized on them. Tate is expected to return this weekend when the Hawkeyes entertain UNI.
