Iowa State’s plans for an upset of a top ten rated Utah worked for one quarter, but then quickly fell apart as the Utes overpowered and outran them for a 68-27 win at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames. The Cyclones turned an interception and a fumble recovery into a 14-10 lead after one quarter, but Utah then scored 31 unanswered points in the second quarter to turn the game into a rout.
I.S.U. coach Paul Roads says they were beaten in every phase of the game and one of the biggest factors was the Utes’ speed more so than their poor tackling. Rhoads says that speed showed all over the field and sometimes when you don’t tackle well offensive players have a lot to do with that.
Rhoads says this was going to be a lopsided game even without the big plays Utah got in returning punts and kickoffs, and their speed was a large part of it. Iowa State played Iowa when the Hawkeyes were ranked in the top ten and Rhoads says Utah is similar to Iowa.
He says both are teams that are solid everywhere, kicking game, return game, and they have the ability to score points and put pressure on you on defense. Rhoads says the difference is that Iowa grinds it out and scores points, while Utah has a more wide open style. The Cyclones face another top ten team this week on the road at Oklahoma. Rhoads was asked what he told the team after the game.
“To keep their confidence, we can’t panic,” Rhoads says. He says they are 3-3 and if they start to panic then things will really escalate and get worse. He says they have to go back as coaches and players and find out answers as to why thing happened in the game. Cyclone safety David Simms recovered the fumble and made the interception that led to the early points, but he says the mood changed once they got to the second quarter.
Simms says the turnaround happened fast and they didn’t play well enough at a team to win. Iowa State travels to Oklahoma with a 3-3 overall record and 1-2 record in the Big 12. The Sooners are coming off a bye week.