With their final practice out of the way the Iowa State Cyclones are now set for tomorrow’s kickoff of the Houston Bowl against TCU in Reliant Stadium. The Cyclones finished the regular season 7-4 and are looking to win consecutive bowl games for the first time in the program’s history.
Cyclone coach Dan McCarney says the Cyclones want to end the season with a win,as there’s not greater feeling. He says it puts a cap on the season and gives you a springboard to the next season. McCarney says they don’t want to be in the lockerroom with tears of sadness, they want them to be tears of celebration.
TCU opened the season with a shocking win at Oklahoma and never looked back. The Horned Frogs are 10-1 and ranked 14th. The TCU defense is built on speed and Cyclones running back Stevie Hicks says that is their biggest concern.
Quarterback Brett Meyer says that speed will force him to make split-second decisions. After a long layoff since the end of the regular season Meyer would like the offense to get some confidence early in the game. He says that’s huge in every bowl game.
On the other side of the ball the Cyclone defense will try to slow down a TCU offense that prides itself on balance. Senior defensive lineman Nick Leaders who says the Cyclone defense needs to play well on first down and try and make TCU become more predictable. For Leaders and the other seniors this is their final game in a Cyclone jersey and they would love to go out with a win.
TCU is a three point favorite. Kickoff is at 1-30 and the game will be televised by ESPN-2.