Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads expects quarterback Austen Arnaud and running back Alexander ZRobinson to play in this week’s game at Nebraska. Arnaud bruised his throwing hand early in the Cylones victory over Baylor and left the game early in the second half while Robinson had a groin injury flare up after rushing for 83 yards.

He says both have been evaluated and both will undergo treatment, and Robinson status will remain a game-time decision. He expects Arnaud to be ready to go for practice Tuesday. Rhoads says Robinson will probably deal with the groin issue for the rest of the season. He says the only chance for any play to get an injury to completely go away, is a bye week where you completely shut down everything.

Rhoads will stick with Grant Mahoney as place kicker. Mahoney missed three field goals in the win over Baylor and has also failed to convert on three PATs this season. Rhoads says it is a problem with mechanics, and getting him back to the proper action every time is the thing they are working on. Rhoads says his confidence in Mahoney is not shaken and he will call on the kicker if he has a chance for a 50-yard field goal this week against Nebraska.

Nebraska is 4-2 after a 31-10 home loss to Texas Tech that left coach Bo Pelini furious and Husker nation seeing red. He says Pelini will coach his team well and they will be prepared to play, so Rhoads says his team has to be prepared for a physical Big 12 game.

Rhoads says the Cyclones will need to come up with a system this week to deal with the noise level in Memorial Stadium. He says they will use it for all four quarters as it will as loud a stadium as they play in. A good matchup this week will be Nebraska’s front seven against an Iowa State offensive line that has played well.

Rhoads says they thought the o-line would be the best unit on the team, but he says they have exceeded expectations with the amount of rushing and the lack of sacks produced.

Arnaud says his throwing hand slammed against the helmet of a Baylor defender. He says he hit is and it hurt, but he kept playing, and then the cold made it worse and it swelled.

The Cyclones don’t practice Monday and Arnaud says he will be ready to go on Tuesday. Arnaud says it’s still a little swollen, but he says it does not hurt much.

Arnaud says this week’s game is a big opportunity for the Cyclones. He says Nebraska is a Big 12 North opponent and the division is scattered right now and ISU is trying to match Nebraska’s intensity and get a win in Lincoln.