Key notes from Matt Campbell's weekly press conference

Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell met with the media earlier this week for his weekly press conference.

The Cyclones (10-2) head to Dallas to face Arizona State (10-2) on Saturday for the Big 12 Conference championship. The game kicks at 11 a.m. CT and airs live on ABC from AT&T Stadium.

Here are some of the key notes Campbell had to say:

Matt Campbell on Big 12 not getting a bye in the College Football Playoff

“We need Coach (Mike) Gundy to answer that question,” Campbell said. “I’m probably not qualified enough, I mean, shoot, I told the kids after (beating Kansas State) that we were in the Big 12 championship game and Skip and our whole staff ruined it for me and said we weren’t in. So I didn’t even know that.

“I think week-to-week and this conference, what it’s stood for, that’s not to say any other conference is better or worse, I just know what this conference and the quality of coaching that’s going in in this conference, the quality of players, if you don’t play football, you’re not going to win in this conference right now.

“I give this conference a lot of credit. I give the players in this conference a lot of credit. And I think there should be a lot of respect, certainly, about what this conference has stood for.”

Matt Campbell on Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo

“He’s dynamic in terms of being his skill to run away from you, but also, this unbelievable electric power to run through you,” Campbell said. “Anytime you see a guy playing the game of football the way he plays, you have a sudden respect for him; just a really impressive football player.

“I think everybody in our program has the respect for his ability not only as a runner, but also as a pass catcher. It’s really fun to watch and it’ll be a great challenger for us.”

Matt Campbell on difference between 2020 title game and this year

“I just remember 2020 was so different,” he said. “It was a different animal and you had great guys like Jaylin and Darien and Huff that were part of that journey. We always try to use history as a great post to how we grow forward.

“At the end of the day, I think the reality of what this group has stood for since January has been working to believe that we could be a team that could be here in this moment.”

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