The Good, Bad and Ugly From Iowa State Cyclones First Loss to Cincinnati Bearcats

The Iowa State Cyclones suffered their first loss of the season against the Cincinnati Bearcats in an underwhelming performance.

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The Iowa State Cyclones knew they were in for a tough one heading to Nippert Stadium to face the Cincinnati Bearcats in their first true road game of their Big 12 schedule.

Iowa State was blitzed early, going into an early 17-0 hole before the first quarter even ended. It proved to be too much to overcome, ultimately resulting in a 38-30 loss. It is the first defeat for the Cyclones this year, dropping them to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in conference.

Attention will now turn to their next opponent. Can they get back on track next week for another road contest against the Colorado Buffaloes? To get back into the win column, there are several key takeaways from the game to address, the majority of which are not of a positive nature. 

1. The Good - Rocco Becht Stars

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The toughness of the Cyclones' star quarterback was on full display Saturday afternoon. He took a beating at points in the game, having to get evaluated on the sideline after being hit in the helmet on a targeting call.

But Becht didn’t waver in how he played the game. Despite constantly taking hits, he continually showcased a willingness to do whatever it took to help his team win a game.

While it wasn’t enough to get a victory, Becht went down fighting. He had a season-high 314 passing yards, completing 30 of 48 attempts. A hand was had in all of the team’s touchdowns, throwing for two scores while adding two more on the ground.

Cincinnati’s defense is susceptible to being beaten through the air, and Iowa State took full advantage. Eight different players caught a pass in the game. Brett Eskildsen led the way with eight receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown. The other receiving score was recorded by Chase Sowell, who caught five passes for 58 yards.

2. The Bad - More Injuries

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Iowa State’s defense got off to a painfully slow start. But it wasn’t overly surprising given the number of injuries they are dealing with. Playing without their star cornerbacks, Jeremiah Cooper and Jontez Williams, is a challenge.

Unfortunately, the injury bug hit them again. Running back Carson Hansen was injured on the team’s final drive of the first half and didn’t return to the field after halftime. Before going down, he handled six carries for 33 yards and caught one pass for 11 yards.

Abu Sama III stepped up as the every-down replacement in his stead. He carried the ball 18 times for 96 yards, adding two receptions for eight yards.

Hansen was the only player who exited the game, but he was far from the only one ailing on the afternoon. Chase Sowell looked to suffer a head injury early on, but did return. Later in the game, he looked to be dealing with cramps. Cornerback Quentin Taylor Jr. came off the field multiple times as well.

3. The Ugly - Sloppiness All Around

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One thing Cyclones fans have become accustomed to seeing from their favorite team is disciplined, clean performance on the field. That wasn’t the case on Saturday, as their sloppiness cost them.

Iowa State committed eight penalties, costing them 60 yards. The Bearcats were even worse, committing 13 penalties for 128 yards.

However, even sloppier for the Cyclones than their discipline was their tackling. That has been one of their strengths through five games, making stops when they were needed. Alas, it was inconsistent against Cincinnati.

The Bearcats churned out 260 yards on the ground, constantly gaining chunk yards while breaking tackles. They surrendered an uncharacteristic 7.6 yards per carry. Running backs Evan Pryor and Tawee Walker and quarterback Brendan Sorsby all had at least one rush of 17+ yards.

Every player who caught a pass for Cincinnati had a long of at least 10 yards. It was far from a clean performance from a defense that had been excellent coming into the game.