Iowa State Cyclones Football Predicted to Face Group of Five Team in Bowl Game

Who were the Iowa State Cyclones recently predicted to play in a bowl game?

Jul 14, 2022; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of the Iowa State Cyclones helmet logo during the Big 12 Media Day at AT&T Stadium. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones were able to get some rest in Week 12 before their final two games of the year. 

Before heading on their bye week, the Cyclones finally snapped a long four-game losing streak against the TCU Horned Frogs. This was a shocking win for the program, considering how they were playing coming into the matchup. 

However, despite really not playing all that well, Iowa State was able to secure the win thanks to a lot of mistakes by the Horned Frogs. The win gave them their sixth of the year, and they are now officially bowl eligible. 

While making a bowl game is always a good accomplishment, the Cyclones were undoubtedly looking for more this campaign. Now, while they won’t be competing for a Big 12 title, they do have a chance to get to eight wins during the regular season and perhaps earn a ninth with a bowl victory. 

Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach of ESPN recently wrote about their bowl predictions following Week 12. For the Cyclones, each of them had them facing an interesting Group of Five team in the Memphis Tigers. 

Tigers Would Present an Interesting Matchup

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In most of the early bowl predictions, Iowa State has been facing SEC schools. However, Memphis would be an interesting opponent for the Cyclones, and the Group of Five teams love to play spoiler in a bowl game against a Power Four conference. 

It has been an interesting season for the Tigers in 2025. With an 8-3 record, they would have figured to be right in the mix for their conference. However, back-to-back losses to the Tulane Green Wave and East Carolina Pirates have ended those chances. 

However, this is a team that is very talented and bowl-eligible already. The Tigers would present the Cyclones with a bit of a tough matchup with an excellent offense, both on the ground and through the air. The Tigers have three players with at least 500 rushing yards, including their quarterback. 

As a passer, Brendon Lewis has also been very effective with almost 2.500 yards through the air. Iowa State has seen a lot of dual-threat quarterbacks this year, and the results have been mixed. While the Tigers are good through the air, this is a team that wants to run the ball first and foremost. While there is still a lot of time to decide what the matchup is going to be, Memphis would be a challenging one with their offensive abilities.