Iowa State Cyclones Predicted to Face Slumping SEC Team in Bowl Game

Who will the Iowa State Cyclones end up playing in a bowl game?

Nov 9, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Iowa State Cyclones helmets on the bench during the first quarter against the Kansas Jayhawks at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. | William Purnell-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones will be playing their final regular-season game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys in a game that they should be able to win easily. 

As the Cyclones get ready to finish off the regular season on a positive note, the team has to be a tad frustrated with some of the opportunities that they missed along the way this year. Iowa State left some wins on the table and could have been playing for a lot more on Saturday against the Cowboys. 

However, with two straight wins, the team is starting to build some momentum once again. Quarterback Rocco Becht was fantastic in his last game after weeks of struggling. The program hopes that they will see that version of their quarterback in the finale. 

Due to Oklahoma State's firing of their head coach, Mike Gundy, early in the season, they have been waiting to get this campaign over with. The Cyclones should certainly pick up their eighth win of the year, and that could land them in a good bowl game. 

Scott Dochterman of The Athletic (subscription required) recently predicted that the Cyclones would be facing the Missouri Tigers from the SEC in the Texas Bowl. 

Iowa State Gets Slumping Tigers Team

Denny Medley-Imagn Images

After a red-hot start to the season, Missouri has struggled in conference play in the second half of the year. This was a team that was looking like a potential contender in the hardest conference in College Football, but as competition got harder, the Tigers started to falter. 

Furthermore, it didn't help that their starting quarterback got injured during that stretch as well. Due to their extremely challenging schedule, Missouri is a hard team to figure out. They have played close games with some of the best teams in the SEC but currently sit with a 7-4 record before their final game of the campaign against the Arkansas Razorbacks. 

The Tigers will likely win their final game, and with the Cyclones being heavy favorites as well in their finale, this could be a matchup of two 8-4 teams from different conferences. While it’s impossible to predict who might actually play in this hypothetical bowl game for either team, the Tigers would likely hold the advantage. 

This would be a good test for the Cyclones against a talented team from the SEC. Iowa State is certainly disappointed that they aren’t playing for a Big 12 Championship, but a 9-4 record at the end of the season would be solid.