Iowa State Cyclones Predicted to Play Slumping SEC School in Bowl Game

Which team from the SEC could the Iowa State Cyclones play in a bowl game?

Sep 7, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; An Iowa State Cyclones helmet sits on the sidelines before the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

With the Iowa State Cyclones heading into their final bye week of the year, the 2025 campaign is quickly coming to a close. 

It has been a bit of a tale of two seasons for the program. To start the year, the Cyclones were 5-0 and looked like one of the best teams in all of college football. Iowa State got up to being ranked 14th nationally and appeared to be a Big 12 title contender. 

Unfortunately, injuries started to pile up, and the team went into a massive slide, losing four straight games. Despite not having their best performance in Week 11, they were able to pull off the upset against the TCU Horned Frogs. 

This was an important game for both teams, but for two very different reasons. While the Horned Frogs still controlled their own destiny to get to a Big 12 title game, the Cyclones were trying to get the sixth win of the year that was alluding them. 

Now, with the team officially being bowl eligible, they will be trying to improve their record to get in the best bowl game possible. With two more winnable games on the schedule, they can certainly accomplish that and finish the regular season with an 8-4 record.

The Athletic (subscription required) recently predicted that the Cyclones would be facing the Missouri Tigers in a bowl game this winter. 

Tigers Trending Down

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

After a really strong start to the campaign, the Tigers are unfortunately heading in the wrong direction with an injury to their star quarterback crippling their hopes of being in the College Football Playoff. To start the year, Missouri was 5-0 but has since lost three of its last four games. 

While a three-point loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide proved that they could contend in the SEC, the loss of their quarterback to a brutal injury against the Vanderbilt Commodores was a significant blow to their goals. 

Since the injury, the team has yet to win a game, and they are trending in the wrong direction. With three more SEC games left on the schedule, the Tigers are going to have a challenging time for the rest of the month. 

If this does end up being the matchup for Iowa State, they would be in a strong position to secure the bowl win. While the Tigers have had some high upside this year, playing without their quarterback limits that, and the Cyclones would likely be able to take advantage.