Iowa State Snaps the Farmageddon Curse of Bill Snyder
Since 2007, Iowa State has lost to Kansas State on the gridiron in the annual “Farmageddon” matchup. Whether it has been close calls or blowouts, Iowa State always seemed to come up short when facing the Wildcats. However, in dramatic fashion, the Cyclones would battle back and end the streak which I call “The Curse of Bill Snyder”. Not only did the Cyclones end the losing streak but is it possible they beat Bill Snyder in his last game on the sidelines? That remains to be seen.
The game started slowly as Kansas State had two punts to start things off and the Cyclones turned it over on downs deep in Wildcat territory. Then out of nowhere, there were four consecutive touchdown drives between the two teams. Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy found Hakeem Butler for a short score and running back David Montgomery found pay dirt as well. As for the two Kansas State touchdowns, quarterback Skylar Thompson ran one in and then found wide out Isaiah Zuber for the other. After the four touchdown drives, Iowa State missed a field goal and then ended up fumbling a punt deep in their own territory. The Wildcats were able to take advantage of the mistake and ended up scoring thanks to a Skylar Thompson touchdown pass to Isaiah Zuber with just thirty seconds left in the first half. Entering the break, the Wildcats led the Cyclones 21-14.
Iowa State came out hungry to start the second half as they marched the ball right down the field and when David Montgomery found the endzone, it was tied at 21 early in the third quarter. Thanks to a couple of Brock Purdy interceptions, Kansas State would capitalize once again by adding two more touchdowns and a field goal due to the turnovers. Give Kansas State quarterback Skylar Thompson credit for the two scoring drives by way of two touchdown passes.
With their backs against the wall, down 38-21 with around twelve minutes left in the game, Iowa State woke up and boy did they wake up angry. Quarterback Brock Purdy cleaned up his throws and led the Cyclones right down the field until he found Sam Seonbuchner for a short touchdown pass to cut the lead down to ten with ten minutes left to play. The Cyclones once again struck gold because on the following Wildcat possession, linebacker Willie Harvey sacked Skylar Thompson and when Thompson lost the football, Mike Rose was able to pick it up and score. Suddenly, the Wildcat lead was just 38-35 with 8:34 left in the ballgame and the pressure was all on Kansas State from that point.
The Iowa State defense bowed up and got a quick three and out and when they got the ball back, they scored by way of a David Montgomery touchdown run from 18-yards out to take a 42-38 lead with a little over four minutes left. Kansas State would get one last crack at it but ended up turning it over on downs in Iowa State territory. The Cyclones would complete the big comeback and go on to win 42-38.
Give Kansas State credit because this was maybe their best offensive performance on the season and they were able to capitalize off turnovers. Skylar Thompson made some nice throws and running back Alex Barnes rushed for 184 yards to lead the rushing attack. In the end, they look rattled when the lead started to shrink. For Iowa State, they did a nice job to start the second half but too many mistakes nearly cost them the game. However, never count out a Matt Campbell coached team because they fought like hell to claw their way back in and ultimately found a way to win. David Montgomery and Hakeem Butler made plays when it mattered most, even if they made some mistakes earlier in the game.
With the win, Iowa State moves to 7-4 and will host Drake next week. Meanwhile, Kansas State will fall to 5-7 and miss out on a bowl game. But the most important storyline in the game: this may have been the Purple Wizard’s last game on a Kansas State sideline. That remains to be seen.
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