Iowa State Upsets Oklahoma 37-30, Beating Sooners in Ames for First Time Since 1960
1960. That was the last time Iowa State beat Oklahoma in Ames. 1999. That was the last time OU had lost two-straight regular season games.
While there was very little the first 30 minutes of this game that led one to believe these two streaks would end, Iowa State erased a double-digit deficit to come back and beat the Sooners 37-30 to cap off another wild day for the Big 12 Conference.
The Sooners got on the board first, putting together a 74-yard drive in seven plays, capped off with Gabe Brkic’s 18-yard field goal. Iowa State responded with a methodical nine-play, 57-yard drive of their own that ended with Connor Assalley’s 35-yard field goal to tie the game.
OU then took it up a notch, rolling through 10 plays and 85 yards as Spencer Rattler ran it in from five yards out and the Sooners took a 10-3 lead in Ames. Iowa State took the ball back down inside the OU 10-yard line, but the drive stalled there and Connor Assalley made it a 10-6 game with a 26-yard field goal.
But while Iowa State was knocking through field goals, OU was putting up touchdowns. On the next drive, OU made it a 17-6 game less than three minutes later as Austin Stogner had 45 receiving yards on the drive and Jeremiah Hall hauled in a four-yard touchdown grab from Rattler.
But that would be it for the OU offense for nearly two quarters.
As for Iowa State, the Cyclones got back on the board before halftime, going 85 yards in just six plays, including a big 42-yard strike from Brock Purdy to Tyrique Milton, and then it was Breece Hall with a short touchdown run as Iowa State cut the Sooners’ lead to 17-13. OU had a chance at a field goal as time expired, but Brkic missed his first field goal in his career, a 54-yarder, and OU held onto a four-point lead at halftime.
To start the second half, Iowa State’s Assalley knocked through his third field goal of the night from 32 yards out to cut OU’s lead to 17-16.
But the kicking contest continued, as Brkic responded with a 33-yarder of his own as OU ended an 11-play, 50-yard drive, as OU went up 20-16.
But then came the first big strike of the second half. Following an OU penalty, which was a continuing problem for both teams all night, Brock Purdy hit Xavier Hutchinson on a crossing route in man coverage and Hutchinson took it 65 yards to the house as Iowa State took its first lead of the night 23-20. OU would respond with a 51-yard field goal from Brkic to tie the game at 23.
The first turnover of the game came at the 10:01 mark of the fourth quarter when defensive lineman Isaiah Thomas got to Brock Purdy for a sack and fumble. It was a game-defining moment for OU for several reasons, as the Sooners have won the turnover battle just once in their last 13 games . It plagued them last week in their loss to K-State and defensive coordinator Alex Grinch began catching some heat for it in recent days.
Four plays later OU found pay dirt as Rattler hooked up with Jeremiah Hall for a three-yard touchdown.
But that momentum was short lived, as Kene Nwangwu came back with an 84-yard kick return that set up Brock Purdy’s two-yard TD run just three plays later as ISU tied the game at 30.
The Iowa State defense then came on strong and sacked Spencer Rattler to force a three and out with six minutes remaining and that’s when Iowa State rode Breece Hall to the lead once again. Hall broke off a 36-yard run, which set up his 8-yard TD run and the Cyclones went up 37-30 with 4:06 remaining.
On OU’s final drive, Spencer Rattler was intercepted in the end zone by Isheem Young. There was a controversial no-call against Iowa State for Greg Eisworth tugging the jersey of Charleston Rambo, but the officiating crew missed the call and the Cyclones would run out the clock for their first win at home against OU since three days before John F. Kennedy was elected.
Following the win, Matt Campbell credited his veterans for this win, telling ESPN, “It’s our senior class. We’ve got 16 seniors here… we’ve got to keep building.”
The Cyclones won’t have much time to celebrate as they welcome in Texas Tech next weekend. Meantime, the Sooners are now 0-2 in Big 12 play and head down to Dallas to play in the Red River Rivalry against the Texas Longhorns next weekend.
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