Week 13 of the college football season is here and there is still plenty on the line with conference play in full swing. One of the most important games of the weekend took place in Salt Lake City, Utah as the Utah Utes hosted the Iowa State Cyclones.
Iowa State was fresh off a big win against Cincinnati at home while Utah was coming off a tough loss on the road against Colorado. This game had plenty of drama, but in the end Iowa State came out on top 31-28. Here are my three takeaways from the game.
Iowa State Found a Way
I don’t know how Iowa State did it but they won this game despite trying to give it away. Rocco Becht threw a pick six in the first quarter and then the Cyclones muffed a punt not long after that to help the Utes put more points on the board. But that wasn’t even the worst thing that happened. In the fourth quarter, Iowa State had a punt blocked that went for a touchdown that gave Utah life. It seemed like every time I looked up, the Cyclones were giving the Utes the game on a silver platter.
Luckily for Iowa State, their offense came up big when it mattered most. With less than six minutes to play down by four, Rocco Becht led a 10 play 75-yard touchdown drive that gave the Cyclones a three-point lead with just 1:31 left to play. From there, the defense bent but didn’t break as Utah missed a game trying 54-yard field goal with less than 20 seconds left.
Utah Still Has Problems Offensively
Don’t let the scoreboard fool you, Utah’s offense didn’t do much to help with the 28 points that were scored in this game for the Utes. Utah’s first touchdown came from a pick six by Lander Barton who took it 87 yards to the house. Then early in the fourth quarter, Utah blocked a punt and scored off that as well. Between the two plays, that was half of the points Utah scored on Saturday night.
While the other half came from Utah’s offense, it was mostly because the defense put them in good field position. A muffed punt by Iowa State helped put three on the board for Utah but outside of that, Utah’s offense only put together one good drive in this game. The good news for them is that it was an important drive. Down by five in the fourth quarter, the Utes put together a ten-play touchdown drive that took over six minutes off the clock and gave them the lead.
Unfortunately for them, they didn’t do much outside of that. Quarterbacks Isaac Wilson and Luke Bottari combined for only 129 passing yards and Utah’s run game was nonexistent with just 95 yards on 28 carries. It doesn’t matter who you are playing, 224 yards off offense isn’t going to win you many football games.
Iowa State is Back in Control
Coming into Saturday, things were looking pretty bleak for Iowa State. They had lost two of their last three games after a 7-0 start and needed a whole lot of help to find their way into Arlington. Well, some crazy things ended up happening as Arizona State beat BYU and Kansas took down Colorado. That meant if Iowa State took care of Utah on Saturday night, then the Cyclones would be back in control of their own destiny.
Iowa State’s win over the Utes put them back in control as they are all of sudden back as one of the two favorites to make it to Jerry World. However, there is one team left standing in their way. That team is none other than the Kansas State Wildcats. Coming into the season, this was a game I circled because I thought it would have a significant impact on the Big 12 title race. While it may only apply to one team it still is a huge game in the conference. It’s Farmageddon next weekend in Ames, Iowa. Buckle up because it’s going to be a good one.
