Iowa State 29-21 Kansas State (November 30, 2024) Game Recap

AMES, Iowa – Rocco Becht threw two touchdowns and ran for another, and No. 17 Iowa State’s defense made big stops in the second half to help the Cyclones win their first 10-21 against Kansas State on Saturday night 29:21 to help. Winning season in program history.

“Our kids’ ability to make key plays in critical moments was certainly the difference in the game,” Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said. “We knew it was going to be a hard-fought football game because of the weather and the field. We had to do these plays. It’s probably fitting for this team to win this way and end the regular season. I’m really happy for them and what they’ve achieved and certainly what the future holds for them.”

Iowa State (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten, No. 18 CFP) needed BYU to beat Houston on Saturday night to clinch a spot in next week’s conference championship game against Arizona State.

Becht’s first touchdown pass, a 15-yarder to Jayden Higgins, came after Myles Purchase recovered Avery Johnson’s errant pitch on the game’s first play from scrimmage. Becht’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Jaylin Noel came after Joey Petersen recovered Keagan Johnson’s fumble. With the catch, Noel gained more than 1,000 yards this season.

Becht’s 5-yard run gave the Cyclones a 24-14 halftime lead.

“We can’t play against a team like that and make the mistakes we made,” K-State coach Chris Klieman said. “We made some mistakes in the first half that led to points and you can’t do that against good football teams. That’s obvious.”

“Congratulations to Matt and his team. They will represent the Big 12 well. They don’t make mistakes and we made them today and that put us in a corner at halftime.”

A safety and Kyle Konrardy’s 20-yard field goal gave Iowa State an eight-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.

The Wildcats (8-4, 5-4, No. 24 CFP) turned the ball over on downs at the Cyclones’ 35 when a pass fell out of Garrett Oakley’s hands with 4:59 left. They got the ball back on the final possession with no timeouts and 1:11 left when Kyle Konrardy missed the game-winning 37-yard field goal. K-State went nowhere as Avery Johnson was thrown out of the game on third down and Ta’Quan Roberson threw incomplete on fourth-and-15.

Becht took a knee and fans streamed from the stands to celebrate with the Cyclones on the field.

Avery Johnson threw touchdown passes of 28 and 65 yards to Jayce Brown in the first half, and his 7-yarder to Oakley brought K-State to within 24-21 late in the third quarter. He threw for 220 yards and ran for 64 on 13 carries, and Brown caught three balls for 106 yards.

The Cyclones made a huge stop early in the third after DJ Giddens’ 36-yard run put K-State inside the 5-yard line. They kept the Wildcats out of the end zone, and then Darien Porter darted through the right side of the line to block Chris Tennant’s 21-yard field goal attempt.

The defense recorded a safety when Jacob Ellis chased Avery Johnson into his own end zone. Johnson desperately unloaded the ball and was called for intentional grounding.

The snack bar

Kansas State: The Wildcats failed to play spoilsport after finding out earlier in the day that their chances of potentially reaching the Big 12 championship game were dashed. Their two turnovers, blocking a field goal, giving up a safety and failing to convert two fourth-and-2s hurt.

Iowa State: The Cyclones secured their first 10-win season in their program’s 133-year history and temporarily became BYU fans after their win.

Impact on the survey

Iowa State is looking to move up a few spots after its win.

Next

Kansas State: Will play in a bowl game.

Iowa State: Will play in a bowl game and possibly the Big 12 Championship Game.

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