AMES, Ia. — An 0-2 start to the most anticipated Iowa State football season in ages wasn’t what anyone planned. But that’s not…
AMES, Ia. — An 0-2 start to the most anticipated Iowa State football season in ages wasn’t what anyone planned.
But that’s not what matters anymore.
All that matters now is the upcoming four-game stretch that awaits the Cyclones following a 37-27 loss Saturday afternoon to No. 5 Oklahoma at Jack Trice Stadium.
That stretch will determine if Iowa State fans are preparing for a bowl game or basketball season. It will determine if the Cyclones really can live up to the high expectations that exited heading into the season.
Here’s what Matt Campbell’s team now faces over the next four games:
Akron: Any path to bowl eligibility includes winning this game. But the Cyclones don’t just have to win this game. They have to find a way to get back on track with the tackling that plagued it throughout Saturday’s loss to the Sooners.
Texas Christian: Head coach Gary Patterson and his team certainly haven’t forgotten the celebration that unfolded in front of them during a 14-7 upset by the Cyclones that made them bowl eligible a year ago.
Oklahoma State: The Cowboys should be right in the middle of a battle for the top of the Big 12 Conference standings. And the Cowboys won’t overlook the Cyclones and how close they came to knocking them off a year ago.
West Virginia: This might be one of Dana Holgorsen’s best teams in Morgantown with Will Grier under center. The Mountaineers can’t waste his time there and they can’t afford a letdown against Iowa State.
It isn’t until that stretch that things finally get easier. Wins against Kansas, Baylor and Incarnate Word are safe assumptions for the Cyclones. But even the back end of the schedule has its challenges.
A trip to Austin to face that Texas defense brings its share of challenges. But who knows where Tom Herman’s team will be by then?
Playing Kansas State is never easy, as evidenced by Iowa State’s string of setbacks to the Wildcats. Last season showed that anything can happen against that team.
So that brings us back to the upcoming four games awaiting the Cyclones. A 1-3 finish or worse likely closes the door on Iowa State’s shot at a second-straight bowl game.
It’s not impossible to overcome. If last year’s Cyclones taught us anything, it’s to never give up on Campbell’s teams. But this year has already taught us there are times to worry.
That’s why all eyes should be on the looming part of the schedule — not the end.
