Iowa State Gets Big Win At Nebraska
Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads celebrates a 9-7 win (AP Photo/ Dave Weaver)
On Saturday, the Iowa State Cyclones traveled to Lincoln, Nebraska where they haven’t tasted victory in over 30 years. The win-less streak in Lincoln that dated back to 1977 was snapped after the Cyclones upset the Nebraska Cornhuskers 9-7 in front of more than 85,000 Nebraska fans. The 18 1/2 point underdog Cyclones are now 5-3 with two losses in Kansas by narrow margins and have really become a factor in the Big 12 North. Nebraska really handed the Cyclones the victory, as they committed a school record 8 turnovers, with four of them coming inside the Cyclones 5 yard line. Iowa State was able to hold on to the 9-7 win despite not having their 2 star offensive players in QB Austen Arnaud and RB Alexander Robinson, and having a few players sick with a stomach bug throughout much of the game.
The win snaps a 14 game Big 12 road losing streak and brings the Cyclones within 1 game of bowl eligibility this year. Coach Rhoads was very proud of the way his Cyclones played and is relieved to have another monkey off their back. “When you don’t win in a stadium on the road since 1977, it’s big,” Coach Rhoads said. “This is a program that was in the Top 25 a week ago. It’s a big win.” With Arnaud and Robinson out for the game, the Cyclones relied heavily on their defense and boy did they come up big for Iowa State. Backup QB Jerome Tiller started his first game as a Cyclone and managed the offense well, and RB Jeremiah Schwartz filled in for the injured Alexander Robinson.
Key Performances
Cyclones Defense : The Cyclones Defense played out of their minds good against Nebraska. Not only did they force a whopping 8 turnovers, they also held Nebraska to only 114 yards rushing, 362 total yards, and only 7 points. The Cyclones defense forced 5 fumbles and 3 interceptions, and stopped a huge 4th down conversion.
- Jesse Smith – Senior LB Jesse Smith won Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance against Nebraska. Jesse had 12 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 FF, INT, deflection for an INT.
- James Smith – The Senior CB had 8 tackles, FF, and 2 fumble recoveries for the Cyclones before being ejected for allegedly throwing a punch.
- David Sims – Cyclones CB David Sims added another great performance against the Cornhuskers as he had 9 total tackles, FF, FR, and an interception that he returned 16 yards.
- Michael O’Connell – The third CB in the Cyclones’ Trio had an interception, fumble recovery and 1 tipped ball. The three safeties combined for 6 of the 8 turnovers that the Cyclones had.
David Sims intercepts pass against Nebraska (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)
Jerome Tiller : For being his first career start in Memorial Stadium, Freshman QB Jerome Tiller managed a solid performance. While he only completed 9 of 19 passes for 102 yards, he led the Cyclone offense to a zero turnover performance and managed the clock by possessing the ball for 33 minutes. He added the big play that the Cyclones needed to come out with a win when he connected with Jake Williams on a 47 yard touchdown pass, and also added 65 yards rushing on 19 carries.
Jake Williams : Junior WR Jake Williams had the only touchdown for the Cyclones against Nebraska. Jerome Tiller hit Williams on a 47 yard touchdown strike to put the cyclones up 9-7 and a touchdown that went on to be the game winner. Williams has been a factor in the Cyclone pass game all year and showed that he has the big play potential at receiver.
Michael Brandtner : The Cyclone punter had a busy day in Lincoln, on his way to Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week honors. He punted 9 times for 360 yards, a 40 yard punt average, and put 5 punts inside the 20 yard line. On top of that, Brandtner converted on a crucial 4th down fake punt play in the second quarter that led to the Williams 47 yard TD catch. He took the 4th down punt snap and rushed 20 yards for the first down to keep the drive alive.
Iowa State Vs. Nebraska Scoring Summary
ISU Jake Williams (Ap Photo/Dave Weaver)
First Quarter :
Iowa State: 3, Nebraska: 0 – Cylcone K Grant Mahoney hits a 52 yard field goal following the interception by Kennard Banks on Nebraska’s opening drive. The field goal opened the scoring just 1:36 into the game.
Iowa State: 3, Nebraska: 7 – The Cornhuskers get on the board when true freshman RB Dontrayevous Robinson scored a TD on a 3 yard rush with just under 3 and a half minutes left in the first quarter to give Nebraska a 4 point lead.
Second Quarter :
Iowa State: 9, Nebraska: 7 – Jerome Tiller hooked up with Jake Williams on a 47 yard bomb for a touchdown with 7 minutes remaining in the first half to give the Cyclones a 9-7 lead. The PAT was blocked, resulting in the fourth missed PAT in 4 games for Grant Mahoney. The game ended with a score of 9-7 for the Cyclones.
End Of Scoring
Iowa State Vs. Nebraska Video
The Cyclones force 8 Cornhusker Turnovers
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