After wrapping up non-conference play with a 42-7 thrashing of Texas State, the No.17 Baylor Bears open Big 12 play with a trip to Ames to face the Iowa State Cyclones on Saturday.
Baylor (2-1), the defending Big 12 champion, has had success in its recent conference openers, going 7-1 and out-scoring opponents by an average of 45-28 in eight Big 12 openers since 2013.
Against Iowa State, however, Baylor has not been able to win by comfortable margins. A combined total of 11 points has decided the last three games between these two.
The Bears have won two of the last three meetings, with Iowa State claiming the previous win in Ames in 2020, 38-31, and Baylor escaping with a narrow 31-29 win in the meeting in Waco last year. The win last season came despite Iowa State owning a 479-282 edge in total offense, a 216-123 margin in rushing yards, and committing 85 fewer yards in penalties.
The Bears have won six of the last nine meetings against the Cyclones; however, they have not won in Ames since 2016, a 45-42 win.
Baylor failed its only test on the road so far this season, dropping a tough double-overtime game to BYU 26-20. Like BYU’s LaVell Edwards Stadium, Iowa State’s Jack Trice Stadium is also known as one of the harshest environments for visiting teams.
The trip to BYU may be vital for a Baylor team that lost many veteran starters from last season. The new crop of young Bears players should now have an idea of what to expect in Ames.
“You can take as much wisdom as you can,” said Baylor’s left tackle Connor Galvin, who’s made 40 career starts, including 29 in a row, “but ultimately, you have to go through it to understand how to handle that noise.”
Baylor also seems to have addressed a penalty issue. After being flagged 14 times for 117 yards in penalties against BYU, the Bears reduced that to 55 yards on five penalties in Saturday’s home win over Texas State.
Additionally, Baylor may have found a breakout star in true freshman running back Richard Reese, who ran for 156 yards and three touchdowns, including a 52-yarder in the win against Texas State.
The Bears entered the season intent on using a committee of running backs, but after his performance against Texas State, Reese is now the team’s leading rusher, 100 yards in front of Craig Williams.
Baylor will likely rely heavily on the run game against the Cyclones, so it will be interesting to see how many carries Reese is granted and if he continues his breakout.
Iowa State (3-0) has won all of its non-conference games to open the year, including blowouts over Southeast Missouri State and Ohio and a grind-it-out 10-7 win over rival Iowa on the road. It is the first time the Cyclones have started a season 3-0 since 2012.
A powerful run game (152.5 yards per game) has powered Iowa State’s undefeated start, led by redshirt junior Jirehl Brock, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. How the Cyclones running game performs against a solid Baylor run defense (allowing 85 ypg and 2.7 yards per carry) will go a long way in determining a winner.
Like Baylor, Iowa State also lost a plethora of veteran starters from last season, including quarterback Brock Purdy who was an NFL draft pick. Redshirt sophomore Hunter Dekkers took Purdy’s place, and he has played well, throwing for 745 yards and eight TDs — compared to just three interceptions with the nation’s fifth-best completion percentage (74.3).
Star redshirt senior wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson should get much credit for Dekker’s seamless transition into the starting role.
After setting a school record with 83 receptions last season, Hutchinson already has 28 catches, with at least eight receptions in all three games this season. He ranks 11th nationally in receiving yards (106.3) and fifth in receiving touchdowns (five).
The head coaching matchup will also be great. In his seventh season in Ames, Iowa State’s head coach Matt Campbell has established himself as one of the best in the nation.
While Baylor coach Dave Aranda went 2-7 in his first season in charge before leading the Bears on a historic 12-2 campaign last season that concluded with a Sugar Bowl victory.
The two teams will kick off at 11 a.m. CT Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.