Last week was a bizarre game. We saw the offense clicking on all cylinders and looked to have the capability to score over 40 points on BYU’s defense, but it all crumbled down in the second half. Missed
throws and miscommunication seemed to plague the pass game throughout the rest of the game, and we just couldn’t fight our way back. This week, however, the Cyclones are set to bounce back in a big way against the 9th-best defense in the conference.
Iowa State
Last week showed us the good, the bad, and the downright ugly of this offense. We saw running lanes so wide that you could drive a semi-truck through them. We saw Rocco throw absolute dimes to open receivers. We even saw an offensive line that didn’t have a personal vendetta against blocking people. To say that fans were finally excited to put up big numbers against a tough opponent is an understatement. Unfortunately, it was short-lived. But at least Kyle Konrardy is back (also good job Perkins on that snag and hold)!
This week, we are going to focus on a player and a coach. We have seen it time and time again where Rocco Becht and Taylor Mouser seem to be evil geniuses and playing 5D chess while the opposing defense is playing hide-and-seek. The frustrating part is the consistency. Some drives are five plays or fewer for a touchdown, while other drives end up being a three-and-out while gaining two yards. Obviously, you can put this on errors, but at the end of the day, this offense has not been able to find its true stride in conference play.
Now coming into a Big 12 Championship rematch against Arizona State, whose defense gave us trouble, Rocco and Taylor need to find that consistency to try and escape a losing streak. Rocco this season has 1,933 passing yards, 60 rushing yards, 10 passing touchdowns, seven rushing touchdowns, and six interceptions. Rocco doubled his interceptions last week against BYU, and was not helped by miscommunication and poor throws (or drops). With this team now fighting on the cusp of bowl eligibility and having the benefit of a slightly easier back-end schedule, it will be imperative for Rocco and Taylor to turn it around this week to give the team that confidence boost heading into the home stretch.
Arizona State
As most Iowa State fans know, I am going to go ahead and fuel the fire for the curse. Arizona State is going to be without star quarterback Sam Leavitt, as he was seen walking around in a boot earlier this week. What does that mean for Iowa State fans? Well, that means their new starting quarterback, Jeff Sims, is about to have the game of his life. If you think you’ve heard that name before, it’s probably because you have. Sims has been playing college football since 2020 and is the final round of 30-year-olds playing college sports, thanks to COVID.
Have some highlights from 2022, because after that year, it did not go well. After his outstanding freshman year in 2020 that saw him pass for 1,881 yards, 13 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, 492 rushing yards, and six touchdowns, his play and stats dropped off. In 2022, he had a lingering foot injury that saw him sidelined for half the season before transferring to Matt Rhule’s Nebraska for the 2023 season. He ended up playing behind Heinrich Haarberg and Chubba Purdy. In 2024, he transferred again, landing at Arizona State in what I could only assume was to fight and be the starter, eventually losing out to Sam Leavitt.
At Arizona State, Jeff has played in 9 games, throwing for 350 yards, one touchdown, and ran for 203 yards and a touchdown. It will be up to the Cyclone defense to fix the coverage errors and force him on the ground.
