ISU Home to Face Panthers

09.25.2006 | Football

By: Iowa State University

Iowa State, 2-2 after a 37-14 loss at No. 7 Texas last weekend, returns home to face Northern Iowa ... under head coach Dan McCarney, Iowa State has won the last four meetings between the two schools ... Iowa State shut out UNI, 23-0 in Ames in the 2004 season opener ... the Cyclones allowed just 99 offensive yards in that game ... Iowa State quarterback Bret Meyer hit on 24 passes on 42 pass attempts for 274 yards and two TDs at Texas ... Iowa State beat Toledo 45-43 in triple overtime and UNLV 16-10 in a game that went down to the contest's last play in the season's first two games ... the Cyclones led at Iowa 14-3 late in the second quarter but the Hawkeyes came back and won Sept. 26 in Iowa City, where Iowa is 32-3 since 2002 ... ISU held opponents to a school record low 139.2 rushing yards per game in 2004 and shattered that record, allowing just 102.7 rushing yards per game last season ... the Cyclones have allowed their opponents just 112 yards rushing in four 2006 games ... Northern Iowa opened the season with a 48-7 victory over Drake ... the Panthers then knocked off South Dakota State 27-17 on Sept. 16 in Cedar Falls ... Northern Iowa ranks seventh nationally in NCAA Division I-AA in scoring offense ... Iowa State head coach Dan McCarney, the Dean of Big 12 coaches in his 12th season, has coached five of ISU's seven-win teams in the history of Cyclone football ... Saturday's game is MAC's 134rd game as the winningest football mentor (54 wins) in school history ... McCarney is the ninth-longest tenured coach in Division I-A ... junior ISU QB Bret Meyer is now Iowa State's all-time career passing leader with 5,665 yards ... in the season-opening win against Toledo, Meyer ran for three touchdowns and passed for two others to pace Iowa State ... his TD passes came on consecutive overtime pass plays to WR Todd Blythe ... Blythe ranked second among the nation's receivers last season, averaging 19.61 yards per catch ... of Blythe's school-record 22 career TD grabs, 19 have come from Meyer, also an ISU record holder for touchdown passing tandems ... I-Back Stevie Hicks owns 10 career 100-yard games ... Iowa State LB Alvin Bowen leads the Cyclone defense with 54 tackles in the first four games ... Iowa State has been strong at home under Dan McCarney ... the Cyclones have won 11 of their last 14 home games, 12 of their last 15 home night games and 17 of their last 21 non-conference contests ... there have been 32 home crowds of at least 50,000 in Jack Trice Stadium since the facility opened in 1975 ... Iowa State looks to host more than 50,000 fans in Jack Trice for the Northern Iowa (Family Weekend) and the Nebraska game ... the Nebraska games will be Golden Rules day ... fans are encouraged to purchase Golden Rules T-Shirts at selected retail outlets or wear gold clothing for the Oct. 7 game against the Huskers.

LAST WEEK: NO. 7 TEXAS DERAILS CYCLONES, 37-14

Ominous skies rolled over Texas Memorial Stadium Saturday as the third quarter of the Iowa State-Texas game came to a close. The game was halted for 70 minutes just as the last quarter was about to begin. By then a Texas team that has not lost a Big 12 Conference game at home since 1998 had taken control of a game that saw Iowa State come back from a 16-0 early deficit to get back in the game. Ultimately, the No. 7 Longhorns dealt Iowa State a 37-14 defeat.

Iowa State trailed 16-0 before quarterback Bret Meyer marched the Cyclones 76 yards on nine plays, climaxed with a nifty shuttle pass to tight end Walter Nickel with 5:48 left in the first quarter to close the gap to 16-7. ISU drew closer on a six-yard TD pass from Meyer to Todd Blythe that made it 16-14 with 9:50 to go in the first half.

Meyer finished the game with 24 completions in 43 attempts for 274 yards and the two touchdowns. Two tipped balls were intercepted. Blythe had a season high six receptions for 68 yards.Austin Flynn led ISU with seven receptions for 90 yards.

With his pair of first half TD passes, QB Bret Meyer moves into second in ISU career TD passes with 34, passing Alex Espinoza (1984-86). The first TD pass was the first scoring catch for TE Walter Nickel of the season and the third of his career.

The second quarter TD catch by Todd Blythe on a pass from Bret Meyer was Blythe's 100th career reception. ISU WR Jon Davis also passed the century mark, the first time in school history that the Cyclones have had a pair of 100-catch receivers on the same team. Blythe also joined Lane Danielsen (2000-03/2,690) and Tracy Henderson (2,048/1982-84) as 2,000-yard career receivers.

A key play in the game came in the second quarter with Texas leading 23-14. Iowa State had stopped the Longhorns on a third-and-13 play at the Texas 22-yard. ISU was whistled for a personal foul which gave UT new life at the Longhorn 37 yard line. Texas scored six plays later and took a 30-14 advantage into the lockerroom at halftime.

The weather delay was Iowa State's first since a local tornado delay by 40 minutes before the start of the Colorado game in Ames last season. Before that, the previous weather was during a 1992 Iowa State win over Ohio in Ames.

NORTHERN IOWA AND HEAD COACH MARK FARLEY

A perennial NCAA Divison I-AA power, Northern Iowa is coming off its best season ... the Panthers went 11-4 last season, winning seven of their last eight games to advance to the NCAA Division I-AA title game, which they lost to Appalachian State, 21-16 ... UNI opened the 2006 season with a 48-7 win at Drake ... Northern Iowa fell at home to North Dakota (35-31) before rebounding to beat South Dakota State, 27-17 Sept. 16, in the UNI-Dome ... Farley is in his sixth year as head coach at Northern Iowa with a 46-21 record ... the Waukon native was a three-year starter for the Panthers at inside linebacker and was the team's leading tackles from 1986-88 ... Farley is 0-3 against Iowa State head coach Dan McCarney and Iowa State.

IOWA STATE-NORTHERN IOWA

Iowa State leads the series 17-3-3 ... there have been memorable games in the series ... Oct. 10, 1987 ... Jeff Shudak kicked a 28-yard field goal in the final two minutes to cap an 18-0 ISU run and provide for a 39-38 win ... Oct. 8, 1988 ... ISU QB Bret Oberg hooked up with Dennis Ross (who took over the game) for 21 yards on second-and-three and Jeff Shudak added the PAT ... Sept. 8, 1990 ... Iowa State rolled up 322 rushing yards and opened the season with a 35-6 win over UNI ... Sept. 26, 1992 ... Scott Obermeier kicked four field goals, Iowa State turned the ball over five times including an interception returned 61 yards by Jason McCleary as UNI prevailed 27-10 for the Panthers' first win over Iowa State since 1900 ... Sept. 3, 1994 ... Northern Iowa halfback Jeff Stovall pounded out 99 yards rushing on 23 carries and scored two touchdowns as Northern Iowa prevailed, 28-14 for its second straight win over Iowa State ... UNI QB Brett O'Donnell hit on 14-of-28 passes for 185 yards and two TDs, including a 21-yard scoring toss to jake Kothe that gave the Panthers a 14-0 lead with 27 seconds left ... Sept. 21, 1996 ... Heisman Trophy finalist Troy Davis, playing in front of his father for the first as a collegian, took over the game, rushing a school-record 53 times for 241 yards and five touchdowns. ... LB Michael Cooper had a big interception to kill a UNI drive ... Sept. 8, 2001 ... Iowa State quarterback Seneca Wallace wowed a crowd of 47,092 with first quarter TD runs of 27 and 60 yards in his first collegiate game ... Ennis Haywood rushed for 107 yards and a pair of TDs ... Iowa State wins 45-0 ... Aug. 30, 2003 ... With freshman QB Austin Flynn, FB Ryan Kock and IB Stevie Hicks all in the starting lineup, Iowa State beat Nothern Iowa, 17-10 ... Sept. 4, 2004 ... Iowa State showcased a stingy defense, allowing 2003 NCAA Division I-AA quarterfinalist Northern Iowa just 99 net yards .. UNI did not cross the 50-yard line until reaching the Cyclone 49 late in the game.

THIS DATE IN HISTORY (Sept. 30); BIG ?38 SEASON BEGAN AT DENVER:

Under head coach Charles "uncle Charlie" Mayser and starting back Durwood "Durry" Moss led the the Cyclones to a 19-0 season opening win over Northern Iowa.

IOWA STATE FOOTBALL -- BIG 12 BOWL LEADER

Only Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma have gone to more bowl games (6) than Iowa State (5) since the start of the 2000 season.

Bowls since 2000:

6 - Texas Tech, Texas and Oklahoma

5 - Iowa State, Nebraska

4 - Kansas State, Colorado

3 - Oklahoma State, Texas A&M

2 - Kansas, Missouri

0 - Baylor

MEYER AMONG MOST EFFICIENT ISU QB's...

Iowa State quarterback Bret Meyer has developed into one of the most efficient quarterbacks in Iowa State history with 34 career TD passes to 19 interceptions.

RUMBLE, YOUNG MAN, RUMBLE

Iowa State senior FB Ryan Kock scored his 16th career touchdown against UNLV ... last season he tallied 13 TDs on just 54 carries last ... Kock set an ISU single-season record for rushing touchdowns by a fullback with his touchdown in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma State last season ... the previous record was nine, set by Tom Watkins in 1960 ... Watkins scored a total of 10 touchdowns that year, with the 10th being on an interception return ... Kock was ninth on ISU's single-season rushing touchdown list (all positions).

GO LONG!

Iowa State junior WR Todd Blythe has proven to be a deep threat for the Cyclone offense, utilizing his 6-5 frame and leaping ability to pluck balls away from opposing defensive backs ... it was Blythe's catches on consecutive passes from Bret Meyer in the second and third overtimes that led to the Cyclones' 45-43 win over Toledo in triple overtime, the school's first-ever overtime win (1-5) ... not only does Blythe own ISU's career mark for TD receptions (22), but in 2005 he was second in the nation in yards per catch among receivers with four or more catches per game.

TURNOVER MARGIN A KEY TO VICTORY

Coach McCarney has put a premium on increasing the number of turnovers forced by his defense ... when Iowa State has finished the season ahead in turnover margin and points off turnovers margin, the Cyclones have posted a winning record (2000, 2001, 2004, 2005).

TRADITION OF BALL SECURITY

Counting lost fumbles by the whole team, ISU is tied for fourth in Division I-A in fewest fumbles lost since the start of the 1999 season and leads the Big 12 Conference by a wide margin.

PICK A LITTLE

Bret Meyer's 2005 interception-free streak reached a school-record 155 attempts before a third-quarter pick at Kansas ... Meyer's stretch spanned over 22 full quarters and parts of six games ... the previous school record was 141 attempts, set by Todd Bandhauer in 1997 ... this was the first time since the inception of the Big Six Conference in 1928 that ISU has gone four consecutive games (OSU, A&M, KSU, CU) without throwing an interception.

TAKING MY BALL AND GOING HOME

The Iowa State defense made 22 interceptions in 2005, leading the conference and ranking tied for third nationally ... the 22 picks were ISU's most since 1976 ... the defense's 35 takeaways were the most in nearly a quarter-century.

IOWA STATE'S 2006 TEAM CAPTAINS

The Cyclones have four captains for the 2006 season: Junior quarterback Bret Meyer, senior wide receiver Austin Flynn, senior defensive tackle Brent Curvey and senior defensive back DeAndre Jackson.

McCARNEY'S CYCLONES IN THE NFL

An indicator of Iowa State's continued improvement under Dan McCarney is the number of ISU student-athletes who have gone on to the professional ranks ... ISU's NFL players at the start of training camp are all McCarney products: Jordan Carstens (DL, Carolina), Reggie Hayward (DE, Jacksonville), Ellis Hobbs (DB, New England), James Reed (DL, Kansas City Chiefs), Sage Rosenfels (QB, Houston), Oliver Ross (OL, Arizona), Seneca Wallace (QB, Seattle), Tony Yelk (PK, Atlanta), Tim Dobbins (LB, San Diego), LaMarcus Hicks (DB, Detroit), Landon Schrage (DS, Baltimore), Steve Paris (S, Baltimore), Nick Leaders (NG, Baltimore).

WATCH LIST MANIA

Several of Iowa State's players have been recognized as ranking among the nation's best at their respective positions:

Bret Meyer, QB Maxwell Award; Davey O'Brien Award
Archie Manning Award

Scott Stephenson C Rimington Award; Lombardi Trophy

Brent Curvey DT Outland Trophy/Nagurski Award;
Lombardi Trophy

TOUGH SCHEDULE

Based on 2005 records, Iowa State's 2006 football schedule is the second toughest nationally:

1. Duke .639 (92-52)
2. IOWA STATE .633 (93-54)
3. Northwestern .624 (88-53)
4. Florida .620 (88-54)
5. Cincinnati .610 (86-55)
6. Michigan .607 (85-55)
7. Colorado .606 (86-56)
8. Arizona .603 (85-56)

Iowa State and North Carolina face the most 2005 bowl teams in 2006:

1. IOWA STATE 9
North Carolina 9
3. East Carolina 8
Maryland 8
Duke 8
Colorado 8

CULBERTSON CONSISTENT

Iowa State placekicker Bret Culbertson has been a consistent performer ... he has been successful on all 59 of his career PAT attempts, the school record for the longest streak of consecutive successful PAT tries:

1. Bret Culbertson, 59 , 2004-
2. Jeff Shudak, 56, 1989-90
3. Tom Goedjen, 50, 1972-74
4. Ty Stewart, 44, 1991-93
5. Reggie Shoemake, 39, 1970-71

Culbertson has hit on three-of-four field-goal attempts of the year, a 39-yarder against Toledo and a 24-yarder against UNLV and a 32-yarder at Iowa ... the 6-6 junior is 20-of-23 lifetime inside 40 yards ... when you add in his extra-point efforts, Culbertson is 80 of 87 (.920) as Iowa State's kicker.

MORE ISU NOTES:

With his pair of first half TD passes, QB Bret Meyer moves into second in ISU career TD passes with 34 passing Alex Espinoza (1984-86) ... the first TD pass was the first scoring catch for TE Walter Nickel of the season and the third of his career ... Bret Meyer extended his school record career passing yards to 5,665 after passing for 274 yards against the Longhorns ... Chris Singleton's second-quarter interception was his second of the season and his career ... He also had an interception against UNLV ... The second quarter TD catch by Todd Blythe on a pass from Bret Meyer was Blythe's ... 100th career reception. ISU WR Jon Davis also passed the century mark, the first time in school history that the Cyclones have had a pair of 100-catch receivers on the same team ... With six catches each on the day, Blythe has 105 career receptions, while Davis has 104.

2005 REVIEW: ISU NETS FIFTH BOWL IN SIX YEARS

Iowa State's defense and the continued improvement of the Cyclone offense led by sophomore quarterback Bret Meyer helped ISU erase an 0-3 Big 12 start for the second straight season and earn the school's fifth bowl berth in the last six seasons under head coach Dan McCarney ... the season included a 23-3 win over No. 8 Iowa, the sixth Iowa State win over its intrastate rival in the last eight seasons ... three of ISU's losses came in overtime ... the Cyclones ruined Homecoming at Texas A&M with a 42-14 win over the Aggies and beat Kansas State in Ames (45-17) for the first time since 1983 ... Iowa State's last victory was a memorable 30-16 win over No. 22 Colorado (ISU's first victory in Ames over the Buffaloes since 1983) ... Iowa State lost to No. 14 TCU, 27-24 in the Houston Bowl ... Meyer fininshed the season with 2,876 passing yards, second in school history ... wide receiver Todd Blythe finished the season as the third 1,000-yard single-season pass catcher in Iowa State history ... Blythe and center Scott Stephenson were tabbed first-team all-conference performers by the Big 12 coaches ... but the story of the 2005 Cyclones was defense ... led by all-Big 12 defensive tackle Brent "Big Play" Curvey and all-conference nose guard Nick Leaders, the Cyclones allowed opponents an all-time defensive low of 102.7 rushing yards per game and just 10 rushing touchdowns ... the yardage total was nearly 40 yards under the the school record of 139.2 set in 2004 ... Iowa State allowed a school-record low 2.98 yards per rush ... linebacker Tim Dobbins, cornerback LaMarcus Hicks and free safety Steve Paris also earned all-Big 12 honors.