Cyclones Come Up Short Against TTU, 14-10

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State bottled up Texas Tech's potent offense for much of the game, but a late touchdown lifted the Red Raiders to a 14-10 victory on a frigid Saturday night at MidAmerican Energy Field at Jack Trice Stadium.

The Cyclones (4-7, 1-7 Big 12) stalled repeatedly in the red zone, but still managed to take a 10-7 lead on Hunter Dekkers' 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Easton Dean with 11:18 left in the game. Dean caught the ball on the right sideline and hurdled a defender inside the five before tumbling into the end zone.

But Tech (6-5, 4-4) answered with a snappy 13-play, 77-yard drive that Tyler Shough capped with a 4-yard toss to 6-foot-6 tight end Baylor Cupp in the end zone for the winning score with 6:10 to go, handing the Cyclones their sixth one-score loss of the season.

Before that drive, the Cyclones had held the Red Raiders to 157 yards in nine possessions. Seven those possessions ended with punts and Iowa State stopped another by recovering a fumble.

Eighteen Iowa State seniors were honored before the game, which began in 22-degree weather with a wind chill of 14.

One of those seniors, wideout Xavier Hutchinson, had another big game, catching eight passes for 101 yards to move into a tie for eighth place on the Big 12's career chart with 252 receptions. It was his 13th 100-yard game, breaking a tie with Allan Lazard for the top spot in Iowa State's record book.

Quarterback Hunter Dekkers completed 23 of his 35 passes for 294 yards and the TD pass to Hanika, who finished with three catches for 42 yards. Freshman Cartevious Norton led the running game with 59 yards in a career-high 19 carries.

ISU's elite pass rusher, Will McDonald IV, moved into a tie for first place on the Big 12's career sack list with his 34th, when he dropped Shough for a 6-yard loss late in the first half. O'Rien Vance and Tyler Onyedim also had sacks for Iowa State, which outgained Tech 422-246.

But the Cyclones just couldn't take advantage of their opportunities, going 1-for-5 in the red zone. Drake Nettles missed two field goals and the Cyclones twice were stopped on downs after reaching the Tech 2-yard line on consecutive possessions, which came at a time when they could have taken control of the game.

Nettles converted a 36-yard field goal for Iowa State's only points in the first half, which ended with Tech leading 7-3.

The Cyclones had a chance to jump on the Red Raiders early when Beau Freyler forced a fumble on the third play of the game and Will McLaughlin returned it 19 yards to the Tech 16. But offense managed only 3 yards in three plays and Nettles missed a 30-yard field goal attempt. That set the tone for the rest of the night.

Iowa State concludes the season next Saturday at undefeated and fourth-ranked TCU. Kickoff time is 3 p.m. CST.

Next Event

Team Stats

Hunter Dekkers

Xavier Hutchinson

Players Mentioned

Easton Dean

Hunter Dekkers

Beau Freyler

Xavier Hutchinson

Will McDonald IV

Will McLaughlin

Drake Nettles

Cartevious Norton

Tyler Onyedim

O'Rien Vance

Players Mentioned

Easton Dean

Hunter Dekkers

Beau Freyler

Xavier Hutchinson

Will McDonald IV

Will McLaughlin

Drake Nettles

Cartevious Norton

Tyler Onyedim

O'Rien Vance

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics