Rocco Becht threw two touchdown passes and ran for another, while No. 17 Iowa State’s defense made key stops in the second half to lead the Cyclones to a 29-21 win over Kansas State on a chilly Saturday night. The victory gave Iowa State its first 10-win season in program history.
Hours after the game, they learned that BYU’s win over Houston had helped them secure a spot in the Big 12 championship game against Arizona State next Saturday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The Cyclones (10-2, 7-2 Big 12, No. 18 CFP) will play in their second Big 12 championship game, having previously lost to Oklahoma in 2020.
“It will have been earned. Our kids have really never wavered,” said Iowa State coach Matt Campbell. “It’ll be a great opportunity for our program and obviously for our fanbase to be able to be a part of that with us.”
Becht’s first touchdown pass, a 15-yard throw to Jayden Higgins, came after Myles Purchase recovered an errant pitch from Avery Johnson on the game’s first play. Becht’s second touchdown was a 9-yard pass to Jaylin Noel after Joey Petersen recovered a fumble from Keagan Johnson. Noel’s catch pushed him over 1,000 receiving yards for the season.
Becht also ran for a 5-yard touchdown, giving Iowa State a 24-14 lead at halftime.
“The ability for our kids to make critical plays in critical moments was certainly the difference in the game,” Campbell said. “We knew with the weather and the field, it was going to be a hard-fought football game. We were going to have to make those plays. Probably fitting for this team to win that way and finish the regular season. Really excited for them and what they’ve accomplished, and certainly for what the future holds for them as well.”
In the fourth quarter, a safety and Kyle Konrardy’s 20-yard field goal gave Iowa State an eight-point lead. Kansas State (8-4, 5-4, No. 24 CFP) turned the ball over on downs at Iowa State’s 35-yard line when a pass went off Garrett Oakley’s hands on a fourth-and-2 with 4:59 left. The Wildcats had one last chance with 1:11 left, but Kyle Konrardy missed a 37-yard field goal attempt. K-State couldn’t get anything going, with Avery Johnson knocked out of the game on third down, and Ta’Quan Roberson throwing an incomplete pass on fourth-and-15.
Becht took a knee, and the fans stormed the field to celebrate with the Cyclones.
“Can’t play a team like that and make the mistakes we made,” K-State coach Chris Klieman said. “We made some mistakes in that first half that led to points, and you can’t do that against good football teams. That’s obvious.”
“Congratulations to Matt and his team. They’ll represent the Big 12 well. They don’t make mistakes, and we made them today, and that got us down at halftime.”
Avery Johnson threw two touchdown passes in the first half, including a 28-yard and 65-yard touchdown to Jayce Brown, and a 7-yard touchdown pass to Oakley pulled Kansas State within 24-21 late in the third quarter. Johnson finished with 220 passing yards and 64 rushing yards on 13 carries. Brown had three receptions for 106 yards.
The Cyclones made a key defensive stop earlier in the third quarter after DJ Giddens’s 36-yard run set up Kansas State inside the 5-yard line. They kept the Wildcats out of the end zone and blocked a 21-yard field goal attempt by Chris Tennant. Later, Jacob Ellis recorded a safety when he chased Johnson into his own end zone, forcing Johnson to unload the ball and get called for intentional grounding.
