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Three years ago, Iowa State (2-4) beat Baylor (6-0) 35-21. In 2013, the Bears won 71-7. This year, Baylor is rolling on with a great start as a top playoff contender, while Iowa State is looking to survive, and maybe turn the program around with a massive win. Check out the Baylor vs. Iowa State prediction and game preview.

Baylor vs. Iowa State Game Preview

Broadcast

Date: Saturday, Oct. 24
Game Time: 12:00 pm
Venue: McLane Stadium, Waco, TX
Network: ESPN

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Why You Need To Care

Can Iowa State pull up out of the nosedive? After getting blown away by Texas Tech 66-31 and to TCU 45-21, the last thing the Cyclones need is to face a Baylor team that rolls out of bed and hangs 60 on the board, but they need a spark. To be fair, three of the losses so far – Iowa, Toledo and TCU – were to currently unbeaten teams, and the offense has been great, but it hasn’t been enough to produce wins. With three of the final four games on the road, and Texas next week, and the final home game coming against Oklahoma State, it’s going to be a rough second half.

Baylor is taking target practice at this point. The Bears No. 1 in the nation in offense, passing efficiency and scoring with 62 points or more put on the board in each of the last five games since beating SMU 56-21. The blasting of Texas Tech was good, the beating of West Virginia was solid, and this has been a whole bunch of fun, but the road trip to Kansas State next week might be the first real test before dealing with the real part of the slate – Oklahoma, at Oklahoma State, at TCU.

Why Iowa State Will Win

Time to open it up, Iowa State. The only way to really handle Baylor is to get into the backfield and pressure the quarterback, but that’s not really Iowa State’s world. So, considering the defense isn’t going to be able to more than occasionally hold serve, the offense has to ramp things up to a whole other level. The Baylor secondary is okay, not great, but the defensive front is solid against the run – for the most part. The Cyclones have the receivers with Allen Lazard, Quenton Bundrage and D’Variu Montgomery all able to get down the field, and Sam Richardson has to go off. He has yet to throw for 300 yards this year, and he was just okay in last season’s loss – this is his time to shine.

Why Baylor Will Win

The Iowa State secondary hasn’t even been close. It was fine against the Northern Iowas and Toledos of the world, but Kansas was able to move the ball through the air without a problem – and then came the big boys. Texas Tech cranked up 515 yards and six scores, and Trevone Boykin and TCU went for 444 – Boykin hit 27-of-32 passes – with four scores. Baylor has yet to throw for fewer than 312 yards this year and hasn’t hit for fewer than 9.8 yards per pass in any game. It’ll be bombs away against a soft Cyclone D that doesn’t get to the quarterback and is awful at giving up yards after the catch.

Player Who Matters

Is Seth Russell going to get into the Heisman race? Corey Coleman has already won the Biletnikoff with 16 touchdown grabs in just six games, but Russell is on the verge of being a national name. Bryce Petty was never really a serious Heisman candidate, and Nick Florence was never in consideration, but Russell is starting to play like a special type of quarterback and not just a product of a system. With just one interception in the last five games, and with 27 touchdowns on the year, the passing numbers are more than just solid, and unlike Petty, he’s a terrific runner.

What’s Going To Happen?

Pencil in 60. Iowa State will put some big numbers on the board, but it won’t come remotely close to keeping up as the bombing goes for a full three quarters before the Bears relax.

Baylor vs. Iowa State Prediction

Final Score: Baylor 65, Iowa State 30, Line: Baylor -37, o/u: 78

Must See Rating: 5: Bridge of Spies – 1: Rock The Kasbah … 2.5

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