Iowa State team in thick of Big 12 North race

AMES (MCT) — Glance at the Big 12 North standings. They look a little surreal, don’t they?

In second place, just a game behind Kansas State, sits Iowa State — a club that entered the season saddled with a 10-game losing streak.

“We have a mentally tough football team,” explained first-year coach Paul Rhoads.

Of all the issues Iowa State carried into 2009, who would’ve thought handling prosperity would be the biggest concern as November neared?

The Cyclones, currently 5-3, were picked to be cellar-dwellars by virtually every preseason publication. Yet, late last Saturday afternoon, there they were, dousing their coach with water, like they were the 1986 New York Giants.

“It was jubilant,” Rhoads recalled Monday. “By the time I got (to the postgame locker room), they were in full swing — swinging and singing.

“If you lay it on the line,” the coach added, “it’s reason for celebration after a victory like that.”
The 42-year-old sideline general insists that his upstart team will be level-headed by the time it takes the field at Texas A&M at 2:30 p.m. this Saturday.

“This (Nebraska) win was a big win -- no question about it,” said Rhoads. “It’s great history, and we’re proud of that. But it will do nothing for us this week.”

Wideout Jake Williams said the Cyclones have received their coach’s message.

The Nebraska win, Williams noted, “gives us a lot of confidence. (But) A&M is a tough place to play. It’s a really tough place to play.”

One major asset Iowa State will take with it to College Station this Saturday is a confident defense. The Cyclones have given up just 17 total points over their last two Big 12 contests, which is their best defensive showing in back-to-back league games since 1978.

The Cardinal and Gold currently rank second nationally in turnovers gained (24).

“It was mind-blowing. We didn’t really know that until Coach told us in a meeting,” said safety David Sims. “We take real pride in that. We try to emphasize takeaways.”

Sims and company will be thoroughly tested against a Texas A&M offense that, statistically, is the third-best unit in the nation, producing 489 yards per game. The Aggies’ attack is led by junior quarterback Jerrod Johnson, who lit up the Cyclones’ secondary last season and currently ranks ninth in passing, with 17 touchdown passes and just three interceptions.