ASU's postseason journey begins at a place that seemed improbable when the 2024 campaign kicked off: ranked as the No. 1 seed in the Big 12 Championship Game. Iowa State stands between the Sun Devils and the conference crown, so let’s examine what we can expect from the Cyclones on Saturday in Arlington, Tex.
Iowa State Offense
Perhaps lost in the shuffle of some high-performing offensive skill players across the Big 12 is the play of Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht, a redshirt sophomore who has helped the Cyclones have one of the nation’s most prolific pairs of wide receivers in 2024.
On the year, Becht has completed 59.22% of his passes for 3,021 yards, 20 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He also serves as a viable running threat with 272 net rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
This season, Becht, an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 selection for 2024, has eight games with at least 250 passing yards with a season-high of 383 yards against Kansas on Nov. 9. He also had 97 rushing yards and two touchdowns against UCF on Oct. 19. Becht’s collegiate career passing high came in last year’s AutoZone Liberty Bowl against Memphis when he threw for 446 yards and three touchdowns in a losing effort.
On the ground, the Cyclones feature a committee-style approach, with three rushers having tallied between 89 and 125 carries on the year.
At the top of the list is Carson Hansen, who leads the team with 125 carries for 618 yards and an impressive 11 touchdowns this year. Additionally, the 6-2 220-pound Hansen has lost just seven total yards on his 125 carries this season. Hansen also has eight receptions for 74 yards.
Hansen has not recorded a 100-yard game this year, but he played three straight games in November with at least 90 yards, including a season-high 97 against Baylor. He also has four multi-touchdown games this year, including a season-best three scores against West Virginia.
Abu Sama III is second on the team with 547 yards on 113 carries with a pair of scores with eight receptions for 58 yards as well.
Sama had a triple-digit day against Houston with 101 rushing yards on 11 carries. His contributions have been hit-or-miss this year, as he has six games with 36 or fewer rushing yards but also three games with 74 or more.
Jaylon Jackson ranks third on the team with 373 rushing yards on 89 carries with two touchdowns, along with seven catches for 41 yards with a score. Jackson previously played for both Lamar and Eastern Michigan before transferring to Iowa State. He had a touchdown for Eastern Michigan in their 2022 upset of ASU in Tempe.
This season, more than half of Jackson’s rushing totals came across a two-game stretch in late September and early October when he ran for 96 yards against Houston, and then the next week, he rushed for 107 yards against Baylor. In fact, he has not surpassed 20 rushing yards in a game since that effort against Baylor on Oct. 5.
In the passing game, Iowa State boasts what could be the best pair of wide receivers in the country. The Cyclones are the only FBS team currently with multiple 1,000-yard receivers.
Jayden Higgins leads the way with 80 receptions for 1,068 yards with nine touchdowns. He ranks 11th nationally in receiving yards, 15th in receptions per game, and tied for 15th in touchdown receptions.
Higgins, a 2024 Second-Team All-Big 12 selection, has four 100-yard games this year with a season-best of 155 versus Utah. Also, he has been very consistently productive throughout the regular season, as he has eight games this year, between 53 and 79 receiving yards. He also has five games this year with at least eight receptions, including a season-high ten against Texas Tech.
A major score for Iowa State in the transfer portal, Higgins came to the Cyclones prior to the 2023 season after two seasons at Eastern Kentucky.
For whatever it’s worth, his performance last week against Kansas State was his lowest statistical output of the year, with season-lows of three receptions for 53 yards, though he did score a touchdown.
Not far behind is Jaylin Noel, who has 67 catches for 1,013 yards with six scores. Noel is currently tied for 19th nationally in receiving yards and 35th in receptions per game.
Noel, an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 choice this season, has four 100-yard games in 2024, including a season-high 167 yards against Kansas. His production has been somewhat limited, as across the past three games, he has posted 37, 41, and 43 receiving yards. He has also recorded six or more receptions on five occasions this year, including a season-best eight on two occasions.
Higgins and Noel figure to be joined in the starting lineup by Beni Ngoyi, who has two receptions for 27 yards in 12 games this year.
At tight end, Benjamin Brahmer and Stevo Klotz are listed as the primary contributors for Iowa State.
The 6-foot-7 Brahmer has ten receptions for 179 yards with one touchdown in seven games this year, while Klotz, who is listed as a tight end but also excels as an H-back/fullback, has seven receptions for 93 yards with a touchdown. Klotz was recently named the Second-Team All-Big 12 fullback for 2024, while Brahmer was an Honorable Mention pick.
The Iowa State offensive line likely will feature former Princeton transfer Jalen Travis at left tackle, former Wisconsin transfer Dylan Barrett and left guard, either Jarrod Hufford or Jim Bonifas at center, Brendan Black at right guard, and Tyler Miller at right tackle.
Hufford and Travis were both named Honorable Mention All-Big 12 earlier this week.
Iowa State Offense Summary
Statistically on a national scale, Iowa State currently ties for 23rd in sacks allowed (1.25 per game), ties for 27th in turnovers lost (12), ranks 36th in passing offense (258.0), 41st in total offense (422.6), while the Cyclones also tie for 43rd in team tackles for loss allowed (4.83 per game) and rank 44th in scoring offense (31.2), 56th in third down conversion percentage (.419), tie for 61st in red zone offense (.855) and place 65th in rushing offense (164.6).
Naturally, the numbers tell you that Iowa State will look to its superstar receiving duo to pass, pass, and pass again and sprinkle in some impactful runs by its group of rushers.
Without a doubt, this will be the greatest test to date this season for the Sun Devil cornerbacks and pass defense as a whole, and the level to which ASU is impacted by the Iowa State pass game will likely be a major determining factor in the game's final score.
Iowa State Defense
The Cyclone's starting defensive line features Domonique Orange at nose guard, Tyler Onyedim at end, and J.R. Singleton at tackle. Former Louisiana-Monroe transfer Kenard Snyder or Trent Jones II are possibilities at the Leo position.
Onyedim has 31 tackles, including 1.5 for loss, with four quarterback hurries, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. Singleton has 29 tackles, including 4.5 for loss and a fumble recovery, along with team-highs of 4.0 sacks and six quarterback hurries.
Orange has tallied 18 tackles, including 3.5 for loss with two quarterback hurries, while Snyder has eight tackles, including 2.0 sacks in nine games, and Jones has added six tackles, including one for loss in six games.
Both Orange and Singleton were recently named Honorable Mention All-Big-12 performers for 2024.
At linebacker, Kooper Ebel, Jack Sadowsky V, and Will McLaughlin figure to be the starters. Ebel leads the group with 59 tackles on the year, including a share of the team lead with 6.0 for loss with one sack and a quarterback hurry.
Sadowsky has 26 tackles, including 4.0 for loss with one sack, one pass breakup, one quarterback hurry, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery, while McLaughlin has only appeared in three games this season but has nine tackles, including one for loss with a quarterback hurry.
In the secondary, Iowa State typically employs a five-man look: Beau Freyler, Malik Verdon, and Jeremiah Cooper at the safety positions, Jontez Williams, and either Darien Porter or Myles Purchase at cornerback.
Both Williams and Verdon were recently named 2024 Second-Team All-Big 12 honorees, while Cooper, Freyler, and Porter were Honorable Mention selections.
Verdon, the son of former Sun Devil defensive lineman Jimmy Verdon, leads the team with 75 tackles, including 3.5 for loss with one sack along with five pass breakups, two forced fumbles, one interception, and one quarterback hurry.
Freyler ranks second on the team with 74 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, four pass breakups, and two interceptions. Cooper has chipped in 43 tackles, including one for loss, five pass breakups, and two interceptions.
Williams leads the team with four interceptions and also has 38 tackles including 2.0 for loss with four pass breakups. Purchase has recorded 23 tackles, including 1.5 for loss with a team-high six pass breakups along with one interception and one fumble recovery, while Porter has posted 16 tackles, including 2.0 for loss with three interceptions and two pass breakups.
Iowa State Defense Summary
On a national level, Iowa State is highly elite against aerial attacks as the Cyclones rank third nationally in pass defense (156.9), while they also place 18th in scoring defense (19.58) and tie for 23rd in turnovers gained (21), rank 31st in total defense (330.6), 63rd in third down conversion defense (.384), 78th in red zone defense (.846), tie for 88th in team tackles for loss (5.1 per game), tie for 96th in rush defense (173.7) and tie for 124th in quarterback sacks (1.25 per game).
Similar to the Iowa State offense, the Cyclone defense has one very clear and significant strength: ISU boasts one of the very best pass defenses in college football.
Though ASU, with star rusher Cam Skattebo and without star receiver Jordyn Tyson, likely will place heavy emphasis on attacking Iowa State’s 96th-ranked rush defense, the Sun Devils cannot expect to win this game with a one-dimensional approach. So, the team’s pass-catchers—including running backs and tight ends—have to make the absolute most of their opportunities.
Iowa State Special Teams
At placekicker, Kyle Konrardy, an Honorable Mention All-Big12 pick this year, has connected on 19-of-25 attempts this year (76.0%) with a long of 54 yards.
Punter Tyler Perkins averages 44.53 yards on 32 punts with a long of 57 yards.
In the return game, Jaylin Noel, a 2024 First-Team All-Big 12 returns specialist, is among the best around, as he averages 15.31 yards on 13 punt returns with a long of 36 yards.
Noel also averages 17.67 yards on three kickoff returns, while Jaylin Jackson averages 21.20 yards on five kickoff returns.
Iowa State also has weapons in punt and kick coverage, as the Cyclones have blocked three total kicks this year.
Overall Summary
The stakes have not been this high for Sun Devil football since January 1, 1997.
On the heels of the program’s first 10-win season since 2014 and the team’s first conference championship game appearance since 2013, ASU looks to extend its miraculous 2024 campaign by clinching its first outright conference title since 1996. Added to that, only twice in the last 50 years and on only five occasions in program history has ASU won 11 or more games in a single season – another achievement at stake on Saturday.
There is zero margin for error in ASU’s hopes to qualify for the 12-team College Football Playoff, as the CFP voting committee has made crystal clear that no teams from the Big 12 outside the conference champion will be picked for a playoff spot.
This season is already concretely sealed as an A+ turnaround for Big 12 Coach of the Year Kenny Dillingham and his staff and players, but just one more victory can vault the Sun Devils into a space that few believed ASU would ever reach, especially not one year removed from back-to-back three-win seasons.
The absence of Jordyn Tyson is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking, but is facing this opportunity simply just another hurdle that this program must climb to reach a status level it hasn’t reached in nearly 30 years?
Will this be a Cam Skattebo legacy game where he takes control of ASU’s destiny? Will lesser-used pass-catchers like Xavier Guillory, Melquan Stovall, Troy Omiere, or another total wild card step up in a moment of glory to push ASU over the top?
When the sun is high in the Texas sky on a late morning kickoff in Arlington, will the Devils do the unthinkable and enter the College Football Playoff, or will the “A” in “ASU” be renamed to almost?
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