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The numbers tell the story of the Iowa State football team’s 10-7 loss at Ohio on Saturday.
They paint the picture of an ineffective offense and a struggling field-goal kicker.
The Cyclones fell to 1-2 on the season with an ugly road loss to a Mid-American Conference foe. Here’s a closer look at the numbers that made the difference:
Ohio defensive end Vonnie Watkins, right, stops Iowa State running back Cartevious Norton during Saturday’s game in Athens, Ohio. The Cyclones finished with 38 rushing yards on 23 carries.
1 … as in 1 trip to the red zone ending in points
There were several problems with this number Saturday. One, Iowa State reached the red zone only twice. Two, the Cyclones produced points just once, an 18-yard TD pass from quarterback Rocco Becht to wide receiver Jayden Higgins. One other trip ended with a missed field goal (we’ll get to that later). But the fact that Iowa State could rarely move the ball deep into Ohio territory and produced even less was very concerning.
More: Randy Peterson’s thoughts on Iowa State football’s head-scratching loss at Ohio Saturday
2 … as in 2 interceptions
Fans will look at the two interceptions and point the finger at quarterback Rocco Becht. But Becht does not deserve blame for the costly turnovers. The first one set up Ohio’s first and only touchdown of the day. The second ended Iowa State’s last chance to tie or take the lead. While Becht threw both passes, what happened after the ball left his hand was not his fault. Higgins, the intended target on the first throw, appeared to fall down running his route. On the second pick Higgins got hit by a defender just as the ball arrived and couldn’t catch it. The ball flew up in the air and landed in the hands of Ohio’s Rodney Mathews, essentially ending the game.
Instant analysis: Iowa State football finds itself…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/inside-numbers-iowa-states-football-195804063.html?src=rss
Author : The Des Moines Register
Publish date : 2023-09-16 19:58:04
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