Longhorns Country

Iowa State Cyclones Offensive Players To Watch vs. Texas Longhorns

The Iowa State Cyclones have a new look offense in 2023.

Matt Galatzan

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The Iowa State Cyclones are looking to throw the Big 12 and College Football Playoff races into chaos on Saturday when the No. 7 Texas Longhorns come Ames for Senior Night. 

And if history is to be believed, they will have a good shot, with the Cyclones winning three of the last four matchups, including the last two in Ames. 

Not to mention, the Longhorns have had issues closing out opponents, with four of their last five games coming down to the wire and ending in one-score decisions. 

Fortunately for the Horns, the Cyclones offense has some new faces and has struggled so far this season, ranking 10th in the Big 12 in scoring, 11th in rushing, 12th in passing, and 13th in the conference in total offense.

Still, the Horns will have some players they need to keep an eye on if they want to end their trend of blowing leads late. 

Here are a few of those Cyclones' offensive players to keep an eye on:

Iowa State Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht (3) calls a play against the Brigham Young Cougars in the first half at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Iowa State QB Rocco Becht / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

WR Jaylin Noel

With Xavier Hutchinson getting drafted in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans, Noel — who was the Cyclones' second-leading receiver from last season — will be the one tabbed with helping bridge the gap in the post-Hutchinson era.

Last season, he caught 60 passes for 572 yards and three touchdowns.

And this season, he has stepped into the role admirably, catching a team-high 52 passes for 536 yards and four touchdowns in nine games.

QB Rocco Becht

The Cyclones will have a new quarterback under center vs. the Longhorns this season after Hunter Dekkers career was thrown into chaos as the result of being involved in an underage gambling scandal.

Enter freshman Rocco Becht, who has played in all 10 games for the Cyclones this season, and has thrown for 2,121 yards, 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

If the Longhorns can get to Becht early and make him uncomfortable, they could force him into some mistakes. 

RBs Eli Sanders and Cartevious Norton

Running Backs Eli Sanders and Cartevious Norton are a two-headed sophomore tandem at Iowa State the that Horns need to keep an eye on. 

Sanders leads the team with 96 carries, 467 yards and four touchdowns, while Norton is a close second with 84 carries for 341 yards and three scores of his own. 

The Horns have the top run defense in the Big 12, but will still have to pay close attention to the Cyclones tandem.

Longhorns Week 12 Opponent Preview: Iowa State

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Matt Galatzan
MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.

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