Texas Longhorns vs. Iowa State Cyclones: Keys To The Game

The Texas Longhorns will need to block out the noise on Saturday night against the Iowa State Cyclones.

Last season's game against the Iowa State Cyclones was a grind-it-out victory for the Texas Longhorns.

After squandering a 17-7 lead, quarterback Quinn Ewers and receiver Xavier Worthy connected on a 3-yard pitch-and-catch on fourth down as Texas won 24-21 over Iowa State in Austin.

This season, the Longhorns have a chance to make a statement both to the Big 12 and the College Football Playoff committee if it can go into Ames and put up some style points on the Cyclones. 

That will be easier said than done of course, with the Cyclones winning three of the last four matchups with Texas, including the last two in Ames. 

So what do the Longhorns need to do to come out on top? Let's examine:

Texas Longhorns wide receiver Adonai Mitchell :: Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman-USA TODAY NETWORK

Texas wins if...

... it blocks out the noise. 

The Longhorns were given bulletin board material by Iowa State offensive lineman Jarrod Hufford this week, accusing the team of having 'high egos' among other things. 

"They get all the 5-star recruits and have all the nicest stuff in the world and they just think they don't stink," Hufford said. "They're just humans and that's how I see them. They're people that have such a high ego that need to be checked."

More than that, national detractors are starting to lose faith in the 9-1 Horns after close calls in three of their last four games. 

On the field, Texas is by far the more talented team, and Hufford himself will be battling arguably the best defensive tackle tandem in the country. 

So for the Horns to win, the most important thing they can do is block out the outside noise and take care of business on the field. If they do that, they should win comfortably.

Two Years Ago vs. Iowa State Bo Davis Helped Change Longhorns Trajectory

Iowa State wins if...

... it's defense does what it does best, plus some more. 

Iowa State has one of the best defenses in the Big 12, and excels at causing turnovers. Meanwhile, the Horns have been prone to turnovers over the last few weeks. 

In order for the Cyclones to send the Longhorns packing, they will need to force Quinn Ewers into mistakes - lots of mistakes - and give their offenses as many chances as they can to score points. 

Obviously, the Texas defense won't make that easy, but if the Cyclones can make this game ugly, they will have as good a shot as anyone on the Texas schedule has.