AMES - Iowa State head coach Jimmy Rogers summed up the message in the wake of last Saturday night’s 39-3 loss at No. 22 Arizona with three simple words: “We’re all in this together.”
That mindset will matter again this Saturday, when the Cyclones host No. 24 Oklahoma State at Jack Trice Stadium in a 6 p.m.
Halloween matchup. Iowa State enters at 3-4 overall and 1-3 in Big 12 play, and it will likely need a loud home crowd to keep the Cowboys from pulling away late.
Oklahoma State brings an offense that has found its footing after a rough opening week against Tulsa. The Cowboys are averaging 529.1 yards per game, which ranks second nationally behind No.
1 Miami, and they also sit atop the Big 12 in scoring offense at 40 points per game. This will be Iowa State’s fifth game against a ranked opponent this season, and the Cyclones are a 9.5-point underdog.
The Cowboys’ surge starts with quarterback Drew Mestemaker, a former North Texas standout who followed coach Eric Morris to Stillwater. Mestemaker’s path has been as unusual as it is impressive.
He grew up in Austin, Texas, didn’t even open his senior high school season as the starting quarterback, and was instead an all-district punter and a steady safety before walking on at North Texas. After redshirting in 2024, he exploded the following season with an FBS-best 4,379 passing yards and 34 touchdown passes against nine interceptions.
That production made him one of the most sought-after names in the transfer portal, and Oklahoma State landed him. Through seven games, he’s delivering again, ranking second nationally with 332.3 passing yards per game and throwing 20 touchdowns against six interceptions.
Behind him is another North Texas import in running back Caleb Hawkins, a 6-foot, 219-pound Shawnee, Oklahoma, native who was one of the Mean Green’s most productive backs a year ago. He rushed for 25 touchdowns last season and came close to 1,500 rushing yards, then brought that production to the Power Four level.
So far, Hawkins has piled up 712 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while also giving Mestemaker another outlet in the passing game. Over the past two games alone, he has turned 12 receptions into 197 receiving yards and a touchdown, and he’s gone for at least 110 rushing yards three times this season, including in last week’s 57-24 win over Colorado.
At receiver, Justin Bowick gives Oklahoma State another big-bodied problem for defenses to solve. The Atlanta native checks in at 6-5, 209 and ranks second on the team behind Wyatt Young with 34 catches and 607 receiving yards.
He also leads the Cowboys with seven touchdown receptions and is averaging 17.9 yards per catch. Bowick, an Illinois transfer now at his fourth school, has become one of the most dangerous pieces in a receiving corps that offers Mestemaker options on both quick throws and deeper shots.
Oklahoma State also has veterans making noise on defense. Linebacker Ethan Wesloski, a 6-1, 234-pound fifth-year player from McKinney, Texas, leads the team with 70 tackles and has added a career-high 3.5 sacks.
He was also named one of 18 finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, the “Academic Heisman.”
Wesloski had 113 tackles at North Texas last season and has posted 17 tackles in a game twice this year.
Defensive end Malik Charles rounds out the list. At 6-3 and 284 pounds, he is not a North Texas transfer, but he has climbed from Division II to the Power Four and now shares the team lead with 3.5 sacks. He has also intercepted a pass.
In Other News...
Iowa State Faces A Brutal Test Against Another Elite Big 12 Passer
Coming off a loss to Arizona, Jimmy Rogers was quick to point out what Iowa State is walking into next. The schedule has not offered many soft landing spots, and the Cyclones now turn around to face an Oklahoma State team that is still very much in the Big 12 race under first-year coach Eric Morris.
The matchup also brings another big challenge through the air in Drew Mestemaker, who has emerged as one of the conferences most productive young passers and is drawing national attention for the way he has played. For Iowa State, the issue is less about the name on the jersey and more about surviving another week against an offense that can stress a defense in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Tamin Lipseys Return Just Made Iowa States Biggest Question Even Bigger
Tamin Lipseys first appearance of the season in Iowa States preseason exhibition against Northwestern offered a timely reminder of how much the Cyclones lean on their point guard. He came back with 14 points, seven assists, three rebounds and two steals, and the contrast was immediate after Iowa State had dropped its first exhibition without him before handling the second one convincingly with him in the mix.
Even with that encouraging showing, the bigger issue around Ames remains unresolved because Lipseys eligibility for the season is still under NCAA review. For a team that views his presence as central to its success, the wait leaves Iowa State in a familiar spot for this time of year, with the on-court fit looking obvious and the final roster answer still hanging in the balance. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa State Keeps Making Conference Play Harder Than It Should Be
Iowa State has spent too much of Big 12 play trying to climb out of early holes, and the pattern has made every conference game feel tougher than it needs to be. The offense has had trouble finding any rhythm, and the defense has not been able to steady things often enough against stronger opponents, especially on the back end where the secondary has been tested and beaten more than the staff would like.
The one bright spot on that side of the ball has been the linebackers, who have been a steady presence even as the rest of the unit has wobbled. With a schedule still packed with top-ranked Big 12 teams, the Cyclones do not get many chances to ease into anything, which only raises the pressure to start faster and play cleaner before the next difficult matchup arrives. [Read more 🡒]