Iowa State’s 51-49 win over No. 24 Oklahoma State didn’t just end with a dramatic finish. It also swept up a set of Big 12 weekly honors for three Cyclones who played major roles in the victory.
The league office named Aiden Flora the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, Kyle Konrardy the Special Teams Player of the Week and Jamal Polite Jr. the Freshman of the Week on Monday, according to Iowa State Athletics Communications.
For Flora, it was his second Big 12 offensive weekly award of the season. Konrardy picked up his fifth career Big 12 special teams honor.
Flora turned in the biggest ground day of his career, piling up 221 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries against the Cowboys. That total led all FBS players in Week 9, and it also gave him the top three rushing performances in the Big 12 this season: 221 against Oklahoma State, 212 against West Virginia and 194 against Bowling Green.
The former walk-on has separated himself in a big way this fall. He is the only player in the country with three games of at least 190 rushing yards, and one of only three players nationally with two 200-yard rushing games and multiple rushing touchdowns this season.
Against Oklahoma State, he averaged 7.6 yards per carry and scored on runs of 75 and 29 yards. Those scores gave him three rushing touchdowns of 60 yards or more this season.
Konrardy’s day was just as clutch. The Dubuque, Iowa native drilled a 34-yard field goal as time expired for the third game-winning kick of his career.
That total is tied for the second-most among active FBS kickers. He finished 3-for-3 on field goals, extended his streak to 23 straight makes from inside 45 yards, and added a key recovery of his own onside kick in the first half to help Iowa State steal a possession.
He also went 6-for-6 on PATs and handled eight kickoffs, all of them touchbacks.
Polite made his own statement with a breakout performance through the air. He caught six passes for a career-high 171 yards and a touchdown, good for his first 100-yard receiving game. His yardage total was the most ever by a true freshman in Iowa State history, the most by a freshman in the Big 12 this season and the third-most by a freshman nationally this year.
Polite’s afternoon included a toe-tap 43-yard touchdown catch in the first half, then a 33-yard grab with 0:49 left that helped set up Iowa State’s winning field goal. The Beaufort, S.C. native became the first Iowa State freshman with a 100-yard receiving game since Darius Darks in 2008.
Iowa State heads to Baylor on Saturday. Kickoff in Waco is set for 11 a.m. on FS1.
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Iowa State May Have Found The Spark Its Offense Needed
Iowa State needed a lift on offense, and it may have found one in freshman wide receiver Jamal Polite Jr. In the Cyclones 51-49 win over Oklahoma State, sealed by a last-second field goal, Polite was the most dangerous player on the field for Iowa State, finishing with six catches for 171 yards and giving the passing game a much-needed jolt.
The timing matters because Iowa States receiver room has been thinned by multiple season-ending injuries, leaving the offense searching for answers as the Big 12 grind continues. Polites emergence does not solve everything, but it gives the Cyclones a promising option at a position where they badly needed stability, and it could change how this offense looks moving forward. [Read more 🡒]