AMES — Rocco Becht passed for two touchdowns, Carson Hansen ran for another and No. 20 Iowa State scored twice, leading to a dominant 52-7 win over Arkansas State on Saturday.
Ninth-year coach Matt Campbell has won 56 games at Iowa State, tying him with Dan McCarney for the most in school history.
“In today’s world it’s really about the team,” Campbell said. “It’s not about any individual. I’m just grateful to be in one place for such a long time with so many great people. We have great coaches, great players and of course great management at the chairman level. That’s what makes it a joy to be here.”
Becht scored on a 1-yard run in the first quarter and then added 10-yard and 16-yard TD passes to Tyler Moore and Jayden Higgins to give the Cyclones (3-0) a 31-0 lead by halftime.
Hansen, who struggled to get playing time as a freshman, ran nine times for 58 yards and forced a fumble on an interception thrown by Iowa State backup quarterback Connor Moberly late in the third quarter.
Hansen scored his first career touchdown on a 1-yard run and also ran for a 3-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
“It’s a dream come true,” Hansen said. “Our offensive line did some great blocking this week so kudos to them.”
The Cyclones rushed for 237 yards and finished the game with 490 yards of total offense, their most since 2021.
The Cyclones came into the game having rushed 50 times for a total of 175 yards in wins over North Dakota and Iowa.
Iowa State held the Red Wolves (2-2) scoreless until late in the fourth quarter and allowed just 182 yards.
Arkansas State quarterback Jalen Rayner struggled against a ranked opponent for the second straight week, completing 5 of 16 passes for 68 yards and two interceptions, including throwing for 140 yards and an interception in last week’s loss to Michigan.
“(Raynor) needs to get more consistent in his performance,” Arkansas State coach Butch Jones said. “He’s still been a great teammate, but I thought we needed some oomph.”
Timmy McClain threw a 27-yard pass to Hunter Summers for the Red Wolves’ only score.
summary
At Arkansas State: The Red Wolves struggled in every aspect against a power conference opponent for the second straight game, committing four turnovers.
Iowa State: The Cyclones finally got their running game going, scoring their most points since 2021, and the defense recorded four sacks in a dominant performance.
What the polls mean
Iowa State is looking to climb the rankings with an easy win.
Next
Arkansas State: Hosts South Alabama next Saturday.
Iowa State: Visits Houston next Saturday.
20. Iowa State University 52, Arkansas State University 7
First Quarter
ISU – Hansen 1 run (Conradi kick), 8:47.
ISU vs. Becht, 1 run (Conradi kick), 45 min.
Second Quarter
ISU–FG Conraldi 31, 9:00.
ISU-Moore, 10 pass from Becht (Conradi kick), 2:21.
ISU-Higgins 16, pass from Becht (Conradi kick), 1:27.
Third Quarter
ISU – Hansen 3 run (Conradi kick), 8:00.
Fourth Quarter
ISU–Lee 1 run (Conradi kick), 11:54.
ARST-Summers, 27 pass from McClain (Van Andel kick), 4:53.
ISU – Flora 8 run (Conradi kick), :24.
A–55,428.
Personal Statistics
Rushing – Arkansas State, Spencer 9-52, Raynor 6-21, Z. Wallace 6-10, Cross 1-7, McClain 11-7, Sisa 1-1, (team) 1-(minus 34). Iowa State, Hansen 9-58, J. Jackson 10-53, Moberly 4-36, Sama 7-30, Flora 6-27, Lee 8-26, Becht 4-7.
Passes – Arkansas, Raynor 5-16-2-68, McClain 4-7-0-50. Iowa, Becht 11-18-1-204, Moberly 5-7-1-49.
Receiving – Arkansas State, Summers 2-37, Stevenson 2-21, A.Jones 2-13, Ealy 1-22, C.Jackson 1-20, Spencer 1-5. Iowa State, Higgins 4-65, Brahmer 3-73, Noel 2-49, Moore 2-17, Ngoy 1-17, Walsh 1-11, K.Black 1-7, Lee 1-7, Summer 1-7.
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