AMES, Iowa -- The 67th edition of the Cy-Hawk Series featured all the oddities of a rivalry game.
There were two lightning delays totaling 2 hours, 55 minutes. During the second stoppage, Iowa's team managers, escorted by state troopers, collected about 60 sandwiches from three local outlets for the hungry players.
"I didn't get one of them," coach Kirk Ferentz said, "but I did see somebody with like a 12-incher or 14-incher."
The game included five field goals, two long Iowa State touchdowns, only one touchdown by the winning team and a rather inglorious ending: Iowa delay of game, Iowa false start, Iowa punt that Iowa State fumbled after Datrone Young ran into teammate/returner Deshaunte Jones.
Iowa's Devonte Young fell on the ball, clinching an 18-17 win, the Hawkeyes' fifth straight in the series.
"I just did my job," Devonte Young said.
The Hawkeyes (3-0) completed their job under adverse conditions. The game's unique circumstances could make it an outlier to some, but not Ferentz, who will use the Cy-Hawk as a reference point.
"This is a conference game," Ferentz said. "You're on the road, you're playing in a tough environment against a really tough football team. There was going to be nothing easy about this week. ... It sure can't hurt for us to weather it, push through it and fight through it."
Iowa, ranked 18th this week, is among the under-the-radar teams with the right ingredients to push for a conference title and shake up the College Football Playoff race. In selecting one such team for each Power 5 conference, I eliminated those not picked to win the conference (official poll or media) and those not appearing in the top 15 of the AP preseason poll.
Let's break down the under-the-radar conference title contenders.
Big Ten: Iowa
Preseason favorite: Michigan
Preseason AP top 15: Ohio State (5), Penn State (15)
The Hawkeyes' inclusion comes with two disclaimers. Wisconsin's sizzling start makes the Badgers an equally formidable threat in the Big Ten. Also, Iowa can play cleaner than it did Saturday.
"We didn't play a very pretty game, you can see that," star defensive end A.J. Epenesa said. "We didn't play very well."
Even at less than their best, the Hawkeyes showed flashes of why they should contend in the Big Ten West. Behind senior quarterback Nate Stanley, Iowa converted 10 of 19 third-down opportunities against a talented ISU defense using a unique scheme.
Trailing 14-6 midway through the third quarter, Iowa faced third-and-22 from its own 19-yard line when Stanley found Ihmir Smith-Marsette for 27 yards, prolonging a drive that ended in a field goal. Iowa converted two third downs on its lone touchdown drive, including a well-designed run by Stanley for 14 yards.
Through three games, Iowa is 21-of-46 on third down.
"We knew the protections that we had -- we were able to pick up a lot of their blitzes," Stanley said. "And then our guys running routes just did a great job of getting open. We felt confident, and the offensive line gave me enough time to make those throws."
Stanley looks like a 29-game starter, completing 63.4% of his passes with six touchdowns and no interceptions. As a Big Ten coach told me before the season, "Iowa's going to go as their quarterback goes." So far, the results are promising.
"He's more in control than he's ever been since we've been around him," Ferentz said. "The throw he made on that third-and-22 is as good as I've seen him."
Ferentz's best Iowa teams are strong up front, and the 2019 version meets the criteria. The Hawkeyes are banged up in the secondary and missing standout offensive tackle Alaric Jackson (knee). An open week comes at a good time.
Iowa must address several areas, including an inability to convert short-yardage situations. Other than two busts, the defense did a solid job of limiting damage, especially on third down (3-of-9).
"We see it as a big win, too," Stanley said. "It was like a Big Ten game. It was really physical, down to the wire. We expect all our Big Ten games to be like that."
SEC: Auburn
Preseason favorite: Alabama
Preseason AP top 15: Georgia (3), LSU (6), Florida (8), Texas A&M (12)
The Tigers entered the season with questions about coach Gus Malzahn's job, true freshman quarterback Bo Nix and the direction of the offense with Malzahn reclaiming playcalling duties. Auburn hasn't put all doubts to rest, but the outlook looks brighter after a 3-0 start highlighted by a come-from-behind win over Oregon.
Auburn is dangerous with the right quarterback and Malzahn delivering innovative calls. The Tigers are the last SEC team to beat Alabama, and Malzahn is the only SEC coach with multiple wins over Nick Saban. Also, in a league known for defensive line play, Auburn likely has the best collection: Derrick Brown, Marlon Davidson, Nick Coe, Big Kat Bryant and others.
The schedule is brutal, beginning Saturday at Texas A&M but also featuring Florida (road), LSU (road), Georgia (home) and Alabama (home). Auburn needs continued development from an offensive line that opposing coaches questioned this summer, as well as from Nix.
"You'll see him get more comfortable each game," Malzahn said. "He's learning on the go against some really good opponents. More than anything, mentally, the way he's handled himself, the moment hasn't been too big. He sees the field well. When we come to the sidelines, he'll be able to tell you exactly what he saw, and you look at the film and he's correct."
A promising sign is how Nix and the Tigers have adjusted during games. Auburn has outscored opponents 89-23 in the final three quarters.
Big 12: TCU
Preseason favorite: Oklahoma
Preseason AP top 15: Texas (10)
Five times in Gary Patterson's incredible coaching career TCU has followed a season of eight wins or fewer by winning 10 games or more. After going 7-6 in 2018, a season marred by injuries and inconsistency, the Frogs are poised for another rebound.
"Gary will have them fighting back," a Big 12 coach told me before the season.
TCU is 2-0 after an emphatic 34-13 road win against Purdue, which generated only 23 net rush yards and eight first downs. The Boilermakers played without starting quarterback Elijah Sindelar, but TCU contained superstar Rondale Moore on offense and special teams.
Linebacker Garret Wallow (6.5 tackles for loss, two sacks) has shined for a defense employing a mix of youth -- true freshman linebacker Dee Winters started Saturday -- and veterans such as Wallow, tackles Ross Blacklock and Corey Bethley, and defensive backs Jeff Gladney and Innis Gaines. Cornerback Julius Lewis (knee) could return this week against SMU.
"Our front guys have got a chance to be really good," Patterson told me Sunday. "[Purdue] couldn't handle our defensive tackles. All of our back seven can really run."
TCU will continue rotating quarterbacks Max Duggan and Alex Delton while leaning on senior running backs Darius Anderson and Sewo Olonilua (363 rushing yards combined). Jalen Reagor is a proven threat at receiver, and TCU could get Taye Barber -- "probably the best player we had in spring," Patterson said -- back from injury against SMU.
"The biggest key for us is how we do on offense and, as a team, can we stay healthy?" Patterson said. "Because we have some good wide receivers. If we just get them the football and catch it, that's going to be as much of a boost for our whole team as anything."
ACC: Virginia
Preseason favorite: Clemson
Preseason AP top 15: None
We've seen little to suggest that top-ranked Clemson will be truly tested before the College Football Playoff. But Virginia has an argument because it boasts one of the ACC's most dynamic players not wearing the Tiger Paw: quarterback Bryce Perkins.
After a breakout 2018 season in which some of his accomplishments placed him in Kyler Murray's company, Perkins is once again propelling the Cavaliers. Even when not at his best Saturday against Florida State, Perkins went 9-for-9 passing on a game-tying touchdown drive, and he helped Virginia to 21 fourth-quarter points in a 31-24 win.
Quarterbacks coach Jason Beck told me the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Perkins perfectly fits the dual-threat "Thorterback" role that coach Bronco Mendenhall covets, a role that former BYU star Taysom Hill and others had in the past.
"Something will happen, a guy won't get open, a route will break down, a protection will break down, and that kind of guy can make something great out of that," Beck said. "[Perkins] has that ability. As we're growing at all the positions around the quarterback, when you have that kind of guy, it can cover up a lot of those mistakes.
"Bryce is a very driven kid and wants to be great. A big part of it is supporting the vision that he wants."
Perkins has focused on improving his footwork, especially for throws toward the sideline, and can attack downfield effectively. Virginia must build around him -- Wayne Taulapapa's three rushing touchdowns against FSU are promising -- and continue to excel in areas such as run defense (2.5 yards per carry).
"When they get in the groove of the season, they're tough," an ACC defensive assistant said. "They're talented all over the place. Still figuring out who their running back is, but the quarterback alone makes them scary."
Pac-12: Washington State
Preseason favorite: Utah
Preseason AP top 15: Oregon (11), Washington (13)
Mike Leach is doing it again. After arguably the best four-year run of his career, Leach has Washington State positioned well in the Pac-12 North, behind a quarterback few knew about a month ago.
"Credit to Leach," a Pac-12 defensive coordinator told me. "He's got that system going, and he's able to recruit to that system."
Anthony Gordon might not become a national icon like Gardner Minshew, but the fifth-year senior has validated Leach's decision to make him QB1. Gordon on Friday became just the third FBS player in the past 15 years to record 400 pass yards and three touchdowns in each of the first three games of a season, joining another former Leach quarterback, Graham Harrell (2007), and Patrick Mahomes (2016). Gordon is completing 78.7% of his passes.
"Accuracy is the starting point, not some destination," Leach told me Sunday. "He's always been good at deciding who to throw it to, so that it gets there suddenly. A lot of times you get extra yards after the catch when you have a guy like that. He's adjusted quicker than I thought. I thought he would do well. He hasn't really had some of that 'I haven't started before' anxiety."
Washington State is averaging 8.8 yards per play, thanks to the Pac-12's deepest receiving corps -- five wideouts already have 10 or more receptions. Running back Max Borghi is averaging 7.8 yards per carry with four touchdowns to go along with 11 receptions.
"He's definitely a good player," Leach said of Borghi. "Runs about 19 inches off the ground, he's real fast, and for kind of a sturdy-built guy, bowed-up guy, he catches the ball really well."
Week 3 notes
New Kansas State coach Chris Klieman admittedly doesn't know much about how the Wildcats used to win big games. But the way KSU rallied on the road to beat Mississippi State felt familiar. There were special-teams heroics -- Malik Knowles' 100-yard kickoff return tied the score at 24 in the fourth quarter -- along with stout line play, opportunistic defense and just enough offense.
The strongest parallel to the past was K-State's mentality late in the game.
"There was no panic on the sideline," Klieman told me. "They never thought we were going to lose. For our players to continue to believe in what we're doing, it was a monumental win."
Quarterback Skylar Thompson began the game-winning drive with only eight completions for 88 yards but found wideout Dalton Schoen for a 20-yard gain and then a 15-yard touchdown.
"We were facing some pressure and [Thompson] checked us out of some things," Klieman said. "He's a tough kid who's a great football player who makes plays in critical situations. I love his moxie."
Arguably no coach has an easier time motivating his players for the start of each season than BYU's Kalani Sitake. An FBS independent, BYU annually opens with a gauntlet of name-brand opponents. After struggling in the opener against rival Utah, BYU has recorded consecutive overtime wins over Tennessee and USC.
The key to BYU's endurance? Its willingness to use younger players. BYU's depth chart lists three players at most positions and 21 freshmen or sophomores as starters or backups.
"You have to develop them younger, and then not be afraid to use freshmen," Sitake told me. "We have guys who have never played certain positions, and then their welcome to it was to go against Utah, and then we had them get used to it by playing Tennessee. They should have some experience now and feel comfortable with it."
Kansas' first road win over a Power 5 opponent since 2008 is huge for coach Les Miles and a staff, especially coordinators Les Koenning and D.J. Eliot, that many questioned. The result could also be more damaging for Boston College coach Steve Addazio, who faced some job pressure entering the season. After a 2-0 start, BC allowed 48 points and 567 yards to Kansas at Alumni Stadium.
Although Addazio has brought consistency to The Heights -- seven wins in five of six seasons -- losses like Friday's sour the mood in a hurry. BC's second-half schedule looks daunting, with games against Clemson, Notre Dame, Syracuse and NC State, so a Kansas hangover will turn up the heat.