Baylor 45, Iowa State 27: What We Learned

[caption id="attachment_19659" align="alignleft" width="300"]Photo by Pat Carrigan Photo by Pat Carrigan[/caption] It wasn't always pretty, but Baylor got past Big 12 rival Iowa State, 45-27 in a rainy Waco on Saturday. What did we learn? DCTF's Mike Craven breaks it down. Baylor did its job in a 45-27 victory over Iowa State. The Baylor offense was as sloppy as the conditions in Waco for most of the second half, but it was enough to secure a 25-point victory in conference play in weather not built for the usual offensive explosion we’re accustomed to seeing from the Bear offense. The Bears scored just 10 points in the second half. Baylor was shutout for an entire quarter for just the third time this season in the third quarter against Iowa State. The Bears offense got on the board in the fourth quarter after the offense was set up with great field position and then a touchdown pass late after an Iowa State turnover. The rushing game was impressive for the 7-0 Baylor Bears. Shock Linwood recorded 171 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. Seth Russell had a pedestrian day through the air, but added 64 yards and a 37-yard touchdown in eight carries. The weather disrupted the passing game, as Russell completed only 16 of his 37 attempts. He threw for fewer than 200 yards for the first time this season. Corey Coleman added two touchdown receptions to grow his season total to 18 touchdown receptions. He scored Baylor’s first touchdown on a 36-yard reception from Russell and added the last touchdown for the Bears offense when he hauled in Jarrett Stidham’s lone passing attempt of the game. Coleman finished the game with six receptions. Baylor’s defense started the game strong, but the Cyclones eventually had success in the running game. Mike Warren ended the game with 145 yards on 28 carries and Joshua Thomas added 77 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, including a long of 42 yards. Quarterback Joel Lanning was efficient in relief, hitting 12-of-17 attempts for 144 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. The Bears defense played well in the first half when they were forcing starting quarterback Sam B. Richardson into mistakes. Richardson threw two interceptions in the first half, but was replaced by Lanning after the mistakes and the Baylor defense wasn’t as impressive. Baylor’s season likely comes down to a few key performances. Iowa State never challenged Baylor, but it wasn’t a performance the Bears will be happy with, even with the weather conditions. Going undefeated is the way to ensure a spot in the College Football Playoff and Baylor is one step closer to achieving that goal.