Iowa St. v. Oklahoma St.

So, for the second time this year, the Big Gold Trophy comes to Ames, Iowa.  Here's a story we didn't get to tell a few weeks ago, when Texas Christian played at Iowa State.  The Iowa State Cyclones play in Jack Trice Stadium.  In 1923, Jack Trice was an African-American player for Iowa State who traveled with the rest of the squad for a game at the University of Minnesota.  After having to stay at a separate hotel from his white teammates, he suffered a broken collarbone during the game.  He insisted on returning to the game, and suffered further injuries.  Doctors said he was fit to travel -- but the next day he died from internal bleeding.  Iowa State -- believing that Trice had been targeted by racist players at Minnesota -- did not play the Golden Gophers again until 1989.

For most of its history, Iowa State's home ground was known as Cyclone Stadium.  In 1975, the playing field was named Jack Trice Field in honor of Iowa State's first African-American athlete.  After persistent requests by students, the stadium was renamed Jack Trice Stadium in 1997.  According to Wikipedia, it is the only Division I-A Stadium named after an African American individual.

So here's where the Big XII stands (AP poll position in parentheses):

(5) Oklahoma St.:  6-0, 9-0
(4) Baylor:  5-0, 8-0
(12) Oklahoma:  5-1, 8-1
(13)  Texas Christian:  5-1, 8-1
Texas:  3-3, 4-5
Iowa St:  2-4, 3-6
Texas Tech:  2-5, 5-5
W. Virginia:  1-4, 4-4
Kansas St:  0-5, 3-5
Kansas:  0-6, 0-9

The bottom line is this:  if either Oklahoma State or Baylor can finish the season undefeated, they will carry the Unofficial College Football Championship into the NCAA Playoffs.  If neither team finishes undefeated, then the Big XII will probably be locked out of the playoffs for the second year in a row -- a development that would cause great angst throughout Big XII-land.

It won't be easy for Oklahoma State or Baylor to finish undefeated.  Here's what Baylor has left:

11/14:  (12) OKLAHOMA
11/21:  at (5) Oklahoma St.
11/27:  at (13) Texas Christian
12/5:  TEXAS

And here's what Oklahoma State has left:

11/14:  at Iowa St.
11/21:  (4) BAYLOR
11/28:  (12) OKLAHOMA

As you can see, Oklahoma State has the significant advantage of getting to play Baylor and Oklahoma at home.  But of course, that won't matter if the Cowpokes stumble today against Iowa State.  That shouldn't happen.  Iowa State only has three wins:  a 31-7 win over Northern Iowa, a 38-13 win over winless Kansas, and a 24-0 win over Texas.  The Cyclones lost at home to both Iowa (17-31) and Texas Christian (21-45).  But they were game in both of those contests, and I am confident they will give it the old college try today.  Home field advantage counts for a lot in the Big XII, and Oklahoma State better not be looking ahead to next week's showdown with Baylor.

I am confident that this is the biggest Iowa State/Oklahoma State game ever played.  For most of college football history, the Cyclones and the Cowboys have struggled.  Iowa State ranks 106th out of 129 I-A schools in winning percentage, while Oklahoma State is 82d in that category.  But they were both in the old Big 8 for many years, so this will be the 50th meeting between the two schools.  Oklahoma State leads the all-time series 28-18-3, and neither team has ever won more than four in a row against the other.  Oklahoma State has won five of the last six meetings, including three straight.  They have never previously met for the UCFC.

The oddsmakers like Oklahoma State today -- the Cowboys are a 14-point favorite in a game where 61 points are expected to be played.  That would work out to something like a 37-23 win for OSU.  Unless the weather in Ames is terrible, I would expect more points than that.