Baylor (1-3, 1-3) at No. 17/17 Iowa State (4-2, 4-1)

Site: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, IA

Time/Day: 6:00 p.m. Saturday

TV/Radio: FS1/ESPN Central Texas

Betting Line: Iowa State -14

Series: Baylor leads, 10-6

Fingers are crossed. Apologies were expressed and accepted. People are hoping that whatever Baylor found in the second half against TCU opened the door just a little bit for what could be possible for the remainder of the 2020 season.

However, football is a week to week sport as the opponent and game plan differ. What may have worked against TCU may not Saturday in Ames, IA against No. 17 Iowa State. For now, Baylor is clinging to any kind of sign where things looked and felt better.

“Our offense kind of found, I guess you would call it, their mojo, where they get in a rhythm and they start moving the ball and they start scoring touchdowns,’’ Baylor junior nose tackle Ryan Miller said. “Defensively, it also motivates us, because whenever you get a three-and-out or a turnover or something like that, and your offense is able to go capitalize on that and score, it’s almost like, ‘Oh, let’s go do it again.’ it incentivizes you to keep playing good defense. And I think once you have that, you have kind of a unified team that can be really good.”

This is Baylor’s third road trip of the season and the first game against a ranked team. As much as this season has been of the stop and start variety, the program is actually into a rhythm. Baylor is preparing to play for the third consecutive week. It has yet to do that.

Of course, the Bears’ last trip to Ames in 2018 was a bit wild. In the third quarter of Baylor’s 28-14 loss, a fight broke out between ISU wide receiver Hakeem Butler and linebacker Blake Lynch. Then it escalated to where the officials slapped both sidelines with unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

In the fourth quarter when Bears QB Charlie Brewer went into a slide on a run, he was hit by a Cyclone defender. Brewer immediately went to the official and complained there should have been a call. When the official heard enough, he flagged Brewer for unsportsmanlike conduct and threw him out of the game. Brewer had drawn his second flag since the one on the sideline counted as the first.

That pretty much wiped out Baylor’s chances of trying to rally.

Maybe Saturday will be a little more civil.

Here are some elements to look for

>Running back John Lovett (apparent concussion) and wide receiver Tyquan Thornton are considered questionable for this contest. They both left the TCU game with injuries and did not return. The only way we’ll know is likely on Baylor’s first offensive series or shortly before kickoff. To this point, each has had disappointing seasons.

>If Lovett isn’t available or limited, it would figure that Sqwirl Williams will either start or collect a bulk of the carries for the running game. He’s not very big at about 5-9, 175, so Baylor is going to have to pick its spots on how and when to use him. His 82 yards last week against TCU were the most by any Baylor running back this season.

>Don’t expect much of a change in how Baylor experiments with its defensive front looks. Head coach Dave Aranda and defensive coordinator Ron Roberts continue to look at matchups and combinations to see who brings the most effort and productivity. Baylor’s pass rush hasn’t been all that bad. It has had some struggles stopping the run.

>Did the second half create a new look for the offense? Time will tell. But Baylor was more effective moving the football against TCU when Brewer was mixing being in the pocket as much as he was booting out of it or with designed roll outs. For him, throwing on the move is one of his best qualities.

Notable

In the last three games against West Virginia, Texas and TCU that is comprised of 180 minutes of game clock time and two untimed overtime periods, Baylor has held the lead for 3:39 of it.

Keys to the Game

Jamming the Hall – It’s pretty simple. If Baylor has any hope of giving itself a chance in this one. It has to make talented RB Breece Hall earn every yard and curtail how effective he can be. Hall is averaging 150.2 yards per game and is fast and shifty. What Roberts has to decide is how many men he wants to commit to the box.

Don’t be tardy – Baylor hasn’t scored on its first possession of the game in any of its four games. It’s also been outscored in the opening period, 34-10. Above all things that a team has to consider, getting off to a good start can’t be stressed enough. The 20-0 TCU deficit might be an outlier. However, it’s also an indication of the consequences if this team can’t strike first.

Purdy little angel eyes – Iowa State’s offense is conservative. However, it is balanced. QB Brock Purdy has been solid since the season opening flop against Louisiana. Baylor’s pass rush will be important. And there could be more blitzes mixed in just to see how Purdy will handle it.

Coming in 3s – Baylor’s offense has bogged down because it can’t convert third down. It’s just 33 percent for the season. Throw out the Kansas game, and this team has really struggled on this down (12-46, 26.1 percent) in the other three. It also has to make the distance to cover on that down manageable to cover. For the most part, that hasn’t been the case.

Prediction

The two biggest concerns for your publisher are how this offensive line is going to handle Iowa State’s pass rush and what its defense can do stopping or maybe controlling the running game. Brewer got beat up a few times against TCU. And the Horned Frogs really don’t have that great of a defensive front. The other problem against the rush is that Baylor doesn’t have a bulky running back who can help Brewer on passing downs. Hall is really good. He’s the best back they’re going to see this year not named Chuba Hubbard. Keep him in check and they have a chance. Baylor’s offense is going to have to perform at an exceptional level. It also is going to need some breaks.

Iowa State 34, Baylor 20