Late FG edges Jayhawks in Ames

AMES, Iowa (AP) -- Better, but still not good enough. Kansas remains winless in the Big 12 after a 13-10 loss to Iowa State on Saturday, and prospects of getting that first victory are even dimmer now. But the Jayhawks saw enough to be encouraged after losing their first five conference games by an average of 32.8 points. "We had opportunities to win the football game, but we didn't make it happen," KU coach Turner Gill said. "There were some good things that did occur for our football team. We played well. We missed some opportunities, but we have to keep competing." Kansas (2-7, 0-6 Big 12) went into the fourth quarter with a good chance to win after being outgained 590-46 in a 43-0 loss to Texas a week earlier. But Iowa State's Zach Guyer kicked a 42-yard field goal with 4:30 left to break a 10-10 tie, KU went three-and-out on its last two possessions and Iowa State ran off the final 2:37. "Every loss hurts," running back James Sims said. "We were in the game all four quarters and we came out and executed. Coach Gill's motivation is going to keep pushing us through the weeks." The Jayhawks will need to stay motivated. They finish the season against Baylor, Texas A&M and Missouri. Iowa State (5-4, 2-4) is just one victory from bowl eligibility but also has a tough road ahead, closing against Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Kansas State. Freshman quarterback Jared Barnett directed Iowa State's game-winning drive, taking the Cyclones from their own 13 to the Kansas 24. Barnett ran for 125 yards in 22 carries and passed for another 175 yards, completing 16 of 30 with one interception. But Iowa State looked nothing like the team that had routed Texas Tech 41-7 a week earlier. While the Jayhawks had trouble corralling Barnett, they did a good job stuffing the line of scrimmage against the running backs until Jeff Woody made some key runs late to help Iowa State run out the clock. The Cyclones' James White managed only 38 yards in 10 carries, while Duran Hollis had minus-1 yard in four attempts. White and Hollis both ran for more than 100 yards against Texas Tech. "They shut off our running backs," Barnett said. "They were keying in on them, making me make the decisions with the ball. At the end of the game, they keyed in on me and opened up lanes for the running backs." Both teams wasted good scoring chances, and that was especially costly for Kansas. After taking a 7-3 lead when D.J. Beshears scored on a 22-yard reverse late in the first quarter, Kansas drove to the Iowa State 32, 19, 23 and 2 on consecutive possessions and came away with only three points. Alex Mueller had a 49-yard field goal attempt blocked by A.J. Klein, he was wide right on a 36-yard attempt and Sims lost a fumble before Ron Doherty kicked a 19-yard field goal to tie the score at 10 in the third quarter. The Cyclones stiffened on that drive after Kansas had first-and-goal at the 4. The field goal came on the first attempt of Doherty's career. "I am always ready at all times," Doherty said. "It was a good way to start out. It was good to get out there and get three points on them." Iowa State had taken a 10-7 lead on wide receiver Aaron Horne's 18-yard touchdown run on a reverse. Horne came around from the right side, turned the corner, squirted through a group of tacklers at the 10 and raced to the end zone to finish an 11-play, 80-yard drive. The Cyclones seemed on the verge of taking a 17-10 lead early in the fourth quarter when Barnett and Woody missed a connection on a handoff on second-and-1 at the KU 9. The ball came loose, and Patrick Dorsey recovered for the Jayhawks. Punter Kirby Van Der Kamp had kept that drive going with a 17-yard run on a fake. The Jayhawks went nowhere on their next two possessions, however, and Barnett took the Cyclones on their game-winning drive. Kansas showed an effective running game after being held to minus-2 yards on the ground by Texas. The Jayhawks rushed for 174 yards, but had only 4 yards on the ground and 15 total yards in the fourth quarter. Webb finished 13 for 21 for 127 yards and no interceptions.