Cincinnati vs Iowa State Prediction, Game Preview, and Betting Lines

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Nov 15, 2024 5:54 PM ET

Well that was fun while it lasted.

7-0 turned into 7-2 over the last two weeks for Iowa State with the scoring offense stalling against Texas Tech - very, very hard to do - and the defense failing to get off the bus against Kansas. There’s still time to do something big, but it has to win out - at Utah and Kansas State to close - and get plenty of help.

Cincinnati also lost two straight and now it’s out of the Big 12 chase, but it’s been a strong turnaround after a rough 2023. It has two jobs. 1) Play the spoiler, and 2) win one of the last three - at Kansas State and TCU to close - to get bowl eligible.

Cincinnati vs Iowa State: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 16, 2024
Game Time: 10:30 pm ET
How to Watch: FOX
Venue: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, IA
Teams: Iowa State (7-2), Cincinnati (5-4a)
CFN Bluesky | CFN X | CFN FB
- Week 12 Schedule, Predictions

Why Cincinnati Will Win

The passing game is good enough to give Iowa State problems.

The Cyclones have struggled over the last two weeks because Kansas ripped off yards in chunks - Cincinnati has the ability to come up with at least five yards per carry - and got hit for 250 passing yards or more in every game but the win over Houston.

Cincinnati doesn’t live off the passing game - it lost to Texas Tech even after going off for well over 400 yards - but everything else tends to work when Brendan Sorsby is hitting at least 60% of his passes. But the real key here are the interceptions. Iowa State lives off of them, and Cincinnati has only given up five on the year. But …

Why Iowa State Will Win

Iowa State has been a takeaway machine.

It didn’t come up with any in the loss to Kansas, but overall the team is +8 in turnover margin with two or more in six of the seven games before last week. No, Cincinnati doesn’t give up a ton of picks, but the three turnovers against West Virginia last week were a killer.

But for Iowa State it’s about keeping things moving. The offense struggled on third downs over the last three games, but Cincinnati is allowing teams to get to 40% on the year - even though it tightened up lately. The Cyclones have this if they own the third down battle.

Cincinnati vs Iowa State: Who Will Win?

Iowa State stops the skid now.

It hasn’t been playing all that poorly. It was off a tad in the loss to Texas Tech, and it ran into a buzzsaw against Kansas. It’ll be a tight battle that comes down to converting on decent drives - expect a few too many field goals.

Iowa State’s Kyle Konrady will have a big day.