Becht runs for 3 touchdowns, No. 14 Iowa State beats Arizona 39-14
AMES, Iowa (AP) — Rocco Becht ran for three touchdowns and threw for 243 yards, Carson Hansen had more scoring runs and No. 14 Iowa State beat Arizona 39-14 on Saturday night.
Chase Sowell caught four passes for a career-high 146 yards, including receptions of 43, 32 and 52 yards.
“Coaches have come up to me many times and told me that I have the ability to make an impact on this team,” Sowell said. “Seeing those guys pick me up like that was great.”
Sowell’s 52-yard reception was the longest of the game.
“His ability to take things to another level is super impressive,” Iowa State coach Matt Campbell said. “I’m excited for him after watching him put this much time and effort in and to see those moments come his way.”
Becht completed 14 of 20 passes for the Cyclones (5-0, 2-0 Big 12), who led 36-7 midway through the third quarter. His nation-leading streak of consecutive games with a touchdown ended at 22.
The teams were meeting for the first time since 1968, with Iowa State beating the Wildcats (4-1, 0-1) for the first time since 1958.
Tight end Ben Brahmer had one of the game’s highlights when he took an inside handoff and passed 45 yards to Brett Eskildsen to set up Becht’s third 1-yard touchdown run.
“Having a program where guys are excelling at an elite rate is huge,” Campbell said. “You watch these guys really go to work and it makes you really proud.”
Noah Fifita was 32 of 48 for 253 yards and two touchdowns for Arizona.
“There were moments that we showed toughness and made some plays, but in the end it wasn’t nearly enough,” Arizona coach Brent Brennan said. “That’s one of the harsh realities when you lose a game like that and you don’t execute against a top-14 opponent.”
The takeaway
Arizona had difficulty getting started. On the Wildcats’ first five possesions, they had a missed field goal, three punts and Fifita threw an interception.
Iowa State: Becht and his backup, Connor Moberly, and Brahmer combined to complete 15 of 22 passes for 288 yards against an opponent that entered the game first in the country in pass efficiency defense.
Up next
Arizona: Hosts Oklahoma State on Saturday.
Iowa State: At Cincinnati on Saturday.
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