WACO, Texas -- After wrapping up non-conference play last week with a 42-7 win over Texas State, No. 17/17 Baylor football will open its league schedule on Saturday, traveling to face Iowa State at 11 a.m. on ESPN2 at Jack Trice Stadium. Tiffany Greene (play-by-play), Rocky Boiman (analyst) and Dawn Davenport (sideline) will have the call on ESPN2.
 
The game will also be broadcast live on the Baylor Radio Network from Learfield, with John Morris (play-by-play), J.J. Joe (analyst) and Ricky Thompson (sideline) calling the action.
 
The Bears (2-1) won two of their three non-conference games leading into the league slate, earning wins over UAlbany in the season lid-lifter and posting the rout of Texas State last week. The Bears used a furious running game in the win over the Cats, rushing for nearly 300 yards and totaling 501 yards of total offense with five rushing TDs. It marked the second game in three tries that Baylor has rushed for at least five TDs in a game in 2022, totaling seven rushing scores in the season opener.
 
This will mark the 21st all-time meeting between Baylor and Iowa State, with the Bears leading the series 11-9 and coming off a 31-29 win a year ago in Waco.
 
Iowa State (3-0) won all of its non-conference tests to open the year, including rolling over SEMO and Ohio, and earning a 10-7 win over rival Iowa on the road.
 
SERIES HISTORY
• Baylor leads the all-time series with Iowa State, 11-9, with Iowa State leading the series in games played in Ames, 6-4.
• The Bears have won two of the last three meetings, with Iowa State claiming the last win in Ames in 2020, 38-31, and Baylor owning a 31-29 win in the meeting in Waco last year. The Bears have won six of the last nine meetings in the series but will be looking for their first win in Ames since 2016, a 45-42 win.
 
LAST MEETING
• In the meeting last year, the Bears posted a 31-29 win over No. 14 Iowa State in Waco.
• The win came despite Iowa State owning a 479-282 edge in total offense, a 216-123 margin in rushing yards and committing 85 fewer yards in penalties.
• It was Baylor's fourth-consecutive win to open the season and foreshadowed a historic run to the Big 12 Championship and the 2022 Sugar Bowl.
• Baylor took a 21-13 lead at the half after scoring TDs on its first three series of the game. After the Cyclones narrowed the margin to 21-16 with a field goal midway through the third quarter, Trestan Ebner returned the ensuing kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown.
• Gerry Bohanon threw for 159 yards and two TDs and rushed for a score, with Abram Smith owning 47 yards on 10 carries. Tyquan Thornton and Ben Sims each had TD grabs and Dillon Doyle led a defense with nine tackles and two for a loss.
• Iowa State's Brock Purdy threw for 263 yards and a TD, with Breece Hall going for 190 yards and two TDs on 27 carries.
 
BEARS ROUT TEXAS STATE TO CONCLUDE NON-CONFERENCE
• Baylor used a 42-7 rout of Texas State to conclude non-conference play, getting 501 yards of total offense, including 293 yards and five TDs on the ground, to post the convincing win.
• The Bears got an explosive game from freshman Richard Reese, who had career highs in carries (19), yards (156) and TDs (three) to help Baylor secure the win. BU owned a 14-0 lead before the Bobcats got on the board and then ripped off 28 unanswered points to extend the lead to 42-7 early in the fourth quarter, emptying the bench in a game that saw Baylor missing six listed starters due to injury.
• Blake Shapen threw for 184 yards and a TD and rushed for 42 yards, including a 35-yard TD scamper in the first half. Gavin Holmes grabbed his first TD catch since 2020 and Craig Williams added 56 yards and a score on the ground. Defensively, Al Walcott had nine tackles, two for a loss and a forced fumble, while AJ McCarty added seven tackles. Brooks Miller made five tackles, including a sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss.
 
HOLDING SERVE AT McLANE
• Baylor owns an 11-2 record at McLane Stadium under the direction of Coach Dave Aranda, which includes nine-consecutive wins, dating back to a 7-0 record in 2021.
• The Bears rank among the national leaders with nine-consecutive home wins, with Clemson (36 straight), Cincinnati (28), Oregon (21), Alabama (15), Miami of Ohio (15), Georgia (13), NC State (12), Oklahoma (12), Wake Forest (11), Ole Miss (11), Louisiana-Lafayette (11), Michigan (10), Utah (10) and Kent State (10) ahead of Baylor. Ohio State has also won nine-straight home games.
 
SCOUTING THE CYCLONES
• Iowa State enters the 2022 meeting with the Cyclones having won all three of their non-conference games to open the year, including easy wins over non-conference foes in SEMO (42-10) and most-recently vs. Ohio (43-10), and a hard-fought win over rival Iowa on Sept. 10, 10-7 on the road.
• The Cyclones average 31.7 points and surrender just nine points per game, averaging 156 yards rushing and 259 yards passing, with the defense holding foes to just 60 yards on the ground - ranking fifth in the nation - and 174.3 in the air.
• ISU has seen QB Hunter Dekkers throw for 745 yards and eight TDs - compared to just three interceptions - completing 74.3 percent of his throws. Jirehl Brock has rushed for 280 yards and a score on 50 carries, averaging 93.3 yards per game and 5.6 yards per tote. Xavier Hutchinson has caught 106.3 yards per game on 28 balls and 319 yards, with five TDs.
• Defensively, O'Rien Vance leads the team with 13 tackles, two for a loss and one sack. Five different players have a sack for ISU and Colby Reeder has two of the four interceptions for the defense, also owning a team-high five QB hurries.
• Iowa State is coached by Matt Campbell, who is in his seventh year in Ames after a strong run at Toledo. His coordinators include defensive coordinator Jon Heacock, a former head coach at Youngstown State, and offensive coordinator Tom Manning, who played collegiately with Campbell.
 
BAYLOR IN BIG 12 OPENERS
• Baylor has gone 7-1 and out-scored opponents by an average of 45-28 in eight Big 12 openers since 2013. In the 17 prior Big 12 openers from 1996-2012, the Bears went 4-13 and were outscored by an average of 32-23.
• This is the fourth time Baylor has opened Big 12 Conference play with Iowa State, also facing the Cyclones in 2019, 2014, 2001 and 2000, going 2-2 in those meetings, with both wins coming the last two times.
 
BEARS IN NATIONAL STAT RANKINGS
• Baylor ranks among the nation's top 30 leaders in 14 categories, including checking in No. 16 in rushing offense and No. 16 in scoring offense.
• Defensively, BU ranks 23rd nationally in rushing defense, 24th in scoring defense and 26th in total defense.
• Individually, Richard Reese ranks seventh in rushing TDs and 55th in rushing yards.
 
REESE EMERGES
• Baylor freshman running back Richard Reese is off to a hot start to his collegiate career, leading the Bears in rushing through his first three NCAA games.
• Reese has 237 yards rushing over 34 carries with five TDs through three games, averaging 7.0 yards per carry and 79 yards per game.
• A native of Bellville, Texas, Reese had 156 yards on the ground in a rout of Texas State and scored three TDs. Among NCAA freshmen, Reese ranks tied for second in rushing TDs and fourth in rushing yards.
 
NEXT UP
• The Bears will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 1, playing host to No. 9/8 Oklahoma State at McLane Stadium. The Big 12 Conference TV partners have exercised an option to announce on Sunday the television designation and start time for the game.