October 5, 2024; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell celebrates with defensive back Caden Matson (43) during their game against the Baylor Bears at Jack Trice Stadium. Mandatory credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn images

AMES – Iowa State walk-on defensive back Caden Matson watched the football spin and then gave chase, landing – against all shaky odds – straight into his hip pocket.

The HUmboldt native’s first career blocked the kick recovery as a touchdown was on the line against Baylor on Saturday night and at the critical moment two words popped into his head: “Oh, God.”

“It jumped a little bit and caught a little bit — it was right in there,” said Matson, whose subsequent 25-yard jaunt to the end zone in the No. 43-21 victory. 16 Cyclones on the Bears late caused a massive shift in momentum. in the first half. “It was kind of intentional, kind of, so yeah, it was cool.”

Refreshing too.

ISU – which is 5-0 for the first time in 44 years – trailed 14-12 at the time.

Reserve defensive end Myles Mendesson drove past obstacles to block the punt. Matson, a former Humboldt star, did the rest, giving the Cyclones their first blocked punt recovery for a touchdown since 2004, when LaMarcus Hicks picked up Ellis Hobbs’ deflection and scored.

It also gave ISU its second game-changing special teams play of the season, with the walk-on kicker participating Kyle Konrardy‘s game-winning 53-yard field goal in the 20-19 win over then-No. 21 Iowa.

“The ‘who’ is what’s even more rewarding,” the Cyclones head coach said Matt Campbellwhose team overcame a wave of injuries during the match. “Caden Matson has really just been a warrior for this program, and a kid who just keeps showing up. (He) obviously gets the touchdown, but we felt like there might be an opportunity to get a shot (on a punt block) in the game.

The results of that “shot” served as a spark for the ISU quarterback Rocco Bechtwho completed 16 of 25 passes for 277 yards, two touchdowns and one costly interception on Baylor’s goal line with 27 seconds left in the first half. Thirteen of these completions went to Jayden Higgins And Jaylin Noelwho combined for 214 receiving yards. Higgins also secured a jump-ball 11-yard touchdown throw from Becht, which essentially sealed the victory late in the third quarter. Higgins extended his program record for consecutive games with a touchdown catch to seven – eclipsing 100 receiving yards for the first time this season.

“There are some guys who are just human erasers,” Becht said of Higgins. “And (he’s) a human gumshow. Every time the ball is in the air he gets it or it becomes a PI. So if we keep giving that guy the ball, we’ll keep winning games.”

The same applies to the transfer file Jaylon Jacksonwho turned 15 carries an ISU career-high 170 yards and two touchdowns. Carson Hansen added 97 yards on the ground to the Cyclones’ season-high total of 265, while his team averaged a striking 7.7 yards per play.

“The other running backs gave me a little bit of a mess (because) I hadn’t scored a touchdown yet,” said the 5-7, 180-pound Jackson, who has made 50-yard runs on foes in two consecutive games. “I told them I wanted to be here in this kind of environment.”

A sold-out, white-clad crowd of 61,500 created that atmosphere and ISU responded — despite some early miscues — to post its most lopsided series victory over the Bears since 2001. The Cyclones’ offense eclipsed the 500-yard mark in a competition. for the first time in three years and the defense held Baylor scoreless in the final 17 minutes of the game.

“I appreciate that our team didn’t panic when it might not have been a little bit of the start that we probably wanted to have in the football game,” Campbell said. “Our kids understood that we had to play for 60 minutes.”

Cornerback Jontez Williams added another highlight with a touchdown-saving interception in the end zone. ISU’s offense produced nine plays that covered 20 or more yards, but special teams play energized the Cyclones the most after they fell behind 14-3 early.

“Special teams in many ways determine the character of your team, right?” said Campbell, whose team will play rising West Virginia (3-2, 2-0) under the lights next Saturday in Morgantown. “I know we talked a lot before the season started: ‘What makes this team unique?’ So far there has certainly been great buy-in value from the top to the bottom of the roster.”

Matson knows where he stands in that pecking order – and he’s cool with that. Excited actually.

“Everyone just puts their heads down and grinds,” he said. “It literally doesn’t matter who it is. It’s not like we’re treated differently or anything. We’re just going to go out there and execute the way we’ve been coached.”