Iowa State Cyclones blow Ducks out of the water in Fiesta Bowl

The Iowa State Cyclones forced four turnovers from the Oregon Ducks and controlled the clock with efficiency via the ground game in a 34-17 at the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona on Saturday night.

Oregon starting quarterback Tyler Shough was benched for backup Anthony Brown midway through the second quarter, but came back to finish the game. Shough was just 7-9 for 79 yards and an interception, while Brown finished 12-19 for 147 yards and a pick as well.

The Pac-12 Champion Ducks (4-3) ran just 46 total offensive plays compared to 85 for the Cyclones, and had the offense on the field for just 17:12 in time of possession. For a New Year’s Six bowl, the gap between the two teams while ISU was on offense was pretty massive.

Iowa State (9-3) quarterback Brock Purdy finished the game just 20-29 for 156 yards and with a passing touchdown to Charlie Kolar, but the real star was running back Breece Hall, who had 34 carries for 136 yards and two touchdowns, part of 56 carries and 228 yards on the ground for the Big 12 runner-up.

The Big 12, much maligned in 2020 for their lack of production, ends up 2-0 in New Year’s Six bowl games, while the only Pac-12 representative in the biggest postseason games heads home empty-handed. It was the first NY6 win for the Cyclones in the seven-year-old bowl series, and only the fifth postseason win in program history.