Every single week that the Iowa State Cyclones lose, the blame seems to always go on the same person: Jaylen Raynor.

Raynor is the starting quarterback, a transfer coming from the Arkansas State Red Wolves. He was expected to be the Cyclones’ best player coming into the season, after three straight years of consistent success with the Red Wolves.

But unfortunately, things haven’t worked out the way we thought. Raynor had a poor start to the season and hasn’t really been able to find his footing with the program. However, over the last few weeks, he’s been picking things up and looks like a completely new player.

Raynor opened the season completing just eight passes against the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks. Then, he followed it up by leading the offense to just 13 points in a rivalry loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Jaylen Raynor has elevated his game to another level

In fact, throughout games 1-7, Raynor simply wasn’t good enough. He averaged 13.3 passes completed per game on 22.6 attempts. He averaged one touchdown pass per game and 0.6 interceptions. He threw for 158.1 yards per game as well.

Then the home game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys came, where he led the team to a 51-49 win, going 18-of-28 for 309 yards and three touchdowns with just one interception. A late pass completion to wide receiver Jamal Polite Jr. sealed the deal for the team.

Over the weekend, Iowa State went on the road to take on the Baylor Bears. And while the team lost, Raynor still had some big moments. He completed 22-of-37 passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions. He helped the team get off to an early 10-0 start before the defense lost its footing and the team was defeated.

Raynor went from just 13.3 passes completed to 20 in the past two weeks. He also went from just 158.1 yards per game to 282.5. His touchdowns went from one to 2.5, and his interceptions went from 0.6 to 0.5.

The statistics showcase immense growth, but they don’t even tell the full story. Raynor looks more confident throwing the ball and has gotten better under pressure. He’s also gotten the best out of receivers like Polite Jr., Cameron Pettaway, Omari Hayes, and Ty Clairborne.

The Cyclones have looked like a much more complete offensive team when Raynor is playing well, and he’s completely changed Iowa State’s season to look much more promising. With three games left, Raynor has a few more opportunities to make big plays and bring the Cyclones to the bowl game that they have been fighting all year for.