The Iowa State Cyclones picked up the biggest win of the season in Week 9, defeating the No. 24 Oklahoma State Cowboys in a shootout at Jack Trice Stadium, 51-49.

It was the fifth time the Cyclones faced a ranked team, and the first time they were able to come away victorious. With a 4-4 record, there is a path to becoming bowl-eligible, with them needing only two more wins.

The first opportunity to cut that number in half will come on the road against the Baylor Bears, who fired their head coach, Dave Aranda, and responded with a dominant 41-9 victory on the road over the UCF Knights for their fifth win of the campaign.

How will the matchup turn out in Week 10? Here are some bold predictions for the game.

Jaylen Raynor Keeps Rolling

It wasn’t too long ago that there were legitimate discussions about the status of Jaylen Raynor as the starting quarterback. He was benched at halftime against the Arizona Wildcats but inserted back into the lineup against Oklahoma State.

Raynor responded as the coaching staff had hoped the veteran would, putting together the best game of his Cyclones career. He threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns, adding 48 yards on the ground and another score.

That excellent production will continue with the trip to Waco. Raynor will complete at least 60 percent of his passes for 250+ yards and two scores. He will make use of his legs and athleticism, rushing for at least 35 yards and one more score.

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After a few weeks of struggles, he has found his groove when his back is up against the wall.

Iowa State Pass Rush Gets Home

Generating pressure on opposing quarterbacks has been a struggle for the Iowa State defense. They have only 10 sacks this season, but they have shown some signs of getting quarterbacks off schedule.

Last week against the Cowboys, they had 14 total pressures, recording 11 hurries and three quarterback hits. Against Baylor, some of those pressures are finally going to result in sacks, with the team recording three.

Isaac Terrell will pick up his first sack since the first game of the season against the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks. Jace Gilbert, who owns the best pass-rushing grade on the team, will get his first sack of the season as well.

Cyclones Pull Off The Upset

The Cyclones haven’t found much success this season away from Ames. But that is going to change during their trip to Waco, as they are going to pick up their first road victory of the 2026 college football season.

Iowa State will win 27-24, with Kyle Konrardy coming up big near the end of the game once again to send his team back home with the win.

Aiden Flora will have another game with 150+ yards from scrimmage, and Cameron Pettaway is going to catch at least three passes as he continues his transition to wide receiver from running back.