ORLANDO, FLORIDA – Iowa State staged a thrilling comeback from a double-digit deficit against Miami in the 2024 Pop Tarts bowl as the Hurricanes’ healthy star quarterback Cam Ward sat out the second half, allowing the Cyclones to win, 42-41.
It looked like #18 Iowa State’s day right off the bat when #15 Miami fumbled on their first play. Iowa State’s touchdown on the ensuing opening drive was the third-straight game ISU has scored on the opening drive, the longest streak since 2021.
Both offenses steamrolled early, putting up 59 total points in the first half. Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award winner Cam Ward played only the first half for Miami, but engineered several touchdown drives for the Hurricanes. He threw for 190 yards and three touchdowns. His 156 career TD’s are a college record. Meanwhile, Iowa State’s Rocco Becht played the entire game, threw for 270 yards and three touchdowns and was named the Pop-Tarts Bowl MVP.
The 35 combined points in the first quarter is tied for the second-most in a bowl game since 1996.
The Cyclones scored a touchdown on their first four drives of the game for the first time since
2021.
The victory was Iowa State’s sixth in a bowl game and the first since the Cyclones beat the Oregon Ducks in the 2021 Fiesta Bowl, 34-17.
Iowa State trailed by 10 points late, but two Becht touchdowns – one passing and one through the air – put the Cyclones over the top to stay.
(TOP PHOTO via miamihurricanes.com.)
