MANHATTAN, Kan. – Only a rivalry nicknamed ‘Farmageddon’ could deliver a game as strange, wild and entertaining as the one Iowa State and Kansas State delivered Saturday night.
Snow fell and a star rose as Iowa State running back Abu Sama ran for 276 yards and three scores in a rollicking 42-35 victory for the Cyclones (7-5, 6-3 Big 12) over the No. 19 Wildcats (8-3, 6-3 Big 12) at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Sama made his first career start after the Cyclones’ two leading rushers, Eli Sanders and Cartevious Norton, unexpectedly did not make the trip for the game. The Southeast Polk product had one of the best nights in Iowa State history.
Sama’s 276 yards were the fourth-most ever for a Cyclone, with Heisman runner-up Troy Davis occupying the three spots ahead of him in the record book.
Sama scored on the game’s first offensive play, blasting through Kansas State’s defense for a 71-yard score. His other two scores measured 77 and 60 yards.
More: Recap: Iowa State football beats Kansas State, 42-35
His explosive plays seemed to be contagious for the Cyclones, who also got touchdowns of 82, 79 and 33 yards as multiple inches of snow blanketed the field and made footing difficult for both teams.
Jaylin Noel had three catches for 160 yards and two touchdowns for Iowa State.
The Cyclones, who lost five starters to the state’s gambling probe and began the season 1-2 with a loss to Ohio, have now matched the win total of the 2021 team that began the season ranked in the top-10.
Sama’s huge day and the Cyclones’ victory made the absences of Sanders and Norton seem like an afterthought.
It was announced before the game that Sanders and Norton, both of whom have shown glimpses of No. 1 back potential, did not make the trip for undisclosed reasons. In stepped Sama, who has flashed plenty of big-play potential but also got benched earlier this year following a fumble, for a historic performance.
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So the game began with the Cyclones’ running back circumstances muddled and mysterious, and it ended with questions lingering about the exact nature of the absences. But there were no questions about who the team’s most dynamic back is.
Sama delivered one of the best rushing performances in school history, and he did it in a rivalry game that will live in ‘Farmageddon’ lore for both his outburst and for the unrelenting snow that fell all night.
He became just the seventh player since 1996 to post two 70-plus touchdown runs against a ranked opponent. He made Troy Davis’ Iowa State single-game rushing game record of 378 seem attainable. He made every carry feel full of possibility.
He made a victory a reality.
Ultimately, though, it may be emblematic of a successful season that showed the promise of even more in the future. This Iowa State team may not have been ready to compete at the top of the Big 12, but it’s not difficult to see how they could change in the future.
On Saturday, that future didn’t seem very far away.
Travis Hines covers Iowa State University sports for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune. Contact him at [email protected] or (515) 284-8000. Follow him on X at @TravisHines21.
