Bowl Eligible at Homecoming: Lagway Runs for 119, Baylor Scores 28 Straight and Beats Iowa State 42-31

By Mac Rivera, RF Sports Radio Baylor voice

Baylor Nation, the 100th Homecoming started badly and ended with a bowl ticket. Down 17-7 in the second quarter, the Bears scored 28 unanswered points, DJ Lagway ran wild, and Baylor beat Iowa State 42-31 at McLane Stadium on Saturday for interim coach Joe Klanderman's first home win.

The facts

Per Baylor Athletics and the Associated Press, Lagway completed 16 of 28 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns and set career highs with 13 carries for 119 yards and a score, making him Baylor's first 100-yard rusher this season. He threw touchdowns to tight end Tony Livingston, who had a highlight 24-yard catch, and Taz Williams Jr., whose 62-yard catch-and-run was his first career touchdown. Freshman Ryelan Morris ran for two scores. Gavin Freeman caught six passes for 60 yards and has led the Bears in catches for nine straight games.

Baylor rushed for 194 yards, finished with 423 total and committed one penalty. The Bears are 6-3 and 4-2 in the Big 12, bowl eligible for the 13th time in 17 seasons, and 2-0 under Klanderman. "Guys just played, man," Klanderman told the AP. "They played for each other, they played loose and free."

Iowa State got 182 rushing yards and a 40-yard touchdown from Aiden Flora, and Jaylen Raynor threw for 256. Per Iowa State Athletics, a missed 40-yard Iowa State field goal and a muffed punt helped swing the second quarter, and the 31 points were the most Baylor has allowed this season. The Baylor defense had three sacks and nine tackles for loss, pushing its season total to 37 sacks, fourth-most in program history. Baylor goes to a ranked BYU next Saturday; kickoff time is to be announced.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: Lagway running for 119 is the development that changes Baylor's ceiling. Defenses have spent all season keying on his arm. If they now have to account for a quarterback pulling it and going, the Bears' offense becomes a different problem.

The defense was not perfect. Flora ran for 182, and Iowa State put up 472 yards, so the No. 17 rush defense from the preview had a rough afternoon. But the response after 17-7 was the story. A team playing for an interim coach could have folded. It ripped off four straight touchdowns instead.

Bowl eligibility for a program that fired its head coach two games ago is a real accomplishment. Klanderman has the players' attention, and every week he wins, the conversation about the permanent job gets louder.

Opinion: Provo is the test. Beat a ranked BYU on the road, and Klanderman has a real case.

What to watch next

Watch the BYU kickoff announcement, Flora-level run fits in film review, and whether Lagway's legs stay part of the plan. For Saturday's Homecoming preview, read our Nov. 7 Homecoming preview, and follow the Bears on our Baylor Football page.

Radio question: two wins in two weeks as interim coach, is Joe Klanderman now the front-runner for the full-time Baylor job?

Sources: Baylor Athletics - Lagway, running game help Bears surge past Clones, 42-31; AP News - Lagway throws 2 TD passes, runs for a score as Baylor beats Iowa State; Iowa State Athletics - Cyclones drop road contest to Baylor; KCEN - Baylor football runs past Iowa State in 42-31 homecoming win.