Bye Week Homework for Klanderman: Bottle the UCF Blueprint, Because Iowa State Has Won Two Straight in This Series

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RF Sports Radio branded title card with Baylor logo: Next, Iowa State at Baylor, Nov. 7, 11 a.m. CT on FS1

By Mac Rivera, RF Sports Radio Baylor voice

Sic 'em, Bears fans. You get a full weekend to enjoy the best night of the season. There is no game this weekend, and the extra rest lands right where an interim staff needs it. Now comes the hard part: proving Orlando was a start, not a one-night spike.

The facts

Baylor (5-3, 3-2 Big 12) hosts Iowa State on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 11 a.m. Central on FS1, per 247Sports. It is Homecoming, per BaylorBears.com. Baylor leads the all-time series 12-11, but Iowa State has won the last two meetings, according to Sports-Reference.

The Bears are coming off a 41-9 win at UCF on Friday, Oct. 30, in Joe Klanderman's first game as interim head coach after Dave Aranda was fired, per the AP. DJ Lagway threw for 319 yards and four touchdowns, and the defense had a season-high seven sacks and 12 tackles for loss while holding UCF to 66 rushing yards, per BaylorBears.com.

Klanderman came to Baylor this year as defensive coordinator. Sports Illustrated's Baylor site has described his approach as an aggressive 3-3-5 built on pressure, turnovers and stops on third down and in the red zone.

Iowa State is in its first season under head coach Jimmy Rogers, per 247Sports, which before the season described a Cyclones team built around quarterback Jaylen Raynor, receiver Aiden Flora and a run-first offense, with a move to a four-man defensive front.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: the week off is a gift, and Klanderman has to use it like a head coach, not a coordinator. Friday showed what this defense looks like when it plays fast and free. The job now is making that the standard, not the exception.

Here is why Iowa State matters so much. Bowl eligibility is one win away. Get it at home, on Homecoming, against a team that has beaten you twice in a row, and the whole conversation around this program changes for the rest of November.

The matchup I am circling: a run-first offense against a defense that just held UCF to 66 rushing yards. If Baylor wins the line of scrimmage again, Lagway gets to play from ahead, and we saw Friday what he looks like when he does.

The worry is the hangover. Emotional wins after a coaching change can fade fast. Klanderman's biggest test is not the scheme. It is keeping 100 young men locked in for a week with no game.

What to watch next

Watch for injury updates and any staff news during the off weekend, then Iowa State week. For Friday's 41-9 win at UCF, read our Oct. 31 Baylor-UCF recap, and follow the Bears on our Baylor Football page.

Radio question: can Baylor carry the UCF energy into Iowa State week, or was Friday the kind of emotional night that is hard to repeat?

Sources: 247Sports - Kickoff time, broadcast information announced for Iowa State at Baylor; Sports-Reference - Iowa State at Baylor preview, Nov. 7, 2026; BaylorBears.com - Baylor throttles UCF in Orlando on Friday night; AP News - Lagway throws for 4 TDs as Baylor wins Klanderman's first game as interim coach; Sports Illustrated - How Joe Klanderman plans to create more turnovers and havoc plays; 247Sports - Cover 3 summer series previews Iowa State.

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