RECAP: Iowa State football falls to Oklahoma, 50-20

Iowa State looked competitive for large portions of the first half on Saturday, but when all was said and done No. 14 Oklahoma was just far too powerful for the Cyclones to handle.

The Sooners came away with a 50-20 win in Norman, which drops ISU to 2-3 (1-1 in the Big 12) on the season. Oklahoma improves to a perfect 5-0. The Sooners have scored 50+ points in three games this season.

While it wasn’t the result the Cyclones and their fans were hoping for, there are many reasons to be encouraged, particularly on the offensive side of the ball.

Check out all the highlights and biggest developments from Saturday’s game.

FINAL: Iowa State 20, Oklahoma 50

4Q/8:41 Oklahoma hits the 50 point mark against Iowa State

Oklahoma gets on the board in the fourth quarter thanks to a Zach Schmit field goal from 30 yards out.

It’s the third game this season that the Sooners have hit the 50-point mark. OU is up 50-20

END 3: Iowa State 20, Oklahoma 47

That quarter belonged to the Sooners, but all in all, not a ton happened. Lots of ball control by OU, but just seven total points scored between the two teams.

Iowa State’s Jeremiah Cooper did pick off a Dillon Gabriel pass at the end of the frame. But ISU couldn't turn it into anything, turning the ball over on downs just before the end of the third.

3Q/12:26 Oklahoma finds paydirt again

After the Iowa State defense forced a fourth-and-7, Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel found Jayden Gibson down the middle for the first down. Gibson shrugged off a couple would-be tacklers and made his way to the end zone.

Oklahoma up 47-20 early in the third

3Q/15:00 We're back underway

Oklahoma gets the ball to start the second half

HALF: Iowa State 20, Oklahoma 40

Oklahoma has a +2 advantage in the turnover department and has 340 yards to Iowa State's 270.

Dillon Gabriel has two TD strikes and 247 yards through the air in addition to two more scores on the ground.

Rocco Becht has tossed for 149 yards, two TDs and two picks. ISU true freshman Abu Sama is the game’s leading rusher with 66 yards on six carries.

2Q/0:07 Sooners add another TD before the break

After a turnover from Rocco Becht gave Oklahoma a short field, the Sooners added another score thanks to a 3-yard TD strike from Gabriel to Drake Stoops.

That makes it 40-20 with less than 10 seconds left in the opening half. OU gets the ball to start the third too, so this one could get really out of hand soon.

2Q/ 2:06 Rocco Becht tosses another pick

That gives the Sooners a chance to add more points to their already 13-point lead before the break.

2Q/3:32 Sooners tack on a field goal

The 46-yarder from Zach Schmit gives the Sooners a 33-20 lead. It’s Schmit’s longest kick of the season to cap an eight-play, 30-yard drive.

Iowa State needs to find an answer here. Oklahoma gets the ball coming out to start the second half, so this could get ugly fast.

Q2/6:06 Iowa State’s punt gets blocked, Sooners add a safety

An Iowa State punt was blocked when Peyton Bowen came off the edge free to get his hands on it. The ball rolled into the end zone where the Sooners had a chance to recover it for a touchdown, but it was mishandled and rolled out of the back of the end zone.

Oklahoma up 30-20, but all things considered it could have been much worse

Q2/6:49 Oklahoma offense answers and extends lead

The Sooners score on a 6-yard run from QB Dillon Gabriel. That score was set up by a 49-yard strike from Gabriel to Jalil Farooq to get Oklahoma down to the 1-yard line.

A false start penalty on first-and-goal pushed OU back, but they still were able to punch it in.

Oklahoma up 28-20, so it’s still a one-score game.

Q2/9:06 Chase Contreraz makes it a 1-point game

Contreraz drills his second field goal of the night, this one from 48 yards, to cut Oklahoma’s lead to just one, 21-20.

Iowa State’s offense has been playing well here through the first quarter-plus of action.

2Q/13:05 Oklahoma is mortal

After a long drive to get down into the red zone, the Sooners miss a 36-yard field goal wide left. The score remains 21-17, but the Cyclones have a shot to take a lead for the first time in the game on this next drive.

That was Oklahoma kicker Zach Schmit’s first miss of the season.

Q2/14:55 Jayden Higgins starts second quarter with a bang

On the first play of the second quarter, Rocco Becht threaded the needle between two Oklahoma defenders and Higgins hauled in the pass and ran untouched 67 yards to the end zone.

Cyclones still down 21-17, but the offense shows it can hang with the big boys, for now.

END 1: Iowa State 10, Oklahoma 21

Sooners rack up 160 total yards and earn a defensive score to take a two-possession game into the second quarter.

ISU has the ball facing third-and-2 from their own 33 when we resume play.

1Q/0:29 Dillon Gabriel hits Nic Anderson for long TD pass

The former UCF quarterback found Anderson from 39 yards out wide open in the end zone.

Sooners offense making it look too easy against a very good Iowa State defensive unit. That 75-yard drive took just 1:42 seconds off the clock and lasted six plays.

OU up 21-10 late in the opening quarter.

1Q/2:14 Iowa State tacks on a field goal

After what looked like a very promising drive some penalties in the red zone forced it to stall. Cyclones take on a field goal from 35 yards out thanks to Chase Contreraz.

Freshman Abu Sama, a Southeast Polk grad, had the big play on that drive when he ran the ball for 39 yards into Oklahoma territory.

1Q/6:47 Oklahoma re-takes the lead

That offense is good, y’all. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel guides the Sooners down the field and caps off the drive with a one-yard touchdown run.

That was a 10-play, 75-yard drive to give Oklahoma a 14-7 lead.

1Q/10:50 Jaylin Noel responds for Iowa State

After the disaster of a start, the Cyclones buckled down and drove right down the field to put up a score of their own.

Rocco Becht hit Jaylin Noel from 51 yards out. It capped a 6-play, 75-yard drive. Iowa State was forced to convert on a second-and-12 and a third-and-18 on that drive.

All tied up at 7 in Norman.

1Q/14:03 Oklahoma takes an early lead on pick-6

Rocco Becht tries to convert on third and long but Billy Bowman picked the pass off and returned it 33 yards for the score.

PAT makes it 7-0 Sooners very early on in this one.

1Q/15:00 We're underway in Norman

The Cyclones will get the ball first tonight after OU won the toss and elected to defer to the second half.

5:40 Some injury updates

We’re just 20 minutes from kickoff in Norman and our very own Travis Hines has been watching warm-ups diligently to let you know who is warming up and what it means for their status against the Sooners.

• Tyler Moore is going through pregame warmups for Iowa State. He did not play last week.

• Jacob Ellis is going through warmups with what looks to be a cast or brace on his right hand.

• Cartevious Norton is going through warmups. He missed most of last week with a shoulder injury.

• Gerry Vaughn is in uniform and going through warmups. He got dinged up last week.

5:00 Domonique Orange stepping up on the defensive front

The sophomore defensive lineman has made a big jump from his freshman to his sophomore season. After playing sparingly in his first season in Ames, he’s seen an increase in his playing time so far in 2023.

Orange, who already has three QB hurries through the opening four games of the season, will need to have a big game today against a potent Sooners offense, led by QB Dillon Gabriel. The big increase in Orange’s productivity so far in the early part of the season is due in large part to his maturity, according to defensive coordinator Jon Heacock.

More: Iowa State's Domonique Orange turns maturity into menacing play on the football field

“Just growing up and realizing, ‘Man, if I’m going to be something different, I’m gonna have to be different.’ And I think he’s trying to do that,” Heacock said about Orange’s mindset.

Our own Alyssa Hertel spoke to Orange earlier this week leading up to the Oklahoma game. Check out the full story right here.

4:30 p.m. Kicking seems to have been solidified for Iowa State

Heading into the 2023 season, the Cyclones were dealing with a big question mark over who would be the guy the team could rely on to split the uprights consistently. A season ago, Iowa State went to freshman Jace Gilbert. He converted on just 12 of his 20 attempts on the season and the team was searching for more of a veteran presence this season while Gilbert could sit back and fine-tune his skills.

Well, that's just what they got thanks to transfer kicker Chase Contreraz. It's his first season with the Cyclones, but he played high school football in Iowa and played at Iowa Western for a bit before transferring to Nebraska. He didn't find the field much with the Huskers and decided it was time for another change. He's seemed to find his footing so far in Ames this season, hitting on five of his eight attempts - including two from 50+ yards out.

More: Chase Contreraz finds his footing with Iowa State football after long kicking odyssey

“Especially for a young offense, the ability to put points on the board, it gives you momentum,” Campbell said. “As we’re building our football team, we have to play great football here. All three phases have to be able to have production and the ability to do their job."

“Chase has certainly been huge for that and given us the ability to put points on the board.”

Read more about the fifth-year senior's journey by clicking here.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Recap: Iowa State falls 50-20 to Oklahoma football