Field Level Media
Sep 22, 2018
Zeb Noland went 26-of-34 passing for 233 yards and a touchdown to lead Iowa State to a 26-13 nonconference win over Akron on Saturday.
Akron was coming off a win over a Power Five conference team last week when it won at Northwestern.
The Cyclones won their first game of the season following losses at Iowa and against Oklahoma.
It was the second straight impressive performance for Noland, who came off of the bench for injured starter Kyle Kempt and threw for 360 yards and two touchdowns last week against Oklahoma.
David Montgomery was a nice complement to Noland's passing for Iowa State (1-2), as he rushed for 107 yards on 23 carries.
Sophomore quarterback Kato Nelson went 12-of-28 passing for 153 yards and rushed for 56 yards on 15 carries in defeat for Akron (2-1).
The game didn't start good for Iowa State, which saw Akron take a 7-0 lead with 6:23 remaining in the first quarter on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Nelson to wideout Andre Williams.
Iowa State answered a short time later, tying the game with 3:36 left in the first quarter on a 24-yard touchdown pass from Noland to wideout Hakeem Butler.
After the teams traded field goals, Iowa State took a 17-10 with 30 seconds remaining in the second quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run by Montgomery, which capped off an 11-play, 74-yard drive.
Akron shaved Iowa State's lead to 17-13 with 7:59 left in the third on a 49-yard field goal by Nick Gasser, but that would be the last points of the game for the Zips.
Iowa State got field goals of 29 yards, 33 yards and 37 yards in the fourth quarter from kicker Connor Assalley to put the game away for Iowa State.
Butler caught six passes for 88 yards in addition for the Cyclones.
Iowa State honored slain golfer Celia Barquin Arozamena prior to the game and both teams wore CBA decals on their helmets. Barquin Arozamena was killed while playing golf on Monday at a course near the Iowa State campus in Ames.
--Field Level Media