2022 WRNL Digital Game Program I: Iowa State vs. Southeast Missouri State
The first game of a new era.
Betting the Big 12: Week 1
Time to finally put the noise of the offseason behind and bet some games!
We’re back after what felt like the longest offseason in college football history. This trend of entire summers being dominated by the consolidation of power at the top of the pyramid is something I’d like to not see continue. One thought I couldn’t get past when watching the week 0 games is the passion exhibited by fans at schools like New Mexico State and Hawaii, and how for the last two summers it’s felt like the power brokers in the sport are determined to make the games matter less for more schools. USC and UCLA in the Big Ten doesn’t benefit anyone other than the other member schools in that conference. The Big Ten choking every tv network for every last dollar doesn’t make college football better. Who knows what the next few months and the next summer will hold. By this time next year, the Pac 12 might not exist. The Big 12 will have 14 members, or maybe 12 members. Heck, the Big 12 could have as many as 20 members by this time next year. This movement doesn’t make college football better. That’s to say nothing of the free player movement. NIL is a good thing for college athletes. Unlimited free agency with every contract lasting one year is not good for college football.
But thankfully, we get to put that in the rearview mirror for the next 5 months. While the CFP will still contain some combination of Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, and Clemson, the beauty in college football is the non-stop action of every Saturday at every level of the sport. That’s what this column is about. Gambling will give us joy and terror with every play. Full gamedays are great for college football. I can’t wait.
As a rule, in this column I’ll be betting 1.1 “units” (whatever dollar figure makes you comfortable, let’s not unit shame anyone) to win 1 “unit” on every Big 12 game against the spread at -110 odds. So an $11 bet that wins will return $10. Lines are courtesy of the DRF Sportsbook, with a hat tip to Vegas Insider for the FCS games. Non-conference season will be hectic, especially in these matchups with FCS schools (bear with me, I’m finding lines wherever I can). Be ready for spreads to move as we approach kickoff. Above all else, we’re going to have some fun this season. Week 1 is here! Let’s go!
THE GAMES
Central Michigan at #12 Oklahoma State
Kickoff: Thurs 6:00pm | TV: FS1 | The Line: Oklahoma State -22
This spread is curiously short. Central Michigan was good last year, as far as MAC schools are concerned. QB Daniel Richardson and RB Lew Nichols III are both high quality pieces for the Chips. The big question: what will the Cowboys look like with a new DC in place? Gundy’s offense underperformed last year. I think OSU will figure it out and have a great season, but this will be competitive deep into the 2nd half.
Pick: Central Michigan +22
West Virginia at #17 Pittsburgh
Kickoff: Thurs 6:00pm | TV: ESPN | The Line: Pittsburgh -7.5
What I wouldn’t give to attend this game in person. This will be a truly incredible crowd as I hear that West Virginia fans are buying tickets in bunches. Both teams are replacing tons of talent, including the QBs. So why is the spread more than a touchdown? Hungry dogs run faster. West Virginia absolutely can win this game outright. Let’s go Mountaineers.
Pick: West Virginia +7.5
Tennessee Tech at Kansas
Kickoff: Fri 7:00pm | TV: ESPN+ | The Line: Kansas -27.5
Lance Leipold is definitely turning Kansas around, and will have this program capable of reaching bowl games while he is their head coach. Year 2 as a four touchdown favorite against anyone is asking for too much. I can’t tell you anything about Tennessee Tech. A true week 1 special.
Pick: Tennessee Tech +27.5
TCU at Colorado
Kickoff: Fri 9:00pm | TV: ESPN | The Line: TCU -14
It’s a shame that these schools didn’t get to meet as conference opponents (or will they?). Colorado is going to be dreadful this season. At least the mountains will look nice in the background but Ralphie is going to be the Buffs leading rusher in this one. Sonny Dykes gets his tenure started with a W, regardless of which QB starts.
Pick: TCU -14
Southeast Missouri State at Iowa State
Kickoff: Sat 1:00pm | TV: ESPN+ | The Line: Iowa State -37
Nope. Not doing this again. Iowa State wins the game but it’s closer than we want.
Pick: SE Missouri State +37
UTEP at #9 Oklahoma
Kickoff: Sat 2:30pm | TV: FOX | The Line: Oklahoma -31
Can we get something out of the way? Oklahoma fans took the Lincoln Riley complaints way too far. It’s not a good thing that he isn’t your coach anymore. With that said, Brent Venables steps into a great situation. Dillon Gabriel is a good transfer QB. Jeff Lebby is an exciting OC hire. UTEP just got bodied at home by North Texas. The new coach won’t let the guys come out slow in his first game.
Pick: Oklahoma -31
Albany at #10 Baylor
Kickoff: Sat 6:00pm | TV: ESPN+ | The Line: Baylor -42.5
No comments. I just want to know how this game got scheduled.
Pick: Baylor -42.5
South Dakota at Kansas State
Kickoff: Sat 6:00pm | TV: ESPN+ | The Line: Kansas State -25
Adrian Martinez is the savior? I don’t think so. The purple cats will win this game, and Deuce Vaughn will look good, but Martinez will have the backbreaking turnover at some point that blows the cover.
Pick: South Dakota +25
Murray State at Texas Tech
Kickoff: Sat 7:00pm | TV: ESPN+ | The Line: Texas Tech -34.5
Lubbock is fired up about this new coaching staff, and they return a pretty good amount of talent. McGuire is an energy guy. I don’t see them coming out slow.
Pick: Texas Tech -34.5
Louisiana-Monroe at Texas
Kickoff: Sat 7:00pm | TV: LHN | The Line: Texas -38
Whatever it takes, Texas is going to try and make Quinn Ewers look good in this game. It’s all about building as much confidence as possible before it all gets broken a week later. UL-Monroe isn’t much. The Horns Down boys will score at will in an easy start.
Pick: Texas -38
BEST BET AROUND THE COUNTRY
Ohio State -17 vs Notre Dame
Pop quiz: What do you get when you combine the best team in the country with Notre Dame, who gets blown out by every good team they play away from home? Ohio State’s offense is unstoppable with all the returning talent (Stroud/Henderson/Smith-Njigba). 17 points only looks like a big number because Notre Dame has a #5 next to their name. Don’t be scared of the big spread, my friends. The Bucks win this game by at least 21 points.
PROP OF THE WEEK FOR TEXA$ FANS
Will Steve Sarkesian still be the coach at Texas at the end of this regular season?
Yes -120
No +100
2022 Tailgate Preview I: SEMO
The first tailgate of the season!
By Meg A. Tron
Happy football season, babies! The season ahead holds many unknowns, but one thing is for sure - we are an elite tailgating fan base. And even if you’re in a new spot this year, Saturday promises to have plenty of food, drinks, and football to kick off the most wonderful time of the year!
Weather - Warm, sunny, rain-free
All in all, Saturday looks to be a very nice day. A high of 81 will feel downright cool after some hot days to end the week and the humidity should be comfortable. Sweatshirt weather it will not be, but I don’t think you’ll be sweating through your clothes either. Remember that 1:00 sun in Jack Trice can feel mighty toasty, so dress cool and don’t forget your sunscreen. The last thing you want on Sunday morning is a burn to go with your hangover.
Food - Football Stadium Cookies
I pinned these cookies months ago with the best intentions to make them for the first tailgate of the season. Reality came around to dash my hopes with a packed schedule and not a free moment to whip up anything homemade (we’re probably bringing chips) but I cannot get over how adorable these are and I knew you’d like them, too.
Drink - Raspberry Beer Cocktail
Nights have been cool and football is very close to being in full swing, but it is actually still summer for a few more weeks. This delicious beer cocktail is light and bubbly and tasty and almost a little quenching. You can also make a whole bunch and serve a crowd if you are in the sharing mood. If I were in charge, I’d call this a “Raspbeery Cocktail” but no one asked me.
Game - Light Beer Challenge
We all know someone who swears they only like a certain kind of beer and that all other kinds are trash, so my tailgate crew developed a little game a few years ago to shut everyone up. I don’t really have rules for this one, but basically the idea is to set up a blind taste test of light beers and see who can guess the most correctly. If everyone brings a six pack of an assigned beer, you’ll get a nice variety and while you’re taste testing and guessing, you’ll also be suddenly quite drunk.
Song - “Under the Bridge” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
The pedestrian bridge needs some recognition on its big opening weekend, so I came up with a pretty solid list of bridge songs…there’s more than you think. Since this is every 35-50 year old male’s favorite song, I think it will be well received at your tailgate.
Players to Watch: SEMO
Let’s Get it Started
By dylanpaul
I’m calling an audible here in week 1. With what feels like a ‘new team’ on the Iowa State sidelines, I’ve decided to do four Iowa State players instead of two from each team. So, if you’re one of the dozens of SEMO Redhawk fans, my feelings won’t be hurt if you close out now.
Offense Brock Purdy, in my mind, is the best Cyclone Quarterback of all time. No way around it, and this Saturday, a new era begins, with Hunter Dekkers. The home-grown product put up video game numbers in high school torching every 2A high school defense he faced. What has some Cyclone fans excited about the new guy; Dekkers has a cannon on him. Brock Purdy was deadly accurate, but he didn’t have a reliable deep ball to hurl to a speedster down the sidelines. Dekkers is kind of an inverse of that. He’s got a cannon, it’s just if that cannon can be pointed in the right direction.
SEMO’s secondary, I’m assuming, isn’t quite on the Big 12 level. Let’s hope Dekkers can get his footing under him this weekend before he gets a warm welcome from the Hawkeye faithful.
Defense Sorry if you listened to the Litecast, because I’m basically rinse and repeating for these first two picks. Anthony Johnson Jr. deciding to come back for one more year turned a decimated secondary into a slight less decimated secondary in terms of departure. Even more compelling, Johnson Jr. will be featured in a new position. The four-year corner is transitioning into a safety. A move that not many expected, but I’m very excited to see what Johnson Jr. does with the opportunity.
Offense ‘X gon give it to ya’ -DMX
Xavier Hutchinson is probably the most recognizable name returning to the Cyclone offense. Hutchinson will undoubtably a huge help for Dekker’s first year as a QB. It reminds me a little of the Brock Purdy/Hakeem Butler synergy. Hutch and Butler aren’t similar as far as their strengths go, but an S-Tier target for a newbie QB is always a good thing to have.
Expect a lot of “Dekkers throws it downfield to Hutchinson” from John Walter on 100.3 FM this football season. I expect nothing less in week 1.
Defense A sneaky one here, Isaiah Lee. Honored with the 58 jersey this year, Lee is being asked to be the noseguard in Heacock’s 3-3-6 scheme. The NG is of utmost importance in this scheme. I expect Will McDonald to get a lot of double teams on pass protection, but Lee will be getting a lot of attention in the running game. Iowa State needs a big season out of Lee to keep Heacock’s revolutionary defense running smooth.
2022 Game Preview I: Southeast Missouri State
New faces are set to kick off the next phase in the Matt Campbell era
By Matthias Schwartzkopf@MatthiasWRNL
Iowa State Cyclones (0-0, 0-0) at Southeast Missouri State (0-0, 0-0)
Date: September 3rd
Time: 1 P.M
Place: Jack Trice Stadium
Capacity: 61,500
Line: Iowa State (-37.5)
TV: ESPN+
When we last left off...
We were last enjoying some Cyclone football in the Cheez-it Bowl. Unfortunately, the Cyclones took a loss at the hands of Clemson 20-13. The Cyclone offense was sort of sleepy playing without Breece Hall, who sat out the game for preparation for the NFL Draft. The Cyclones were only able to rush for 66 total yards against a stout Clemson defensive front. Brock Purdy in his final game for the Cyclones threw for 204 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Iowa State had the ball to end the game but could not come up with some late-game heroics.
SEMO Tidbits
The Red Hawks are part of the Ohio Valley Conference. In 2021 they were 4-7 overall their lone game against an FBS opponent was a 59-28 loss at Missouri. The Redhawks have been picked to finish second in the Ohio Valley Conference behind UT Martin.
Tom Matukewicz begins his ninth season as Southeast Missouri’s head coach. He has one Ohio Valley Conference title, two NCAA FCS playoff appearances, and the school’s only FCS Playoff win. Matukewicz has seven wins over nationally-ranked FCS opponents, most of any head coach in SEMO history.
The Series
This is the first-ever meeting between Iowa State and Southeast Missouri State.
Iowa State Offense
Iowa State will have a new gunslinger in the backfield with Hunter Dekkers taking over for Brock Purdy. The Iowa native will look to take the Cyclone offense to new heights amid an enormous amount of hype from inside and outside the program.
Normally, a fan base would feel a bit more uneasy about a change at the quarterback position after years of the same name at the spot, but Dekkers has performed well in his short stints in-game action. Will the Cyclones unleash the strong arm of Dekkers and stretch the field more than they have in the past? We should have a pretty good idea within the first few weeks of the season (then again, maybe not since we like to hide things early on).
Jirehl Brock is back after waiting in the wings behind Breece Hall. He will get the start for the Cyclones in this one but there are some names behind him that are making some noise. Deon Silas and Eli Sanders are also returning after season-limited action in their initial seasons in Ames. Though, there is a freshman by the name of Cartevious Norton making some noise in the preseason that may have an opportunity to flip the rotation upside down. If history is a telling story, the running back rotation will be completely different later in the season than it will be against Southeast Missouri State.
The wide receivers for Iowa State will be solid as ever with Xavier Hutchinson and Jaylin Noel returning to help keep things stable on the outside. Who emerges behind them to be a third-tier target remains to be seen, but there is nothing to worry about at wide receiver. Tight ends Easton Dean, Tyler Moore, and DeShawn Hanika will look to replace a hole at the tight end position left by Charlie Kolar and Chase Allen.
All eyes will be on the offensive line. Rightfully so. Jake Remsburg went down in camp with a leg injury and now all of a sudden Iowa State is having to test their depth across the offensive line. While Iowa State has some talent they can plug and play the familiarity with each other will have to come together quicker than not as it will be tested early on this season.
SEMO Defense
Southeast Missouri State gave up 31 points a game a season ago. What got them in trouble was not being consistent in stopping the pass and the run on a regular basis. The RedHawks gave up over 8.5 yards per pass attempt and 4.8 yards per rushing attempt.
All-American Bryce Norman is the leader of the RedHawk defense. As a freshman played in every game and started the last seven games. He led Southeast Missouri State with 66 tackles while forcing 3 fumbles. The linebackers will have a new position coach for them this season. Connor Benado and Tim Billings coaching those areas for the first time. Benado was a quality control coach for Southeast Missouri State last season.
The backfield of Southeast Missouri’s defense is returning a bunch of experience and may be considered as one of the best in FCS when they are all healthy. Seven defensive backs on SEMO’s depth chart took snaps last season and four of them return with starting experience. Lawrence Johnson, the senior safety is the most talented of the bunch and will be the highlight of the secondary.
The Verdict - Iowa State
While Iowa State is trying to figure out what they want to do offensively with a new quarterback and other faces on offense, the talent alone may be too much for Southeast Missouri State to handle. If you want to work out a few kinks and make some big plays this may be the game for Iowa State. It’s not like going out there with new guys against Northern Iowa who seem to have Iowa State’s number. Should be a decent day for Iowa State on the offensive side of the ball.
Iowa State Defense
Different side of the ball, same theme for the Cyclones. New faces in a lot of places. Thankfully one returner happens to be Pre-season All-American Will McDonald. Who just happens to be chasing the all-time Big 12 sack record which is held by Von Miller. McDonald needs 4.5 sacks to pass Miller. Joining him on the defensive line are Isaiah Lee, Blake Petersen, J.R. Singleton, and others. This should still be a very talented defensive front that should be able to create a ton of havoc to help the linebackers settle in.
All eyes are going to be on the linebackers in this one for me. While Gerry Vaughn and O’Rien Vance have taken significant snaps at Iowa State, the losses of Mike Rose and Jake Hummel are no small things to look past. Coming on board to help with that is Deleware transfer, Colby Reeder. He will play the role of Mike Rose in this defense and while he may not be as talented as Rose, if you turn on the tape of Reeder he is almost a carbon copy of him. This will be a fun group to watch on Saturday to see how well they play. Some other names you may see rotated in are Cole Pedersen, Myles Mendeszoon, and freshman Will McLaughlin.
The Iowa State secondary took some lumps in the transfer portal this offseason and quite frankly it had me worried a bit but then the move to make Anthony Johnson Jr. a safety eased my worry a bit. His experience and versatility should allow some of these younger and talented guys to come in and make a big impact all over the backend of the defense. Of course, you can’t forget about Beau Freyler, as a freshman, he came on late in the 2021 season and capped it off with a monster performance against Clemson seemingly making every single play that came his way. Should be exciting to see how he takes it to the next level in 2022.
I would like to say there may be some new wrinkles in this defense that fans can be excited to watch against Southeast Missouri State, but that’s not going to be the case. Jon Heacock is going to roll out the same ol’ 3-3-5 and let her buck.
SEMO Offense
A season ago, this RedHawk offense wasn’t one to air it out and make some noise passing the ball. They were most comfortable running the ball and using the legs of their quarterback CJ Ogbanna and running back Geno Hess. With a change at quarterback this season, I can certainly see this Southeast Missouri State team putting it up in the air some more.
Paxton DeLaurent will lead the RedHawk attack into Jack Trice Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Southeast Missouri State newcomer won the starting job in camp over CJ Ogbanna who started every game last season for Southeast Missouri State. DeLaurent spent the previous two seasons at Central Methodist University. There, he earned All-Conference honors after throwing for 2,499 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2021.
Southeast Missouri’s running back room is held down by senior Geno Hess. The 2022 Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year and preseason All-American is only 971 yards away from becoming the school’s all-time leading rusher. He rushed for 1,116 yards, and 14 touchdowns a season ago.
Southeast Missouri State will have a lifelong Iowa State fan starting at tight end this Saturday. Will Weidmann, the Clarion, Iowa native’s family has had season tickets to Iowa State football since the 70’s. KCCI put out a profile on the RedHawk tight end who will finally get to suit up and play a game at Jack Trice Stadium.
The Verdict - Iowa State
While the Southeast Missouri State brings back their stud horse in the backfield the Iowa State defense feasts on stopping the run. Even with some of the big-time names moving on from Iowa State this defense just feels like a next-man-up deal for Jon Heacock. I expect Iowa State to stop Geno Hess and make Southeast Missouri State move the ball through the air, which won’t be that successful. Going to be a big day for the Cyclone defense.
Special Teams
Iowa State finally had a decent kicking game last season and now we go right back to the unknown. Rumor has it that freshman Jace Gilbert will handle the kicking duties for Iowa State. The 5-star kicking prospect was one of the nation's best recruits for both kicker and punter. We shall see how he fares out there but my special teams nut cup will be firmly entrenched until I feel safe.
The Verdict - Iowa State
Don’t really see special teams playing a factor in this game. Iowa State by a country mile in this department, just because.
Winning Scale from 1 to 10
The talent gap in this game is like the quality of Kwik Star (Iowa State) and Casey’s (Southeast Missouri State). You got the CEO of Kwik Star (Matt Campbell) who cares about a quality product and getting things done and then you got the CEO of Casey’s (Tom Matukewicz) who just doesn’t have the quality yet or just never did. For that reason alone, I will give Iowa State customer satisfaction chance in taking this one from Southeast Missouri State.
Note from the Managing Editor: I have no idea what the f*** Matthias is talking about
Clones by a million.
Final Analysis
This feels like it will be a bit of a sluggish kickoff to the game. The Cyclones have a bunch of new faces making their first start and the staff may want to get them into rhythm game-wise before opening up the playbook a bit. That’s not to say Iowa State won’t play well it’s just a flow-of-the-game type situation. With that said, Iowa State should have no trouble in this one. While Southeast Missouri State has some guys that can play at a high level, Iowa State just will have too wide of a talent gap over them. The Cyclones should take care of business and give Iowa State fans a warm fuzzy feeling over Labor Day before heading to face the ugly mugs out east.
Final Score
Iowa State - 48
Southeast Missouri State- 10