Old vs. new: Wildcats' Snyder vs. Cyclones' Campbell
AMES, Iowa -- The Big 12's oldest coach is about to meet the youngest.
Kansas State's Bill Snyder, 78, became just the seventh coach in FBS history to coach at least 300 games at one school earlier this season -- and a win Saturday at Iowa State (1-6, 0-4) would give him 198 career victories, good for 25th all time.
Iowa State's Matt Campbell, at 36 the youngest Power Five coach in the country, just finished his seventh game with the Cyclones.
Campbell has come out on top only once, and the matchup against the Wildcats (4-3, 2-2) is one of the few games left that Iowa State has a reasonable chance of winning.
"I don't care what profession you're in, especially in the world of college football. It's hard to sustain success, and he's had this unique ability to do it," Campbell said of Snyder. "It's a great matchup for our team (in terms of), 'Where are we in our own culture?' Because, to me, it says a lot about each other's culture right now."
Despite its dismal record, Iowa State has led at halftime in three of its four Big 12 games and is coming off a bye.
But lately, Kansas State has owned this series, which will be played for the 100th year in a row this weekend.
The Wildcats have taken the last eight meetings. But the last two victories in Ames were by just 10 total points -- and last year the Cyclones gave up 10 points in the final 40 seconds, losing 38-35 and costing coach Paul Rhoads his job.
"In some cases, we have been fortunate. In all cases, we have been fortunate to have a lot of good young guys who do not give in," Snyder said.
Here are some of the other keys to watch for as Iowa State hosts Kansas State:
View from the sidelines: College football cheerleaders 2016.
ERTZ'S HOMECOMING: K-State quarterback Jesse Ertz grew up in Mediapolis, Iowa, near the Mississippi River. He's put up pedestrian passing numbers so far -- six TDs and three picks while completing just 54 percent of his passes. But he has rushed for 199 yards and four touchdowns in his last three games, including two in last week's 24-21 win over Texas.
UP-AND-DOWN CYCLONES: Iowa State's offense has been all over the place through seven games. The Cyclones scored 44, 42 and 31 points in a three-game stretch against San Jose State, Baylor and Oklahoma State. But they also scored just three points at Iowa and six in a 21-point loss at Texas two weeks ago.
WILDCATS RUSH D: Iowa State has struggled at times to run the ball consistently. Facing the Wildcats won't help. Kansas State is third nationally in rush defense at 94.9 yards per game, and its players swarm to the ball like few other teams. The Wildcats have nine players with at least 20 tackles. "Their front seven is impressive across the board," Campbell said. "They're really good tacklers in space, and they don't give up many big plays."
NOTES: Iowa State leads the series 49-46-4, winning 28 times in Ames. ... This will be the 99th consecutive homecoming game for the Cyclones. They last missed homecoming in 1918, when it was canceled because of the Spanish Flu epidemic. ... The Wildcats are 18-0 under Snyder when they get offensive, defensive and special teams scores in the same game. ... Iowa State has gotten 33 starts in 2016 out of current or former walk-ons.
HE SAID IT: "They don't have the big recruits," Iowa State receiver Allen Lazard said about K-State. "But they're definitely disciplined. They do what they're coached to do."
