Iowa State rode a record-setting morning from sophomore running back Aiden Flora to a 41-13 win over Cincinnati on Saturday, Nov. 14, at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, dropping the Bearcats to 5-5 overall and 2-5 in the Big 12, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. It was Cincinnati’s third straight loss since its Oct. 24 upset of then-No. 8 Texas Tech, the Enquirer reported.
Flora scored Iowa State’s first three touchdowns, all in the first quarter, and ran for 125 yards in that quarter alone in front of 50,162 fans at an 11 a.m. Central kickoff, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. He finished with 216 yards on 28 carries, threw a 37-yard pass, and caught four passes for 38 yards, according to the official statistics reported by Sportradar.
Iowa State Athletics reported that Flora topped 200 rushing yards for the third time this season and piled up 161 of his yards in the first half alone. The Cyclones reeled off 31 unanswered points after an early Cincinnati score and led 31-13 at halftime, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported, then shut the Bearcats out in the second half.
Cincinnati’s bright spot was running back Cole Tabb, who ran for 165 yards and caught eight passes for 70 yards, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. But the Bearcats were outgained 551-401, went 2-for-10 on third down and lost two fumbles, the Des Moines Register reported in its takeaways from the game.
Iowa State quarterback Jaylen Raynor was 14-for-23 for 229 yards and a touchdown, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. Arnold Barnes added a late 32-yard touchdown run with 1:40 to play for the final margin, the Enquirer reported, and Liam O’Brien finished the game at quarterback for Cincinnati.
The loss extends two bleak Cincinnati streaks: the Bearcats have now lost 13 straight games in November dating to 2023 — 12 straight by the Associated Press’s count in its game recap — and have gone more than a year without a road win, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. The Associated Press reported Cincinnati has lost six straight road games.
Flora is the first player to rush for more than 200 yards against Cincinnati since BYU’s LJ Martin did it last season at Nippert Stadium, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported, and only the third player to top 100 rushing yards against the Bearcats this season, joining West Virginia quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. and Houston’s Re’Shaun Sanford, the Enquirer reported.
There was one piece of good news on the trip: Cincinnati’s chief of staff said there should be no issue returning home after Friday’s FAA ground stop, because the team’s charter had reached Iowa ahead of the restrictions and stayed with the team until Saturday afternoon’s departure, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
One Bearcat did leave Ames with national recognition in hand: punter Max Fletcher is one of 10 semifinalists for the 2026 Ray Guy Award, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. On a day when Cincinnati’s offense stalled after halftime, its punting game remained the program’s steadiest unit.
The standings math is now unforgiving for both teams. Cincinnati and Iowa State both sit at 5-5, and each needs one more win for bowl eligibility, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. The Cyclones finish with trips to UCF and a home game against Kansas State, the Des Moines Register reported, while the Bearcats’ clearest path runs through next Saturday’s home date with Colorado at Nippert Stadium, the Enquirer reported.
What we know — and what we’re still waiting on: confirmed are the 41-13 final, Flora’s 216 yards and three first-quarter touchdowns, the 31-13 halftime score and Cincinnati’s scoreless second half, reported consistently by The Cincinnati Enquirer, Iowa State Athletics, the Des Moines Register and the Associated Press. Cincinnati’s quarterback plan for next week has not been announced.
The Bearcats’ November slide is now the story of their season’s back half. A team that beat a top-10 opponent in late October has lost three straight, and Saturday’s game was decided before halftime — Iowa State scored on its first five possessions, the Associated Press reported.
Cincinnati athletics stays in the spotlight tonight, when, as NewsForce247 reported, Cincinnati visits Dayton tonight in an early-season Ohio basketball clash at UD Arena. On the football side, the fall in Ames sits alongside a championship Saturday for Cincinnati school sports, including Seton’s 2-1 state soccer title win over Strongsville.
What happens next: Cincinnati (5-5, 2-5 Big 12) can still become bowl-eligible with a win at Nippert Stadium over Colorado next Saturday, Nov. 21, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. Iowa State (5-5, 3-4) is also one win from bowl eligibility, the Enquirer reported.
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