Baylor @ Iowa State preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 24, 2015 ) Iowa State 27, Baylor 45

Baylor will try to start 5-0 and 2-0 in Big 12 Conference play for the fourth straight year when it visits Iowa State on Saturday. It won't be easy as the 13th-ranked Bears, who have yet to play a game outside the state of Texas this season, have dropped two of their last three games at Jack Trice Stadium.

Baylor, which opened Big 12 play with a 35-24 home win over Oklahoma State last Saturday, has played just one road game so far and that was in front of a small turnout of 27,047 at Rice Stadium where the Bears eventually pulled away for a 38-10 victory over Rice. The atmosphere figures to be much more electric Saturday where a crowd of about 60,000 is expected. "It's always tough going to Iowa State," Baylor quarterback Seth Russell told the Waco Tribune. "They have great fans and a great turnout each year. They have a grass field, and we don't play on a grass field a whole lot, so it will be a little different." Baylor snapped a two-game losing streak in Ames on their last visit in 2014, winning 49-28.

TV: Noon, FS1. LINE: Baylor -16.5

ABOUT BAYLOR (4-0, 1-0 Big 12): The Bears have led the NCAA in total and scoring offense the last three years but are off to a slow start -- for them -- averaging 42 points (24th in FBS) and 548.8 yards (eighth). Russell is the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week after passing for 387 yards and four touchdowns in the win over Oklahoma State and for the season has thrown for 1,148 yards and 13 TDs while completing 80-of-133 attempts. Tailback Shock Linwood became the school's all-time leading rusher in the win over Rice and now has 3,679 yards, third-most among active FBS players, while linebacker Aiavion Edwards leads the defense with 33 tackles.

ABOUT IOWA STATE (1-3, 0-1): The Cyclones lost their first three games to open the season, including a 25-20 home loss to FCS Northern Iowa, but finally broke though in the win column for first-year head coach Matt Campbell with an impressive 44-10 victory over San Jose State last Saturday. Mike Warren rushed for 103 yards and Jacob Park (165 yards, 3 TDs) and Joel Lanning (136 yards, 2 TDs) both had big games splitting time at quarterback. The defense, which intercepted four passes, was led by safety Kamari Cotton-Moya, who had 11 tackles and an interception, and linebacker Brian Mills, who finished with six tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Russell is 12-0 as a starter and has thrown 47 touchdowns compared to just 10 interceptions.

2. Baylor leads the nation in pass efficiency defense (74.40)

3. The Bears have won 23 of their last 28 Big 12 games including nine of 11 away from Waco.

PREDICTION: Baylor 38, Iowa State 17