Iowa State @ Texas preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 31, 2015 ) Texas 0, Iowa State 24

Charlie Strong took over the defensive play-calling last week in an effort to snap Texas out of its doldrums, but it didn't work and the Longhorns coach could be running out of time after another undesirable result. Texas tries to snap a three-game losing streak during which it allowed an average of 48 points and 578 yards when it hosts Iowa State on Saturday as Strong remains upbeat despite losing in an environment where the boosters tend to get restless quicker than most.

Strong, who is 13-17 in two-plus seasons with the Longhorns, insists the team hasn't quit, telling ESPN: "It's a lot more unified here than maybe some people have made it out to be. We're talented and we're young, and we've got guys who can play. We just have to find a way to be more consistent, and we're going to do that." A season that began with a promising 50-47 double-overtime victory over Notre Dame and a 41-7 rout of UTEP has quickly deteriorated, but it's little fault of an offense that averages 41 points - 17th-best in the nation. The Cyclones are coming off a 38-31 setback at Oklahoma State last week, running their Big 12 losing streak to seven games since a 24-0 victory over Texas last Halloween improved their mark in the series to 2-11. "I'm ticked,'' first-year Iowa State coach Matt Campbell told The Des Moines Register. I hope our kids are ticked, too. I would be if I was a player.''

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Longhorn Network. LINE: Texas -13.5

ABOUT IOWA STATE (1-5, 0-3 Big 12): Sophomore running back Mike Warren carried only nine times for 50 yards last week after averaging 24 attempts and 109.3 yards in his previous three games. Junior quarterback Joel Lanning completed 65.1 percent of his passes while tossing six of his nine touchdowns this season in the last three contests as the Cyclones scored 117 points during that span - their most in a three-game stretch since 2005. Junior wide receiver Allen Lazard (27 catches, four touchdowns) is Lanning's top target while senior defensive end Jhaustin Thomas (three sacks) was moved inside to help stop the run.

ABOUT TEXAS (2-3, 0-2): Freshman quarterback Shane Buechele (62.6 percent completion rate, 11 touchdowns, four interceptions) leads a resurgent offense that averages 17 points more than last season and nearly 23 points better than 2014. The balanced attack - 254 yards per game passing, 244.8 rushing - also features junior running back D'Onta Foreman (148.8 yards per game, seven touchdowns), who rushed for a career-high 159 yards and two touchdowns in last week's 45-40 loss to No. 20 Oklahoma. Seven players have caught a touchdown pass this season with junior wide receiver Dorian Leonard (26.5 average on six catches, two touchdowns) the most explosive of the bunch.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Iowa State led 31-21 in the fourth quarter last week - the third time in its last five Big 12 losses it blew a double-digit lead in the final period.

2. Foreman rushed for more than 100 yards in his last six games, tied for the second-longest streak in school history with Cedric Benson (2004) and Chris Gilbert (1966) and trailing Earl Campbell (11, 1977).

3. The Cyclones are one of four teams in the nation (Florida Atlantic, Georgia State, Kansas State) perfect in the red zone (18-for-18, 14 touchdowns) this season.

PREDICTION: Texas 41, Iowa State 27