AMES, Iowa — The Gold did beat the Cardinal in Saturday's spring football game. But the Iowa State offense was the true winner.
Quarterbacks Austen Arnaud and Jerome Tiller combined for 433 total yards and two rushing touchdowns as they led five first-half scoring drives in the Gold's 23-17 victory.
“There was a lot of space out there that they seemed to operate with today,” coach Paul Rhoads said.
That's to be expected when a veteran offense goes against an inexperienced defense. It helped that ISU didn't allow hits on the quarterbacks.
“I refer to the quarterbacks in a game like this as invisible and bulletproof at times, and I think that helps them,” Rhoads said.
Being able to get hit or not, they showed Rhoads everything he wanted to see.
They moved the ball down the field. They each completed at least 65 percent of their passes. And they each showed a command of the offense they didn't have last season as the offenses combined for 735 yards.
“They spread the ball out well with a couple of, I don't know if I'd call them weapons, but ball carriers on the offense,” Rhoads said. “A number of receivers caught balls, and we took advantage of it and running backs just as well.”
But it wasn't a perfect day.
Tiller and Arnaud each lost a fumble and felt they should have turned some of the four drives that ended in field goals into touchdowns.
“We did make mistakes,” Tiller said. “There is room for improvement.”
Tiller led the Gold team — the second-team offense and first-team defense— to three straight scoring drives to open the game. He put them in field-goal range on his fourth drive, but kicker Zach Guyer missed a 45-yard try.
Tiller found open receivers throughout the first half, completing 21 of 32 passes for 200 yards. He also rushed for 50 yards and a 6-yard touchdown run.
“We were moving the ball very well,” Tiller said. “We had a good grasp on what we were seeing out there. You have to capitalize when you have an idea what the defense is going to do, based on studying film and repetition.”
Arnaud overcame a slow start — he lost a fumble and had a three-and-out on his first two series — to show why Rhoads called him the most improved player this spring.
He found receivers on a series of short and intermediate routes to set up two scoring drives. He also put the Cardinal team — first-team offense, second-team defense — in field-goal range in the final minute of the first half. But Grant Mahoney missed a 52-yard attempt.
Arnaud, who played only in the first half, was 14 of 20 for 156 yards and added a 1-yard rushing touchdown.
“We moved the ball, but at times we stagnate,” Arnaud said. “We were efficient, but the defense also made some plays, and they brought their game today. It wasn't a one-sided game.”
The defense was credited with four sacks, and Rhoads felt there could have been possibly four more if quarterbacks could have been tackled. Safeties Michael O'Connell and Zac Sandvig each recovered a fumble, and defensive back Jay Brummel had an interception.
Safety David Sims said the first-string defense started fast, pointing to O'Connell's recovery on the opening drive. Sims also said the defense made plenty of progress during the spring.
“We came out real strong,” Sims said. “The second half we died. We took our foot off the gas, but we had a lot of things we can build on going forward.”
So do the quarterbacks.
“A good day for us is a win,” Arnaud said. “That's what we aim for.”
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