AMES, Iowa -- Todd Reesing completed 21-of-26 passes for 253 yards and four first-half touchdowns as fourth-rated Kansas beat Iowa State 45-7 in the farewell game for 19 Cyclone seniors. Among those playing their last game was ISU quarterback Bret Meyer, who hit on 16-of-28 passes for 103 yards. Kansas rolled up 566 yards of total offense to Iowa State's 234 yards. The Jayhawks are now 11-0 heading into a showdown with Missouri at Arrowhead Stadium next Saturday for the Big 12 Conference North Division title. A 3-9 season in which Iowa State demonstrated significant improvement will set the stage for ISU head coach Gene Chizik in 2008.
"I told the team that I had appreciated their effort," Iowa State head coach Gene Chizik said. "It was a season of ups and downs but we had two quality Big 12 wins and beat Iowa. Now it is back to work. A 3-9 season is not the goal. We had some seniors with great legacies as players, who gave a great effort in their last game. I wished the seniors well and told them how much we appreciate what they have done at this university."
Reesing threw two touchdown passes to Dexton Field late in the first quarter and then hit Marcus Henry with a 51-yard strike to make it 21-0 with 8:42 left in the second quarter.
"You saw a really good team out there," Chizik said of Kansas. "(Reesing) does a great job managing the game. Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma all have different things they do better than anyone else. It is hard to pick which is the best team."
Iowa State answered with its scoring drive in the second quarter, moving 79 yards in 13 plays with tailback Alexander Robinson scoring on a 6-yard run with 3:54 left in the first half. The Jayhawks answered back. Kansas drove 75 yards on eight plays. Reesing's 18-yard TD pass to Kerry Meier gave the Jayhawks a 28-7 advantage at the half.
Meyer finished his career with Iowa State school records of 10,422 yards in total offense and 9,499 in passing yards. He ranks third on the all-time Big 12 Conference chart in both categories. Fellow senior Todd Blythe's Cyclone career ended with school records of 176 catches for a record 3,096 yards and record 31 touchdowns. The duo combined for a school record 28 touchdown passes over the last four years, the second-best total in Big 12 history.
Linebacker Jon Banks led Iowa State with 11 tackles. Jesse Smith had nine tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss. Alvin "Ace" Bowen finished his career with 287 tackles. Placekicker Bret Culbertson's successful extra-point made him a perfect 100-for-100 in his four-year career.
