Matt Campbell discusses Iowa State football's outlook against TCU, kicking duties and senior day

AMES — Iowa State football will face one of its toughest tests of the season Saturday on the road for the regular season finale against TCU.

The No. 4 Horned Frogs (11-0) continue to shock the college football world as one of four undefeated teams left in the FBS. TCU joins Georgia, Ohio State and Michigan as the teams with perfect records heading into the final week of the regular season.

Iowa State (4-7, 1-7 Big 12) enters Saturday’s matchup in a much different position. The Cyclones have just one win – over West Virginia – since September. But Iowa State shouldn’t be counted out quite yet.

TCU boasts the best offense overall in the Big 12, averaging 39.5 points per game. The Cyclones, though, still have the conference’s top defense – allowing 16.5 points per game – despite ISU’s losing record. The Horned Frogs have one of the best passing and rushing offenses in the Big 12, but Iowa State has the top defense in both categories.

So, guessing how this game could go isn’t easy.

Cyclones coach Matt Campbell believes in his team’s ability to compete with TCU, even though there are still a few question marks ahead of the season finale.

Here is some of what Campbell said in his weekly press conference on Tuesday.

More:Iowa State mailbag: How can an offense fail to get two yards five times?

TCU's offense is the total package

Let’s look at the pieces that have put together a perfect season, so far, for TCU.

Quarterback Max Duggan leads the Big 12 with 26 passing touchdowns and is second – behind only Hunter Dekkers – with 2,858 passing yards. On top of that, he’s thrown just three interceptions, the second-fewest in the conference.

Duggan mainly throws to Quentin Johnston, who has 764 yards and five touchdowns on 49 completions. Taye Barber adds 567 yards and three touchdowns, and both players are in the Big 12’s top 15 for those statistics.

On the ground, the Horned Frogs have Kendre Miller, who has 1,188 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns. Emari Demercado and Duggan have each scored five rushing touchdowns too.

“They’ve got elite playmakers across the board,” Campbell said. “I would say they’re as good as anybody in the conference. Probably have one of the best players that I’ve seen in our conference at the wide receiver position since I’ve been here.

“And quite honestly, the key to the whole thing is the quarterback. … He found that consistency, he’s found that he’s playing at such an elite level right now. To me, he’s the key that is making all those things play at a really high rate.”

More:Peterson: Iowa State thoughts include another inconsistent game from the offense

Iowa State needs to sort out kicking assignments

The Cyclones kicking unit left a lot to be desired in the last week's loss to Texas Tech.

Drake Nettles took over field goal duties. He hit one 36-yarder but missed a 30-yard attempt and had another blocked. Jace Gilbert made a PAT, which was his lone opportunity in the game.

Consistency in kicking is another area where Iowa State has struggled this year. Campbell could not say who would step into the bigger role against TCU.

“Right now, with where we are, you want to have all the facts,” Campbell responded to a question about how he’ll handle the kicking situation. “I still believe practice is the best place to find, or at least think that we’re making the best decision for the betterment of the team.

“I would stand by both those young men, and both those young men have done great things for our program. … It’s just finding that consistency and the same thing we’re talking about in other areas.”

Some seniors staying?

Wide receiver Dimitri Stanley, defensive lineman Isaiah Lee and linebacker Gerry Vaughn did not participate in Iowa State’s senior day last weekend.

While Campbell wouldn’t confirm that they would all return next season, here's what the Cyclones coach said about them opting out of the ceremony:

“That’s certainly on the table,” Campbell said of all three players returning. “They didn’t go through fall camp or the season as a senior. … All indications are that, yeah, those three guys will be coming back.”

Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Matt Campbell shares Iowa State football's outlook against TCU