Happy game day, Iowa State fans! 

The Cyclones are back on the field for the first time in two weeks, but the road to a surprising bowl berth under new head coach Jimmy Rogers isn't going to get any easier. 

Why? Because Iowa State will have to make one of its longest road trips of the season to take on the red-hot, 25th-ranked Arizona Wildcats in Tucson. Iowa State is going to have its hands full trying to slow down the Wildcats on the road, but what is actually going to happen in Saturday's primetime clash in the desert? 

Here's my pick. 

Matchup: Iowa State (3-3, 1-2) @ No. 25 Arizona (5-1, 2-1) 

Scheduled game time: Oct. 24 at 6:30 p.m. CDT 

Location: Casino Del Sol Stadium in Tucson, Arizona 

Weather: 74 degrees 

TV: ESPN2 

Announcers: Lowell Galindo (play-by-play), Kirk Morrison (analyst), Dawn Davenport (sideline) 

Radio: Cyclone Radio Network (John Walters, Eric Heft) 

Contrary to what many national writers predicted before the season, Iowa State is fighting very hard for its new staff. Most expected the Cyclones to wilt over and die in Big 12 play, but that has been far from the case. Iowa State competed hard against both BYU and Arizona, but didn't quite have the horses to pull out a shocking upset. The same can be said for its game against rival Iowa in September, as the Cyclones jumped out to a 10-0 lead at Kinnick Stadium before the Hawkeyes stormed back and won the game in the final seconds. 

What am I trying to state here? No matter how outmatched it is on paper, Iowa State is going to compete hard with Rogers at the helm. That's simply engraved in the coach's DNA at this point, but all of that is going to be put to the test against a very good Arizona team on Saturday. The Wildcats probably won't make it to Arlington for the Big 12 championship game, but they can make the conference race very interesting if they keep winning. 

Arizona's defense has been stout, yielding 19 points per game, but the challenge the Cyclones have in this one is defending Noah Fifita. The fifth-year quarterback has bled Arizona cardinal red and navy blue, as this is now his fourth season as the Wildcats' starter. Fifita has been on a roll this year, and he has completed 73% of his passes for over 1,700 passing yards and 17 touchdowns. Here's a fun note: he went 31/34 against Northern Illinois earlier this season - good for a ridiculous completion percentage of 91%. 

Simply put, Fifita is a star, and it's going to be very hard for this Iowa State defense (especially a banged-up secondary) to contain him. The Cyclones will have to hope Fifita makes a mistake to stay in this game, but I just don't see Fifita doing so. 

Arizona wins big in the desert. 

Prediction: Arizona 37, Iowa State 9