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AMES – Jimmy Rogers, his coaching staff, and his players jogged to the locker room at halftime of Saturday's game vs. No. 15 Utah, knowing the first two quarters weren't good enough. The vibe was bad, and for good reason because the Cyclones trailed 24-3. "You could feel the energy at half," Rogers said. "And the message was one play at a time after this. One play at a time." Iowa State performed better in the second half, cutting Utah's 21-point advantage to a 24-17 game as Jaylen Raynor and the Iowa State offense took possession of the football with a chance to tie the game. The Cyclones started the second half with purpose. A statement-making 12-play, 80-yard touchdown possession that occupied nearly 7:00 of the game clock showed signs of fight. "It was everything you want in a long drive," Jaylen Raynor said. "And, obviously, we were kind of wearing down the defense on that one. But able to finish it off with points was a very good feeling." Defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit and the Cyclone defense forced three straight punts to continue building pressure on the Utes and head coach Morgan Scalley. Dominic Overby did everything he could do to help his Cyclones seize the upset. He stretched like a rubber band to secure a fourth-and-12 first down gain. On the next snap, Raynor lofted a 22-yard touchdown pass to Overby in the corner of the end zone to make it a seven-point game. Inside Jack Trice Stadium, a white-out crowd erupted. It felt like Rogers' program was on the verge of securing a 21-point comeback victory against a top 15 opponent. An arrival moment for a new staff and a statement moment for a fanbase that needs positive vibes are a tormenting offseason. However, like Week 2 at Iowa, it wasn't meant to be. Utah would advance to a 31-17 victory in Ames. The next time Iowa State's offense took the field, it went three-and-out. Running back Aiden Flora lost a yard on first down. Raynor's deep pass was incomplete on second down before the pocket collapsed on third down, leading to a Utah sack. "Once you kind of get behind the stakes there, personally, I got to not be antsy or try to make a play," Raynor said. "Just make the play, not trying to do too much. But, yeah, once we're behind the stakes, I can't try to overdo or overthink. Just make the routine play." That's what Rogers feels led to Iowa State's loss most. Poor tackling led to Utah star running back Wayshawn Parker scoring on a 54-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. Parker scored once more before halftime on a short run after setting the Ute offense up in scoring position with a big reception. Parker found the end zone a third time, sealing the game with his final touchdown of the game late in the fourth quarter. "Not being able to tackle at all today led to this," Rogers said after the game. "We need to get better. And you can't give up 200 yards on the ground and in the air and expect to win a football game. "In many ways, the linebackers didn't tackle well enough. When you play triple option football, I would say that (Sullivan Schlimgen) has been a highlight so far, but Sully had a rough day today, Carson (Willich) had a rough day today, Willie (Breland) had a rough day today. I mean, just the amount of missed tackles in space showed up everywhere." "I thought they were self-imposed problems," linebacker Sullivan Schlimgen said. "Not running our feet, not wrapping up and taking bad angles. And at the end of that, that's not going to be very successful." Tackling was where Rogers' defense failed. Rogers' offense continues to flounder on third down. The Cyclones were just 3-of-14 on third down against Utah. Their average yards to gain of 7.8 yards. Five times Iowa State had to gain at least nine yards on third down. "Putting yourself in those situations is tough; we've got to be able to win first down to have manageable third downs. We just struggled." On 30 first down plays, Iowa State gained just 3.2 yards per play. Utah gained 8.1 yards on first downs on Saturday. Raynor said after the game that Iowa State's goal is to gain at least four yards on first down snaps in hopes of staying ahead of the chains. The third down shortcomings aren't new for the Cyclones. Iowa State ranks No. 15 in the Big 12 in third down conversion percentage (31.9%). In previous games this season, Iowa State was only 4-of-10 vs. SEMO on third down, 4-of-13 at Iowa on third down and 4-of-10 on third down against Bowling Green a week ago. The Cyclones believe success on third down starts with improvement on first down. "We just got to win on first down. Be better on first down," Raynor said. "Again, at least four yards. We get minus yards, one yard, maybe. You're playing behind the sticks. And vs. a team like that, who's playing man-to-man coverage, very sticky, we got to be able to win one-on-ones." Iowa State's vibes were off entering the halftime locker room. Rogers, his staff and players knew it. In the second half, Iowa State competed, fought hard to get back into the game but it wasn't enough. "We've just got to continue to just grow and get better on both sides of the ball.