AMES - It's no secret that the Iowa State offense had struggled in its two games without quarterback Austen Arnaud, and it looked like the Cyclones may be forced to endure another half without him Saturday against Oklahoma State.

With the score at 13-0 and the game still very much in doubt, Arnaud left with an injury to the same hand that kept him on the sideline against Nebraska and Texas A&M.

The junior rushed for 5 yards on a third-and-three midway through the second quarter when the injury occurred. Freshman Jerome Tiller came in for just three plays, handing off to Alexander Robinson twice and throwing an incompletion on his third snap.

"I actually got it on a different spot (on the hand) today," Arnaud said after the game. "At first it kind of jarred me, but I went to the side and threw a couple and it felt fine after a while."

After X-rays came back negative, Arnaud was able to play the entirety of the second half, where he was 8-for-16 with two interceptions and a touchdown. He also rushed five times in the second half, losing 2 yards.

This week's injury doesn't figure to keep Arnaud on the sideline again, with the signal caller saying he has to "just get the swelling down and I'll be fine."

Rush defense abused

After games against Baylor and Nebraska, it looked like the Iowa State rush defense had really begun to figure things out. The Bears were able to pick up just 89 yards on the ground and the Huskers 102. But the last two games have seen the Cyclone rush defense absolutely shredded.

Texas A&M racked up 267 rushing yards last week and the Cowboys managed an eye-popping 331 on Saturday afternoon.

"There was a number of different (running) plays that hit, so you can't just pinpoint (one thing and say) 'just do this to stop it,'" said head coach Paul Rhoads. "There were option plays to the outside, there were zone plays to the inside. There were some missed tackles. We tried to bring pressure and they effectively worked off that. We tried to play zone and they worked off that."

Things should get easier next week against Colorado, which has averaged less than 2.5 yards per carry and 76 rushing yards per game this season. Rodney Stewart leads the Buffaloes with 470 yards on the year, including 118 on Saturday against Texas A&M.