At the press conference introducing Barry Switzer as the new coach of the Dallas Cowboys in 1994, the old Sooner celebrated like a plumber holding the winning Power Ball ticket.

Then someone asked if there were a downside to graduating into the NFL.

"Not having Iowa State on the schedule any more," he said without wink or smile.

	Dan McCarney leads the Cyclones into the Oklahoma game with a 6-1 record.

Not so long ago, "bye" or "idle" could have easily described Iowa State's spot on the schedule. When the monsters of the Big Eight came to town, the town ran for cover.

But following the Oklahoma game in 1987, fraternity row on the Iowa State campus exploded into a mad celebration that rocked far into the night as kegs were floated, stogies smoked and high-fives exchanged all around. The boys on Lincoln Way had their reasons.

The Cyclones lost 56-3. But they covered the 57-point spread.

It is rare when bookmakers post betting spreads that high. But if you lived in Ames in the '70s or '80s, and were gunshy about the Cyclones, then it was time to shut off the phones and stop writing betting slips.

At halftime of that '87 game, the Sooners starters removed their shoulder pads and lounged around the sideline, sipping Gatorade and flirting with the sorority girls in the stands. That is not likely to apply Saturday in Norman when the Cyclones come to town … as a mere nine-point 'dog.

My, what a difference a Dan McCarney makes.

I might be bleary-eyed and mind-numbed by the marathon known as satellite college TV, but the Cyclones have a chance to win this time around.

Drop eight men into umbrella coverage, rush three, and, by-gosh, don't let Quentin Griffin find a seam. Wait for Nate Hybl to make his inevitable mistakes.

On offense, protect the football. The Oklahoma defense thrives on turnovers like a buzzard on fresh carrion. Just ask Chris Simms.

If Iowa State wins, the score will be something like 17-13.

If Iowa State wins, the ISU players should hustle over to the OU sideline and carry Barry Switzer off the field. He can be found around the Sooner bench, basking in that ABC-TV eyepiece.

Switzer, and others, will rub their eyes in disbelief Saturday afternoon when the Cyclones hit town. They will see Seneca Wallace darting, the Cylcone "D" hammering, and McCarney working a magic long overdue.

McCarney and the Cyclones caught an updraft three seasons ago, and they have yet to return to earth. They are 22-9 in that stretch, after going 13-42 in the growing years under their coach.

Somebody forgot to tell the Cyclones that they were once the joke of the Big Eight, occupying the muddy roadside ditch that Baylor now grovels in.

How is it possible that the Cyclones are ranked ninth in the Associated Press poll, the highest spot in school history, and that Seneca Wallace could jet to LaGuardia, cab it to the Yale Club, and pick up his hardware if the Heisman Trophy were awarded today?

Just a few years ago, following a 56-10 calf rope in Wyoming, McCarney thought he was through at Iowa State. His memory of that fine day:

"I came off the field and a guy got right in my face. He screamed, spit in my face saying, 'Don't you know anything?' I pulled the old Yogi Berra gag: 'Sir, I don't suspect anything.' ''

Now, five years later, the athletic director and university president are scrambling to assure fans and alums that McCarney will not leave Ames after the season. The Cyclones are a shoo-in for their third straight bowl game. Though the deck is stacked, you wouldn't bet against them for the BCS.

The schedule maker juiced the odds against ISU when it was determined the Cyclones would have to play Oklahoma and Texas in consecutive weeks. But my guess is that Oklahoma will be emotionally spent Saturday after having their picture taken for a third straight year under the Cotton Bowl scoreboard. And if Texas doesn't founder after blowing that second half lead to OU, then Mack Brown is a better coach than I thought.

Of course, the Cyclones are carrying the momentum of Wallace's 12-yard touchdown run last weekend against Texas Tech that actually consumed 17 seconds and covered 135 yards. If you haven't seen the highlight clip by now then you don't follow college football.

There's more. This is the same team that rallied from twenty-four points down -- twice -- against Florida State, and would have carried the Seminoles straight into overtime if Wallace if not been mistakenly ruled out of bounds at the one on the next-to-last play.

This is the same team that beat Nebraska 36-14.

Seems like only yesterday that Switzer was writing in his autobiography, "Bootlegger's Boy," that, as a young coach, he would have never considered taking the Iowa State job: "I turned down a couple of head coaching jobs, including the Iowa State job before Johnny Majors got it, because I never wanted to go coach anywhere that there was no possibility of consistent winning."

Seems like only yesterday when the Sooners were such a BMOC in Ames that OU quarterback Steve Davis ran onto the field for the pregame coin flip and an Iowa State cheerleader (female) pinched him on the butt.

Of course, there was a time when the Iowa State cheerleaders had their eyes on the home team.

In fact, the coach at Iowa State Agricultural College in 1895 was none other than Pop Warner, who still ranks fourth on the all-time winning list at big-time schools behind Joe Paterno, Bobby Bowden and Bear Bryant.

Stagg led the Cyclones west in 1895 to play the Silver Bowl Athletic Club of Butte, chartering both a sleeper and a dining car and taking along the team's own chef. But the train became snowbound. The players had to subsist on raw berries for several days.

Things turned worse on game day when the 3,0000 miners started firing off their pistols in the stands.

Trailing 12-10, Warner pulled his team off the field in the second half.

If Warner were around today, he would have this advice about venturing into the wild, wild untamed west of Oklahoma: Wear a bullet-proof vest and eat a big pre-game steak. And pay no attention to what was said a long time ago.

Jim Dent is the author of "Junction Boys" and "The Undefeated" and is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. "Junction Boys" will be ESPN Original Entertainment's second original, made-for-television movie. The premiere is scheduled for Saturday, December 14 at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.