As the season began, the road to the Big 12 title seemed destined to run through Oklahoma State and the Bedlam meeting with Oklahoma.
The itinerary for a championship path then shifted to Fort Worth.
Now the journey could be taking the sort of unexpected detour usually only seen in construction zones on I-35, with Ames, Iowa, as the unlikely destination.
Best known for Hilton Magic in the winter and the occasional heart-breaking missed field goal during the Dan McCarney era, Iowa State is a potentially big player in how the Big 12's second half unfolds.