Ames, Iowa ? Forget the opposition. Iowa State has lost three straight games and, to the Cyclones, that’s all the matters.

That those winning opponents — Iowa, Northern Illinois and Oklahoma — all are in the Top 25 and have a combined record of 15-1 is no consolation.

“A loss is a loss,” punter Tony Yelk said. “Nobody at the end of the year is going to care who we lost to. When you’re playing a competitive sport at any level, a loss feels just as bad as any other loss, no matter what team you’re playing.”

Iowa State (2-3, 0-1 Big 12) does not face a ranked team this week, but playing tonight at Texas Tech hardly is a break. The Red Raiders (4-1, 1-0) lead in the nation in passing, scoring and total offense.

Still, given a choice between playing top-ranked OU, which beat Iowa State 53-7 last Saturday, and Texas Tech, the Cyclones will take Tech.

“This is a big game for us,” Yelk said. “Obviously, we need one bad. That’s no secret.”

Iowa State began the season by beating Division I-AA Northern Iowa, which hasn’t lost since, and Ohio University. Kicking game blowups hurt the Cyclones in a 40-21 loss to Iowa, now ranked 14th, and they led No. 16 Northern Illinois with 10 minutes left before losing 24-16.

Then came the Oklahoma blowout, but even in that one, Iowa State was competitive for a while. Late in the first half, the Sooners led only 9-0.

“We still have a good team around here,” receiver Lane Danielsen said. “We haven’t lost to any slouches. We’ve got to give credit to the teams that beat us. They did a good job. We’ve got to keep going out there and playing hard and hopefully things will start going our way.”

The feeling this year is vastly different from last year, when the Cyclones were 5-1 and ranked 11th at this point. But coach Dan McCarney said the attitude is still good.

“I don’t sense finger pointing, moaning, complaining. I sense let’s do whatever we’ve got to do,” McCarney said. “Their eyes are on me. They’re at attention. They’re wide-eyed. They want to learn and they want to get better.

“Nobody in this program’s gone in the tank. If they have, they sure haven’t been around me. I haven’t seen it.”

The Cyclones would get a lift this week if defensive tackle Jordan Carstens could play. He missed the Oklahoma game because of a knee injury. Starting defensive end Jason Berryman left after the first series of that game with a knee injury, but McCarney said he will play.

Center Luke Vander Sanden will miss the game, and perhaps a few more, after hurting a knee against Oklahoma.

Partly because of injuries, 11 freshmen have played this season. That inexperience has contributed to the Cyclones’ struggles.