AMES, Iowa -- Oklahoma State players and coaches were reminded all week about the 2011 team's loss at Iowa State, wrecking the program's shot at a spot in that season's national championship game.

On Saturday, despite frequent flashbacks, the Cowboys wrote a different script.

Again in the national discussion entering a visit to Iowa State, No. 8 Oklahoma State trailed by 17 at one point in the first half but rallied to win 35-31 at Jack Trice Stadium.

The Cyclones still led 31-21 into the fourth quarter, but the Cowboys got a touchdown run from quarterback J.W. Walsh and a scoring pass from Walsh to running back Jeff Carr with 3:06 remaining to take its first lead.

It was the Cowboys' fifth come-from-behind win of the season. They are the only team in the country to win two games after trailing by 17.

"On the sideline today, there was not a doubt in anybody's mind," Walsh said. "You could see it in everybody's eyes. Everybody bought in. Everybody was upbeat the whole time.

"We just stayed the course. And we played our game and came out on top."

Walsh, the Cowboys' specialty-package quarterback, ran for another score in the third quarter.

Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma State's starting quarterback, passed for 327 yards and a touchdown, and wide receiver Marcell Ateman totaled eight receptions for 132 yards and a score.

An interception by safety Jordan Sterns with 1:38 remaining clinched the victory.

Oklahoma State moves to 10-0 for just the second time in school history, matching the 2011 team's start. The Cowboys improved to 7-0 in the Big 12, with home games remaining against Baylor and Oklahoma.

Iowa State quarterback Joel Lanning did his best to engineer an upset. The sophomore ran for a game-high 130 yards and two touchdowns and passed for a score.

But the Cyclones managed just 104 yards of offense and five first downs in the second half, falling to 3-7 overall and 2-5 in the conference, assuring a losing season.

"We were rolling as an offense in that first quarter and we carried it through the third a little bit and just couldn't get it done in the fourth." Lanning said.

In 2011, with the Cowboys at No. 2 in the country on a Friday night in Ames, Iowa State rallied from a 24-7 deficit to win 37-31 in double overtime, effectively bouncing Oklahoma State from the national title game.

While this is a different Cowboys team with almost all new players, Cowboys coach Mike Gundy couldn’t avoid experiencing a flashback.

"For me to say that it didn't cross my mind, when they got ahead by 10 going into the fourth quarter," Gundy said, "yeah, it crossed my mind. You know, 'Surely you’re kidding me.'"

This time, the Cowboys rallied.

"They're a football team that knows how to win on the road in a number of close games," Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads said. "They found a way to finish it.

"Plenty of fight in our kids and they showed it against a team ranked (eighth) in the country and now sits 10-0 and has an opportunity to finish up to play in the playoffs and play for a national championship, if they keep executing and winning."

Iowa State made it look easy early against the Cowboys, marching to touchdowns on four of five first-half possessions. The Cyclones averaged 9.6 yards per play through the first two quarters and punted only once, with 1:03 remaining in the half.

Lanning was key to Iowa State's success, running for 85 yards and a touchdown and throwing for 128 yards and a score.

Lanning struck for the Cyclones' first score on the game's opening drive, romping the final 24 yards on a run for the touchdown.

The Cowboys answered, with Rudolph hitting Ateman on a 16-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-7.

But Iowa State scored the next 17 points to push its lead to 24-7, getting touchdowns on a Lanning 24-yard pass to wideout Allen Lazard, a 1-yard run by tailback Joshua Thomas and a 21-yard Cole Netten field goal.

Oklahoma State pulled closer on tailback Chris Carson's 1-yard scoring run, cutting the lead to 24-14 at the half.

NOTES: The Cowboys improved to 5-0 on the road this season and 11-4 in their last 15 on the road, dating to the start of the 2013 season. Overall, Oklahoma State has won six straight road tries, beginning with an upset at Oklahoma to end last season. ... On Senior Day at Jack Trice Stadium, Iowa State recognized 17 players appearing in their final home game, including eight starters and four-fifths of the offensive line. The Cyclones fell to 3-4 on Senior Day during the Paul Rhoads era. ... Iowa State TB Mike Warren became the first Cyclone and just the seventh Big 12 freshman to reach the 1,000-yard rushing mark. With 73 yards on Saturday, Warren, a Lawton, Okla., product, now has 1,070 yards this season.