Phall
Master
Since 2005, Iowa State has started 14, 12, 8, 9, 6, 11, 10, 11, 10, 9, 5, 6, 11, 9, 9, and 10 white players. They will hold firm with 10 in 2021.
The Cyclones are a pretty standard caste team this year with their majority of white players stacked at caste positions. They occasionally feature the odd white skill position player, but this year is a dry spell. There are no white wide receivers on scholarship after former walk-on Landen Akers left last year to pursue his pro career. (He went undrafted and is currently trying to stick with the LA Rams.) They do have an encouraging amount of depth on the defensive front seven that bodes well for future seasons.
Head coach Matt Campbell is a hot name at the moment after nearly guiding this unsung program to a conference championship. Almost all the starters are returning, so barring unexpected recidivism, they will be very competitive in 2021. Campbell doesn't really buck the trends with his recruiting, usually signing about 35-40% white athletes, yet this is still considered very white-friendly by national standards.
Senior QB Brock Purdy will start for his fourth consecutive season. The consistency here naturally will bring some extra, intangible success. Purdy is not seen as a surefire pro prospect at 6’1, but he is a winner and will surely put up the stats to convince a team to spend a late-round pick. Purdy already has 18 rushing touchdowns and nearly 1000 yards on the ground to complement 62 career touchdown passes and a steady 67% completion rate.
Behind Purdy are two well-regarded redshirt freshmen, Hunter Dekkers and Aidan Bouman. Expect the coaching staff to split backup duties for as long as possible to postpone the appointment of Purdy’s successor.
The Cyclones are still a rushing offense first and foremost, and their elite snowplow line paves the way. Expect their tailback to contend for plenty of awards based on the line’s success. The unit is deep and according to the staff very interchangeable. That said, top stars are center Colin Newell and guard Derek Schweiger, who were named to the first and second-team all-conference squads, respectively.
Iowa State runs plenty of jumbo sets with two tight ends and an H-back in the rotation. Superstar Charlie Kolar won second team All-American honors last year to accentuate 17 career touchdown catches and is the team's most dangerous receiving threat. Chase Allen has already earned second team all-conference honors three different times on the back of his elite blocking. I’m listing them both as starters. Converted linebacker Jared Rus is also projected to see a lot of time in the Cyclones’ modified fullback role, so while he won’t see many touches, he’ll be tasked to do plenty of smashing.
Linebacker is the defensive position of strength, with returning starters Mike Rose and Jake Hummel having won first team All-American and honorable mention conference honors, respectively. Rose is a tackling machine with first-round NFL potential and should be fun to watch on his own. Iowa State will rotate in Zach Petersen and Tucker Robertson on its front line, but overall, the defense seems a bit lacking in white talent. There are several promising young linebackers in the pipeline currently.
Special teams ace Rory Walling, a former walk-on listed as a running back, was an honorable mention in the All Big 12 team last season with 14 tackles. In addition to chasing down returners, he may win the job running out a few of his own this year. Iowa State keeps a hearty stable of white walk-ons. The segregation of these types of players is always frustrating; to the program’s credit, walk-ons seem to be given the chance to emerge and earn playing time.
Starters:
QB: Brock Purdy
TE: Charlie Kolar, Chase Allen
OL: Sean Foster, Trevor Downing, Colin Newell, Derek Schweiger, Jake Remsburg
LB: Mike Rose, Jake Hummel
Backups:
QB: Hunter Dekkers, Aidan Bouman
Flex / H-Back: Jared Rus
TE: Easton Dean
OL: Joey Ramos, Grant Treiber, Jarrod Hufford
DE: Zach Petersen, Tucker Robertson, Blake Peterson, Joey Petersen
LB: Cole Pedersen, Hunter Zenzen, Aidan Ralph, Myles Mendeszoon
The Cyclones are a pretty standard caste team this year with their majority of white players stacked at caste positions. They occasionally feature the odd white skill position player, but this year is a dry spell. There are no white wide receivers on scholarship after former walk-on Landen Akers left last year to pursue his pro career. (He went undrafted and is currently trying to stick with the LA Rams.) They do have an encouraging amount of depth on the defensive front seven that bodes well for future seasons.
Head coach Matt Campbell is a hot name at the moment after nearly guiding this unsung program to a conference championship. Almost all the starters are returning, so barring unexpected recidivism, they will be very competitive in 2021. Campbell doesn't really buck the trends with his recruiting, usually signing about 35-40% white athletes, yet this is still considered very white-friendly by national standards.
Senior QB Brock Purdy will start for his fourth consecutive season. The consistency here naturally will bring some extra, intangible success. Purdy is not seen as a surefire pro prospect at 6’1, but he is a winner and will surely put up the stats to convince a team to spend a late-round pick. Purdy already has 18 rushing touchdowns and nearly 1000 yards on the ground to complement 62 career touchdown passes and a steady 67% completion rate.
Behind Purdy are two well-regarded redshirt freshmen, Hunter Dekkers and Aidan Bouman. Expect the coaching staff to split backup duties for as long as possible to postpone the appointment of Purdy’s successor.
The Cyclones are still a rushing offense first and foremost, and their elite snowplow line paves the way. Expect their tailback to contend for plenty of awards based on the line’s success. The unit is deep and according to the staff very interchangeable. That said, top stars are center Colin Newell and guard Derek Schweiger, who were named to the first and second-team all-conference squads, respectively.
Iowa State runs plenty of jumbo sets with two tight ends and an H-back in the rotation. Superstar Charlie Kolar won second team All-American honors last year to accentuate 17 career touchdown catches and is the team's most dangerous receiving threat. Chase Allen has already earned second team all-conference honors three different times on the back of his elite blocking. I’m listing them both as starters. Converted linebacker Jared Rus is also projected to see a lot of time in the Cyclones’ modified fullback role, so while he won’t see many touches, he’ll be tasked to do plenty of smashing.
Linebacker is the defensive position of strength, with returning starters Mike Rose and Jake Hummel having won first team All-American and honorable mention conference honors, respectively. Rose is a tackling machine with first-round NFL potential and should be fun to watch on his own. Iowa State will rotate in Zach Petersen and Tucker Robertson on its front line, but overall, the defense seems a bit lacking in white talent. There are several promising young linebackers in the pipeline currently.
Special teams ace Rory Walling, a former walk-on listed as a running back, was an honorable mention in the All Big 12 team last season with 14 tackles. In addition to chasing down returners, he may win the job running out a few of his own this year. Iowa State keeps a hearty stable of white walk-ons. The segregation of these types of players is always frustrating; to the program’s credit, walk-ons seem to be given the chance to emerge and earn playing time.
Starters:
QB: Brock Purdy
TE: Charlie Kolar, Chase Allen
OL: Sean Foster, Trevor Downing, Colin Newell, Derek Schweiger, Jake Remsburg
LB: Mike Rose, Jake Hummel
Backups:
QB: Hunter Dekkers, Aidan Bouman
Flex / H-Back: Jared Rus
TE: Easton Dean
OL: Joey Ramos, Grant Treiber, Jarrod Hufford
DE: Zach Petersen, Tucker Robertson, Blake Peterson, Joey Petersen
LB: Cole Pedersen, Hunter Zenzen, Aidan Ralph, Myles Mendeszoon
