Isaac Terrell didn’t need long to announce himself in an Iowa State uniform. After just one game, the Big 12 has already put the Cyclone defender in the spotlight, naming him the league’s defensive player of the week.
Terrell’s debut was the kind that jumps off the stat sheet. He piled up three sacks in Iowa State’s 38-10 win over Southeast Missouri, setting a new Iowa State record for a debut game.
He also added a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry. The three sacks were the third-most in a single game in Iowa State history, and they matched Caleb Bacon’s team-leading three sacks from last season.
The Cyclones’ defense made a statement as a unit, too. Iowa State finished with six sacks in a game for the first time since 2020, and the front seven limited the Redhawks to 1.5 yards per carry.
There’s also a familiar matchup getting the network-TV treatment again. For the fourth straight season, Iowa and Iowa State will meet in a game broadcast on a major network, with NBC handling the 2026 Cy-Hawk game.
Paul Burmeister will do play-by-play, Todd Blackledge will serve as color commentator and Yogi Roth will report from the sideline at Kinnick Stadium. During training camp, Blackledge and Roth both stopped in Ames to watch Iowa State practice as part of their preparation for the Week 2 matchup.
Iowa is listed as a 14-point favorite by DraftKings, and the over-under is 41.5 points.
Tuesday also brings a meaningful media day for Cyclone football, with this week’s session marking the first Cy-Hawk press availability for head coach Jimmy Rogers. He’s scheduled to speak around noon, and defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit will also meet with reporters. Bobbit’s availability comes after his unit’s strong performance on Saturday and with the possibility of Iowa State facing two quarterbacks - Hank Brown and Jeremy Hecklinski - on Saturday.
Players Jaylen Raynor, Vince Benetti, Bryson Lamb and Sullivan Schlimgen are also scheduled to talk.
Each press setting will be available on the Cyclone Alert YouTube channel, with written coverage rolling out throughout the day on the website.
In Other News...
Isaac Terrell Just Changed The Feel Around Iowa State's Defense
Iowa States season opener against Southeast Missouri State offered the kind of defensive tone-setting performance coaches love to point to in September. Defensive end Isaac Terrell was right in the middle of it, piling up three sacks and three tackles for loss in the Cyclones 38-10 win while giving the front seven a disruptive edge that was hard to ignore.
Terrells effort also came with some immediate recognition, as he earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors after helping turn a manageable opener into a convincing result. For Iowa State, the bigger question now is whether that burst off the edge becomes a weekly feature, because early in the season it already looks like the defense found a player capable of changing the feel of a game. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa State Faces Its Real Test Now As Cy-Hawk Pressure Builds
Iowa State opened the Jimmy Rogers era with a comfortable 28-point win over Southeast Missouri, but the real measuring stick arrives quickly in Week 2 with a trip to face rival Iowa, which sits No. 21 in the AP Top 25. After a clean start, the Cyclones are heading into the kind of game that tends to reveal how ready a team really is, especially with Cy-Hawk pressure hanging over every snap.
Rogers also used a recent media session to spotlight something that often gets overlooked this time of year: the role of walk-ons in building a roster. He pointed to the value those players bring in practice and depth, and his comments fit a program-wide reality that the Cyclones know well, even if the calendar is already pushing them toward a much bigger stage. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Already Looks Like A Different Test For Iowa State
Iowa State handled Southeast Missouri State in Week 1, but the bigger value of that opener may be in how it frames the road ahead. Around college football, some teams turned in performances that changed the way their schedules now look, and the Cyclones can already see how a few early results are reshaping the feel of their own slate.
The most immediate effect is in how certain opponents are being viewed after the opening weekend. Some teams that had been expected to provide a stiffer test did not look the part, while a few others showed enough early strength to make later matchups appear more daunting than they did in August. For Iowa State, the shifting perception matters just as much as the win itself, because the margin between a manageable stretch and a tricky one can change quickly in September. [Read more 🡒]