Iowa State’s first season under Jimmy Rogers is going to be judged by more than one or two headline names, because this roster is about as new as a team can get. With roughly 83 new players expected to suit up for the Sept. 5 opener against Southeast Missouri at Jack Trice Stadium, the Cyclones are walking into one of the biggest year-to-year overhauls college football has ever seen.
So when people ask which player matters most, the honest answer is: almost all of them.
The only certainty heading into the noon kickoff is that fans who are of legal age can buy a beer inside the stadium for the first time. Beyond that, Iowa State is still largely a mystery. That makes the opening stretch especially interesting, because this team will need contributions from every level - not just the obvious stars, but the guys handling snaps, blocks, tackles and the little plays that decide tight games.
Still, some names stand out.
KYLE KONRARDY already has a track record of swinging games with his leg. The past two Cy-Hawk matchups are the clearest example: he hit a 54-yard winner with :05 left in 2024, then came through again the next season with 1:54 remaining.
Iowa State has won seven games over the last two seasons by three points or fewer, and Konrardy has been right in the middle of that kind of football. That kind of pressure also puts a spotlight on the long-snapper and holder, because a clean operation is the whole deal on those game-deciding kicks.
The quarterback conversation centers on JAYLEN RAYNOR. He doesn’t need to become Rocco Becht or Brock Purdy, especially with both of those passers working with NFL-caliber receivers.
Raynor’s value may come more from his legs than from pure passing volume. If he can turn broken plays into first-down scrambles, that changes what defenses have to account for.
A few early runs that pop could force opponents to respect that part of his game, and opposing coaches are absolutely paying attention.
That kind of quarterback mobility would also help the running game, where AIDEN FLORA and CAMERON PETTAWAY are expected to be major pieces. Flora likely gets the nod to start, but the bigger point is that both backs could be asked to carry a heavy load. Iowa State may need 500 or more rushing yards from each if the offense is going to find its footing, especially with receivers who are still unproven at this level.
And none of that works without the offensive line, which is packed with players new to the Cyclones. The biggest name there is left tackle JAKE TAYLOR, the 6-foot-6, 310-pound transfer from Oklahoma.
Taylor once looked like a rising SEC talent, but injuries limited him to four starts in 2024 and just 16 games across four seasons with the Sooners. If he stays healthy, the ceiling is high.
On defense, the move back to a four-man front puts the pressure on the line to control the run and get after the quarterback. ISAAC TERRELL, the Washington State transfer, looks like the player most capable of doing both.
He finished last season with 28 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss, and added seven sacks. That’s the kind of production that makes an edge defender impossible to ignore.
If the front four doesn’t clean things up, the burden shifts to a linebacker group led by Sullivan Schlimgen and then to the secondary, where DREW SURGES is one of the returnees at safety. In a Big 12 that leans heavily on the quarterback, that back end is going to be tested early and often.
In other words, Iowa State’s success won’t come from one savior. It’s going to take the whole group.
In Other News...
Iowa State Is Counting On One Unlikely Defensive Rise
Before Pete Menage even arrived in Ames, he had already circled Drew Surges as someone who could matter in the back end of the defense. That kind of early belief carries some weight for a former walk-on who worked his way onto scholarship and has steadily turned himself into one of the more respected names in the Cyclones secondary, with the chance now to push into a starting safety role.
Surges rise has not come without setbacks. Hamstring injuries slowed him in 2024, but he made it back late in the year and delivered a key interception in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, a timely reminder of why Iowa State views him as more than just depth. For a secondary that needs leadership as much as talent, his emergence gives the Cyclones a compelling answer in a spot where reliability matters. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa States 2027 Class Says A Lot About Otzelbergers Plan
Iowa States early work in the Class of 2027 is already offering a clear picture of where T.J. Otzelberger wants the program to keep heading. The Cyclones have landed three commits who all sit inside the top 57 nationally according to 247Sports, giving the staff a strong base before the recruiting cycle really starts to heat up. Josiah Harrington, Donovan Davis and Jack Kohnen each bring a different profile, and their summer-circuit performances have only added to the sense that this group fits the kind of physical, versatile basketball Iowa State has made its calling card.
What stands out is not just the talent level, but the spread of it. Each of the three has shown enough on the summer stage to suggest he can grow into a real piece of Otzelbergers system, and that matters for a program that has built its identity on evaluation and development as much as headline recruiting wins. The next question is how Iowa State turns this strong early start into the kind of class that matches the standard it has set, because the first three commitments suggest the staff has a specific plan in mind. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa State Has A Crowded Battle For Key Roles Under Jimmy Rogers
Iowa States first offseason under Jimmy Rogers is already shaping up to be a sorting exercise, with a roster that looks far different from the one fans saw a year ago. The Cyclones are trying to build for 2026 around a wave of new faces, and in the middle of that reset are players such as Seth Johnson, Willich, Coffey, Jackson and Montreze Smith Jr., all of whom arrive with different backgrounds but the same basic assignment: earn trust fast and carve out a role.
What makes this group so interesting is not just the talent, but how many openings seem to be available at once. With players coming in from multiple collegiate programs and several spots still up for grabs, the early depth chart figures to be a live competition rather than a formality, and those battles for starting jobs and leadership could end up defining how quickly Rogers can put his stamp on the program. [Read more 🡒]