Iowa State and Oklahoma State both spent the offseason rebuilding in a hurry, but the Cyclones have one edge that could matter when they meet on Halloween: they kept more of the right pieces in place.
That’s not an obvious advantage at first glance. Iowa State lost 16 starters from last season to the transfer portal, and 24 players followed Matt Campbell to Penn State.
Oklahoma State, meanwhile, brought in nearly 90 new players under Eric Morris. The Cowboys also have only one returning starter, cornerback LaDainian Fields, while the Cyclones don’t have any.
Still, there’s a difference between a roster that has been turned over and a roster that has been turned over with some structure intact. In Ames, there’s more continuity than there is in Stillwater, and that matters.
The clearest place it shows up is on defense. Iowa State has several non-starters back who still gave the Cyclones real snaps and real depth last season: defensive lineman Zaimir Hawk, defensive lineman Jace J.
Gilbert, linebacker Carson Willich, and defensive backs David Coffey and Drew Surges. At least four of those five could start for Jimmy Rogers and defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit.
That kind of return matters because Oklahoma State was one of the worst defenses in college football last season in just about every major NCAA category. Iowa State, by contrast, finished No. 54 in total defense. Those returning Cyclones helped build that number, and their presence gives Iowa State a better starting point than the Cowboys have right now.
It also helps that those players are already in a 4-3 scheme that fits them. They’ve played.
They’ve contributed. And they have a reason to believe staying put was the right call, especially with so many others leaving for Penn State.
That’s why the Iowa State defense has a chance to be really good this season, and why continuity on that side of the ball could end up being the thing the Cyclones do better than Oklahoma State.
In Other News...
Eric Morris Just Sent A Clear Message About Oklahoma States Locker Room
Eric Morris is still early in his first year at Oklahoma State, but he is already treating the locker room like the first place the program has to get right. Speaking at Big 12 Media Days, the Cowboys new head coach laid out the challenge of blending players from different backgrounds while also respecting the standard left behind by Mike Gundy, whose long run set a high bar in Stillwater. Morris framed the transition as more than a coaching change, making it clear that the relationships inside the building matter as much as anything that happens on Saturdays.
What stood out most was how quickly Morris moved to address the teams internal divide. He talked about creating new connections among players who did not necessarily know one another, a small but telling step for a program trying to reset its identity in a crowded Big 12. He also admitted that part of his own adjustment has been realizing that some of the current Cowboys have not lived through the kind of winning moments that shaped his memories of the program, which only adds to the urgency of getting the locker room pointed in the same direction. [Read more 🡒]