Jimmy Rogers enters his 1st season at Iowa State with a revamped roster following Campbell’s exit
Washington State head coach Jimmy Rogers reacts to a play during the first half of an NCAA college football game against James Madison, Nov. 22, 2025, in Harrisonburg, Va. (AP Photo/Ryan M. Kelly, File)
Iowa State
2025 record: 8-4
Expectations
Matt Campbell’s departure for Penn State ignited a mass exodus of players and new coach Jimmy Rogers had to bring in 47 transfers. Rogers, who went 6-6 in his one season at Washington State, knows that this season is going to have plenty of challenges.
“I’ve said it before, they are going to have to suffer through hard times to become the team that they want to be,” Rogers said.
Rogers, who probably overachieved with 75 newcomers at WSU in 2025, sent a message in an On3.com Big 12 coaches’ survey when he picked the Cyclones to make the conference championship game. That would seem a big stretch for a program that basically is starting over after a largely successful 10-year run under Campbell.
Strengths include QB
The Cyclones have a veteran quarterback, which is a good place to start when building a roster from nearly scratch. Jaylen Raynor made 36 starts in three seasons at Arkansas State. He threw for 3,361 yards and 19 touchdowns and led the Red Wolves to a bowl last season. He’ll have some good receiving targets, including a fellow Arkansas State transfer in tight end Tyler Fortenberry.
Kicker Kyle Konrardy was one of the Cyclones who stayed. He went 14 for 18 on field goals and 19 for 21 on extra points but missed three games because of injury. He is 10th in program history with 170 points.
Weaknesses include offensive line
Raynor was one of the most sacked quarterback in the country last season, taking 31, according to Pro Football Focus. He probably will spend a lot of time on the run after the Cyclones lost most of their experienced offensive linemen. Jake Taylor, a tackle who transferred from Oklahoma, is one of the older players. He started four games in 2024 but didn’t play at all last season.
The linebackers are unproven against Power Four competition except for Carson Willich, who was a regular in the rotation the last two years.
Depth everywhere will be a concern.
New faces
DE Isaac Terrell came with Rogers from Washington State after a season in which he had 12 tackles for loss. Terrell will have to be an anchor on the defensive line.
RB Cameron Pettaway, a transfer from Bowling Green, was the MAC freshman of the year after leading the nation in kick return average.
LB Sullivan Schlimgen also came with Rogers. He started the last five games as a freshman and had 49 tackles.
Key losses
QB Rocco Becht followed Campbell to Penn State. Becht threw for 2,584 yards and 16 touchdowns last season.
RB Abu Sama III transferred to Wisconsin. Sama rushed for 732 yards and five touchdowns last season.
CB Jontez Williams transferred to USC. Williams was injured after playing in five games and finished with 15 tackles and two pass breakups.
Biggest games for the Cyclones
At Iowa (Sept. 12), vs. Utah (Sept. 26), at BYU (Oct. 9).
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