Coach Rhoads: 2015 Cyclone recruiting class full of winning attitude

AMES - Iowa State football coach Paul Rhoads received some of his most influential advice on who to target in recruiting when he was an assistant at Iowa State in the 1990s. Oddly enough, it came from former ISU basketball coach Tim Floyd.

'Recruit winners,” Rhoads remembered hearing. 'Winners know how to win.”

Fast forward to 2015, and Rhoads confidently said he's brought in a recruiting class stocked full of winners.

Rhoads stood at the podium during Iowa State's signing day news conference Wednesday, rattling off accomplishments. The class of 22 signees represents nine combined state championships, with the six junior college players competing on teams that ended the season nationally ranked.

'You bring in that winning attitude, that attitude when it's 3rd down, one team is going to make a play,” Rhoads said. 'A guy used to making that play and a guy used to winning finds a way to make that play. Then that permeates the attitude, experience and effort among your football players.”

All of Iowa State's expected recruits signed with the Cyclones, most of which came in by 10:30 Wednesday morning, Rhoads said. He called it a balanced class with 11 offensive players and 11 on defense, but it's the six junior college players is what he hopes will have the most immediate impact.

Headlining the junior college players is midyear signee defensive tackle Demond Tucker, who was the 2013 NJCAA Defensive Player of the Year. Tucker at 6-foot-1 doesn't have the height of some other defensive linemen, but it's his explosiveness and athleticism that can be an asset.

'He's really strong and to use that piece of the explosiveness to keep offensive linemen off you and to get off yourself and run and go make plays,” Rhoads said.

Cedar Rapids Washington's Julian Good-Jones and Landen Akers and Cedar Rapids Prairie's Bryce Meeker were three of the 16 high school signees. The size and development potential of Good-Jones and Meeker - both of whom committed last summer - is what excites Rhoads the most about them.

Meeker said the comfortable relationship with the coaching staff is what made him ultimately want to join the Cyclones.

'They said they loved my size,” Meeker said. 'They said they didn't know if I was quick enough to play as a tackle, so I would have to come in and prove myself as a guard. And then I went to camp to prove myself as a guard and then that's when they offered.”

The ISU coaching staff picked up eight of the 22 signees after the recruiting dead period. In 27 years of Division I recruiting, Rhoads said it was the wildest month of January he ever experienced, and the pursuit of recruits even went down to the final week.

'It was a great January and a great close by our staff,” Rhoads said. 'I don't think we've landed as many quality (guys) in the month January against great competition in any of our previous classes.”

CYCLONE NOTES

l ISU Coach Paul Rhoads confirmed Wednesday wide receiver Tad Ecby, running back DeVondrick Nealy and walk-on receiver Chase Onken are no longer with the program. Rhoads said the three players chose to leave the team, and was the result of 'failing to meet the high expectations and standards of the program.”

'At the end of the day, we will never lower these high expectations in the program and our roster will be full of players that will plow this football program,” Rhoads said.

Rhoads declined further comment on the departed players.

l Rhoads said defensive tackle Devlyn Cousin, who was suspended pending a domestic assault charge, has rejoined the team and is no longer suspended. Rhoads added more information would be provided at a later date.

l In addition to the 22 scholarship signees, three walk-on players inked with the Cyclones including Wyatt Rhoads, the son of coach Paul Rhoads. Wyatt, a wide receiver out of Gilbert High School, committed to his dad the night after Iowa State lost to TCU in the season finale.

'It was a good pick-me-up at the end of that evening,” Paul Rhoads said.