ISU’s Fett grows into contributor

AMES - Nick Fett could feel the jitters as he trotted onto the field, but he hid them below the surface.

He was about to make his first collegiate start, laser-focused on his responsibility at right guard. From that first play on, that nervous energy dissipated and when the Cyclones took their opening drive in for a touchdown, Fett reaped the rewards of playing a part in it. Things were going to be OK.

'How the hell about that first start!” senior Brock Dagel yelled to Fett after the score.

'Surreal,” Fett said of the moment. 'The energy is flowing and you did your job. You got the seven points, which is what you want to get on the board. That's why we're out there to get that job done.”

Fett has approached the entirety of his young career with a workmanlike mentality. The multisport athlete at Audubon stood out in the crowd - Fett is 6-foot-7 and 313 pounds as a red-shirt junior - and enjoyed the physical sports. Wrestling and football were a good fit naturally, but the game that he's loved since childhood is one of finesse: golf.

He spent time as a youngster with his grandfather and father on a small nine-hole course in his hometown and finished 11th at the Iowa state golf tournament in high school. Fett joked he grew to love the game because he felt like it was withheld from him a little stemming from an incident as a small child.

'I actually drove a golf cart into the sand bunker when I was like four years old so my dad never let me on a golf course,” Fett said. 'I don't know if that somehow made me want it more that I couldn't have it, but my grandpa and I have always golfed together and stuff.”

Although Fett felt at the time football wasn't his best sport, he ultimately decided he wanted to give it a try in college. Morningside College showed some interest, but Fett knew he wanted to pursue an agriculture degree and wanted to see what his possibilities of studying and playing at Iowa State could be.

The tryout process in August 2012 put him through basic drills and offensive workouts. Fett made the cut and spent time on the scout team before he was elevated to the two-deep at tackle for this season. Then two weeks ago, Fett was asked to slide inside to guard to help to help out with depth.

Fett graded out 82 percent in 61 snaps - an efficient mark - in his first start against Oklahoma State, but didn't surprise Iowa State Coach Paul Rhoads with his play.

'I wasn't as surprised because of his demeanor every day,” Rhoads said. 'He's one of those guys that's out trying to field punts and throw the football and punt the football. I bet he was a pretty good punt, pass and kick kid in his day.”

The Cyclones will get Oni Omoile and Daniel Burton back at right guard this week against Kansas State, but with Omoile and Wendell Taiese set to graduate, Fett will have a chance to further his progress as a potential starter in the spring and fall.

'(Fett's) worked his way to where he's at,” said offensive coordinator Todd Sturdy. 'He always comes every day with a positive attitude. He pays attention in meetings, he listens and got his opportunity and seized that moment. In sports, those kinds of things are fun to watch.”

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