Depleted Iowa State secondary seeks to slow Cincinnati's potent offense on the road

AMES — Iowa State entered the season with two of the Big 12’s best cornerbacks.

Now the No. 14 Cyclones (5-0, 2-0) must navigate through the final seven games of the regular season without either one.

That’s because ISU football coach Matt Campbell announced Tuesday that All-Big 12 corner Jontez Williams has joined converted safety and multi-time all-conference honoree Jeremiah Cooper in being out for the season with an ACL injury.

“That’s a situation that really stinks for the kid,” said Campbell, whose revamped secondary faces a top-20 offense in Cincinnati at 11 a.m. Saturday (ESPN2) in the Queen City. “But, man, how he’s handled it has been uber impressive. Great human and he’ll be able to rock and roll next year.”

Williams’ injury appeared to occur late in Saturday’s 39-14 home win over Arizona, though he’d already been banged up in recent weeks. Cooper’s injury occurred last week in practice.

Both retain a season of eligibility — but who steps up in their stead?

“Quentin Taylor and Tre (Bell) have both played a ton of football, so I don’t know if (they) just fill in,” said Campbell, whose team seeks a third straight win against the Bearcats (3-1, 1-0) since they joined the league in 2023. “I just think they continue to play more.”

Bell, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound transfer from Lindenwood, made his first career start in place of Cooper last week and has been a valuable contributor all season. He ranks sixth on the team in tackles with 14 and also corralled a key interception in the road win at Arkansas State. Taylor, a 6-0, 205-pound redshirt freshman, has seen his snap count increase from week to week and has defended a past this season.

So they should at least be serviceable against Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby and his array of ace receivers, as David Coffey — who is back from injury — and converted wide receiver Beni Ngoyi help provide depth at the corner spots.

“We feel like they (are) certainly the players to be ready to go and, again, football happens,” Campbell said. “The next guy’s gotta be ready to go play.”

Limiting Sorsby’s production with his arm and his legs already would have been a tall task, but with Cooper and Williams out — and a handful of other less major injuries peppering the Cyclones’ defense — it becomes exceedingly more difficult.

The 6-3, 235-pound junior is completing 69.2 percent of his passes and has thrown for 10 touchdowns and just one interception through four games. Sorsby’s also rushed for a team-leading four scores and averages 6.5 yards per carry, making him as dangerous of a dual-threat quarterback ISU will face this season.

“He’s playing at a really high level,” Cyclone defensive coordinator Jon Heacock said. “(He’s) got a lot of people around him playing at a high level and that’s why they’re having success.”

ISU’s enjoyed success on the back end of its defense largely because of the contributions of veteran players such as Williams and Cooper. The Cyclones haven’t allowed an opposing quarterback to throw for 300 or more yards in 19 consecutive games. They’re also tied for sixth nationally with 37 interceptions since 2023 — and Cooper and Williams have combined for 13 of those picks.

So they certainly will be missed in more ways than one, but they remain guiding lights both in the secondary room and on the practice field.

“Those guys aren’t participating, but their leadership is critical and they’ve already done an unbelievable job,” Campbell said. “Coop had surgery and was out on the practice field today and ‘Tez is out there, so we’ll be just fine.”

There’s also at least some good news on the injury front for ISU as it prepares to face the Bearcats. Outside of Cooper, Williams, and kicker Kyle Konrardy — who will miss his second straight game because of a leg injury — Campbell believes is team is relatively healthy. The defense received a big boost last week when formerly injured linebackers Carson Willich and John Klosterman returned, so it’s not all doom and gloom on the Cyclones’ current injury report.

“John and Carson bring an edge to our football team that is right,” Campbell said. “They love football. Their mental toughness and their ability to spark our football team and kind of bring a sense of toughness to our team is huge.”

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