No. 22 Iowa State vows to "flush" its big 24-21 season-opening win over No. 17 Kansas State

DUBLIN, Ireland — Iowa State football coach Matt Campbell entered last Saturday’s unique Aer Lingus College Football Classic season opener against Kansas State highly concerned about how his team would handle the quick turnaround for this week.

Now — after the No. 22 Cyclones’ pulse-pounding, 24-21, win over the 17th-ranked Wildcats at Aviva Stadium — he and his staff will find out how the team responds as it winds the clock back six hours and prepares to face FCS NO. 5 South Dakota at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium.

“Winning the game is great,” Campbell said. “(But) how (do) we grow from this game? Can we handle the trip back home? Can we be ready for (this) Saturday? And that unbelievable fan base? It was awesome to have them (in Ireland), but we’re gonna need them every step of the way.”

Next step: Facing a transfer-laden Coyotes team that reached the FCS playoff semifinals last season. So here are five South Dakota players to know entering ISU’s home opener:

RB Charles Pierre Jr.

The 5-foot-10, 210-pound junior from Orlando led the Missouri Valley Football Conference in rushing last season with 1,244 yards on the ground. Pierre also needed just 167 carries to compile that high number — so he averaged 7.5 yards per tote.

Phil Steele tabbed Pierre as the MVFC’s preseason offensive MVP for good reason — he can break off a big play at any time. Pierre rushed for 16 touchdowns last season and also reached the end zone twice via the air. Pierre eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark six time despite never enjoying more than 21 carries in a single game. He sliced up rival North Dakota late in the regular season with a combined 248 yards rushing and receiving — and scored two touchdowns in the narrow 42-36 win.

QB Aidan Bouman

The former Cyclone struggled to climb the depth chart in two seasons in Ames, so chose to become a Coyote and has thrived there.

Bouman, who stands 6-5 and weighs 225 pounds, ranks among the top five in South Dakota program history in passing touchdowns (42), completions (481) and yards (6,402). Bouman passed for nearly 3,000 yards last season and has only been intercepted 11 times in two seasons as a starter and one as a backup-turned-starter.

He completed an impressive 68.6 percent of his passes last season while compiling a 19-to-4 touchdown to interception ratio. His dad, Todd spent several seasons in the NFL largely as a backup quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings and a handful of other teams.

LB Nate Ewell

The 6-2, 230-pound former Waterloo West star is the Yotes’ leading returning tackler after totaling 78 stops last season.

Ewell — who played two seasons at NAIA power Grand View — forced five fumbles and recovered three loose balls in his two seasons as a Viking. He maintained his nose for the ball for South Dakota last season, when he forced and recovered a fumble and notched five quarterback hurries. Ewell, a senior, was tabbed as the 12th-best returning FCS linebacker by HEROSports.com.

RB/KR Keyondray Jones-Logan

Jones-Logan, like Pierre, grew up in Orlando, and while he’s not big (5-7, 275) he is fast and elusive.

The junior running back complemented Pierre by rushing for 248 yards on 36 carries last season (a 6.9-yard average) and five touchdowns — two rushing, one receiving, and two on kick returns. Jones-Logan shines the most in the return game, where he averaged an eye-popping 36.1 yards per kick return in 2024 and tied for the most touchdowns with the aforementioned two.

He was also sprinted 35 yards to become the only Yote to score a touchdown in last season’s 27-13 loss to Wisconsin and his 97-yard kick return for touchdown in last season’s opening win over Northern State was the longest in FCS.

S DeJuan Lewis

The twice-transferred 5-10, 205-pound senior from Pearland, Texas, led Lamar in tackles last season with 76 and also snared four interceptions while forcing a fumble.

He also compiled three interceptions and two forced fumbles in two seasons at Prairie View A&M and was tabbed as the 24th-best FCS defensive back returning this season by HEROSports.com.

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