Rob Gray

Young cornerbacks Jontez Williams and Darien Porter shine in season opening win, veteran WR Jaylin Noel gets even better

Iowa State’s season opener proved to be pretty tense for three quarters against a North Dakota team that’s advanced to the FCS playoffs in four of the past five seasons. Big plays like Jaylin Noel’s must come in bunches next Saturday when the Cyclones face No. 25 Iowa.

Iowa State scored its first touchdown of the season in 38 seconds, but but the defense struggled to get off the field all day as a perplexed crowd at Jack Trice Stadium watched a 21-3 win over North Dakota.

What does Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht do for an encore after being named the Big 12’s offensive freshman of the year? Raise the bar, of course.

Style points matter little in this season opener — but scoring a few could point to further success as the season wears on. Here are three keys for Iowa State against North Dakota on Saturday.

Defensive lineman J.R. Singleton joins Jaylin Noel and Beau Freyler to form Iowa State’s permanent trio of team captains this season. The Cyclones’ players voted.

It’s finally game week for the Iowa State football team, and as the atmosphere changes, head coach Matt Campbell and his staff endeavor to ensure nothing else does in terms of his team’s preparedness and attention to detail.

It’s not surprising that Las Vegas oddsmakers tabbed Iowa State as a 27.5-point favorite against North Dakota early this week, but it is worth noting the Cyclones have struggled at times in their season openers under ninth-year head coach Matt Campbell. Here are five Fighting Hawks to watch against ISU.

Cyclones quarterbback has made lots of progress since record-breaking freshman season and is in full command of offense

Annual Victory Day is ‘bigger than football’ for children with speical needs

Iowa State sophomore tight end Ben Brahmer has been an excellent pass catcher for quite some time, but now he’s eager to deliver bruising blocks alongside his game-changing grabs.

Caleb Bacon is on on pace to earn his first career start in Iowa State’s season-opener. He also proved to be highly productive as a reserve last season, finishing second on the team in tackles with 60.

Iowa State seniors Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel form the second-most productive returning pass-catching duo in the Big 12. Big plays can come from a wide range of sources.

Iowa State offensive line coach Ryan Clanton has added new wrinkles to his teaching methods but continues to try to make complex concepts easy to learn for a unit that needs to consistently perform better this season, particularly in the running game.

There’s certainly good depth — but determining how much quality depth the Iowa State defensive line possesses remains a work in progress. ISU must remain strong up front on defense and find ways to be more disruptive with its pass rush.