Missing lineman upsets ISU offense

When a football team loses a quarterback or a running back, everybody notices.

When it's a lineman who's missing, his absence may not be as apparent but can still disrupt an offense.

Iowa State Coach Paul Rhoads and his staff saw that happen when the offense played in fits and starts in the last game, which center Reggie Stephens missed after having his appendix removed three days earlier.

But with Stephens' quick recovery, Rhoads is relieved to have his offensive line intact for Saturday's 2:30 p.m. home game with No. 18 Oklahoma State. The importance of keeping that group together can't be overstated, he said.

“Those guys playing together and the feel for certain blocks that you don't necessarily see ... when you're doing that together as a unit of five all the time, there's great harmony involved,” Rhoads said.

The Cyclones had that harmony through the first eight games - Stephens at center, Ben Lamaak at right guard, Alex Alvarez at left guard, Scott Haughton at right tackle and Kelechi Osemele at left tackle.

“Having consistency in the line is huge,” said quarterback Austen Arnaud, who has missed the last two games but is expected to return Saturday.

With Stephens out, the offensive coaches had to juggle the line last Saturday at Texas A&M. They moved Alvarez to center, Haughton to right guard, Lamaak to left guard and red-shirt freshman Brayden Burris to right tackle for his first start.

“I know the guys played tough, they played hard,” Arnaud said. “But assignment-wise, you could tell they were missing Reggie. He's our leader in the line, he's one of the leaders of the offense. It definitely hurt missing him.”

The Cyclones moved the ball for much of the game against A&M but stalled at critical times and couldn't finish drives. They were 2 of 8 on third-down conversions the final three quarters.

“When you switch it up like we've had to, where a tackle becomes a guard, a new guy's in the lineup, somebody else is making the calls ... that can create some difference,” Rhoads said.

As the center, Stephens makes the calls for the line, which is especially important in the no-huddle offense the Cyclones run. He's an experienced hand, a senior who had started 36 straight games.

“Reggie is the guy that makes all the checks and identifies things for the pass rush and for run reads,” Rhoads said. “That's awfully important.”