Mailbag: What's wrong with the Iowa State football team's defense?

NORMAN, Okla. − There was the usual collection of positives and negatives, with the shortcomings piling up quite a bit higher for Iowa State in its 50-20 loss Saturday to No. 14 Oklahoma.

The verdict, though, was resounding.

Oklahoma was simply, by a wide margin, the better team.

“Our precision and detail wasn’t great,” Iowa State football coach Matt Campbell said. “When you put all that together, you get some of the production you saw tonight.”

More: Instant analysis: Oklahoma's offense hammers Iowa State football in Big 12 matchup

That the Sooners (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) are way ahead of the Cyclones (2-3, 1-1) isn’t surprising and is perhaps even beside the point for Iowa State and its fans.

Given the expectations recalibration thrust upon the Cyclones after their Week 3 loss at Ohio, losing as a three-touchdown underdog is probably less important than the lessons gained from the loss.

“Playing big in the moment and having to be elite in the moment,” Campbell said, “we continue to learn a lot about ourselves and you’ve got to continue to grow forward.”

There are reasons for Iowa State to feel confident heading back north (some scoring sparks, an offensive line that wasn’t Swiss cheese) and reasons for concern (like a defense that looks increasingly vulnerable).

The Cyclones have a pair of winnable games ahead of them before their bye week. TCU visits Jack Trice Stadium next week, followed by a trip to Cincinnati. There are opportunities there, and taking advantage of such chances would represent a step forward for this team.

Can they do that?

We’ll see.

Let’s get to your questions for this week’s mailbag.

Is the defense the problem now?

I certainly don’t think the defense is the singular problem, but there’s probably a level of concern about coordinator Jon Heacock’s group that we haven’t seen in some time.

Even when Iowa State was going 4-8 last year, the defense was as stout as ever. This group simply doesn’t play with the every-down consistency Heacock’s defenses typically have over the previous six seasons.

It starts with a defensive line that is incredibly inexperienced and continues to the second level with a linebacking corps that also does not have a lot of career snaps nor what appear to be big playmakers at the moment.

If your first and second levels aren’t bringing it on every snap, even a secondary as good as Iowa State’s is going to be stretched thin.

That’s something that Oklahoma took advantage of.

“Just a lot of broken coverages, not being on the same page,” cornerback T.J. Tampa said of Oklahoma’s ability to beat Iowa State deep. “That’s everybody in our secondary to our defensive linemen.”

More: Randy Peterson's thoughts from Iowa State's 50-20 loss at Oklahoma

How does Iowa State improve its practically non-existent pass rush?

The Cyclones’ inability to generate pressure against Dillon Gabriel was crushing Saturday. The Oklahoma quarterback had, too frequently, seemingly an endless amount of time to survey the field before making a throw.

“You have to have the ability to effect the passer,” Campbell said. “It was at times like seven-on-seven tonight watching. We’ve got to do a better job of it. We’ve got to continue to find our answers.

“We’ve got guys that have the ability to do it, but we’ve got to be better and they’ve got to be able to help that secondary at times.”

Certainly a big chunk of Iowa State’s defensive success over the previous seasons was the fact the Cyclones had the program’s best-ever pass rushers on the roster. JaQuan Bailey set the program sacks record only to watch Will McDonald IV immediately shatter it. Those two – along with nose tackles like Ray Lima and Enyi Uwazurike – made everybody on defense better.

Iowa State doesn’t have anybody like those two right now.

Caleb Bacon, a linebacker, leads Iowa State in sacks with two, and both of those came in the season opener against Northern Iowa. Trent Jones is the only Iowa State end with a sack (one) while nose tackle J.R. Singleton also has a single sack.

Sacks aren’t the only measure of a successful pass rush, but it’s clear the Cyclones aren’t putting enough pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

So how does Heacock fix it? It’s hard to imagine that after five games one or two or three of Iowa State’s defensive linemen are going to transform into the next Bailey or McDonald, which means pressure is probably going to have to come from blitzing.

That’s not always Heacock’s preferred method of defense, but it’s clear that Iowa State isn’t going to be able to create pressure with its linemen alone.

More: 5 key stats that told the story of Iowa State football's lopsided loss at Oklahoma

How much growing forward occurred Saturday?

I think this was a question laced with sarcasm, and I think that’s both fair and short-sighted.

It’s definitely reasonable to be frustrated by where this team is and the trajectory of the program since the Cyclones hoisted the Fiesta Bowl trophy on Jan. 2, 2021. Hearing only about "growth" rather than wins can be tiresome when it’s the scoreboard that’s the ultimate arbiter of success.

At the same time, programs are going to experience resets and turnovers over the course of a lengthy tenure, and now, in Year 8, that’s what Campbell has.

When you look at Iowa State’s team and roster, there’s enough promise and young talent to prioritize – or at least value – growth, even if it feels like a step back after reaching the actual highs of winning a lot of football games as this team did not so long ago.

That’s not easy, and I’m sure it’s not fun as a fan, but that seems to be the situation. That 2020 season didn’t materialize out of thin air. Iowa State built up to it for a lot of years and through plenty of disappointment.

It may be worth watching this season through that lens. Not that it makes giving up half-a-hundred to Oklahoma feel any better.

Travis Hines covers Iowa State University sports for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune. Contact him at thines@amestrib.com or (515) 284-8000. Follow him on X at @TravisHines21.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Mailbag: Where was Iowa State's defense in first two Big 12 games?