Peterson: Iowa State football expectations include a 2023 bowl game, momentum for future
AMES – In a way, Iowa State’s upcoming football season seems a bit like 2016 – Matt Campbell’s first as the coach.
Sure, the goal is to win enough games to return to a bowl game. That was stated a couple different ways during Tuesday’s weekly press conference with coaches and players.
But honestly, is that realistic with a team so young that many players haven’t even experienced all the excitement that’s been known to echo throughout Jack Trice Stadium?
Whether that happens won’t be known for a few months, so until then, another goal − starting with Saturday’s 1 p.m. game against Northern Iowa − just might be building momentum for another strong multi-season run, given how well we’re told the Cyclones’ future recruiting is going.
Another appearance in the Big 12 Championship Game within the next three or four seasons? Stay tuned, and that’s where Cyclones Football 2016 merges with Cyclones Football 2023.
Campbell inherited a program that was coming off records of 3-9 overall and 2-7 in the Big 12. By 2017, the Cyclones were playing in the first of five bowl games in a row.
The most-used starting lineup that first season included two true freshmen in David Montgomery and JaQuan Bailey. Half of the 22 starters (excluding special teams) had at least another season of eligibility remaining. The record went from 3-9 to 8-5 in just 12 months – and Campbell’s program was off to the races.
According to this season’s depth chart, released on Monday, it looks as though 17 players with post-2023 eligibility remaining could be starting. That could include true freshman linebacker Jack Sadowsky. Mike Rose (remember him?) was a true freshman starting linebacker in 2018, so this analogy generally works. A whopping 39 players on the depth chart released Monday were redshirt sophomores or younger.
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That’s how I envision this season − improving the won-lost record, both overall and in conference games. If reaching a bowl is the byproduct, then that’s exactly the sendoff loyal-to-the-bone seniors such as Jarrod Hufford, Darrell Simmons, Easton Dean, Grant Treiber, Gerry Vaughn and T.J. Tampa deserve.
“The expectation is to win every game you play − to have the opportunity to complete at the end of the season in a championship-type environment,” Campbell said. “That’s not faded from Year 1 to Year 8.”
No one’s ruling that out, considering last season’s disappointment included four losses by just three or fewer points. Make a field goal. Catch a crucial pass. Turn close losses into hold-your-breath wins.
Maybe. And if that can be accomplished while developing Iowa State’s football youth of the future – all the better.
“We have high hopes to go to the Big 12 championship,” junior defensive end Joey Petersen said. “We’re in a really positive spot as a team.”
Just look at some of the positions – there are plenty of areas where youth development and success could merge.
Quarterback
Rocco Becht is a redshirt freshman after playing just three games last season. We hear he’s had a good camp, but with so few games on his resume, is he ready for the bright lights?
He’s got to be, and let’s not forget that Brock Purdy had just one game – no passing attempts and a negative rush – to his college credit before rocking that huge breakout game at Oklahoma State in 2018.
No one’s saying Brecht is the next Purdy. The point is that modest expectations for 2023 can also be a perfect opportunity for development. For, say, someone like true freshman J.J. Kohl.
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“It’s really been a competitive (quarterback) room,” receiver Jaylin Noel said Tuesday. “Guys are doing their job leading the team. They look good.”
Both will play. Both will learn. Both are among the future of Campbell’s program.
Running back
Same here, where there’s nary a senior among the five. Cartevious Norton is a sophomore. Eli Sanders is a sophomore. Abu Sama and Carson Hansen are true freshmen. Stanford transfer A.J. Harris is a redshirt freshman.
Can you develop youth while trying to meet that bowl goal? Absolutely. A team can win today while developing for tomorrow.
“We have really good players,” Campbell said. “The growth potential daily and weekly is phenomenal.”
Again, playing a bowl should always be the goal. Sometimes that’s realistic, sometimes it isn’t.
Laying a foundation, however, should always be an achievable goal, even during this season of transition – from a roster that included at least 11 senior starters in 2022, to one of the youngest and most inexperienced Iowa State has seen in a while.
Improve on last season’s team rushing average of just 108 yards a game. Maintain high-level defense while mixing in an occasional interception or fumble recovery. Turn sporadic "all right" offensive-line play into a position that’s consistently good.
That’s improvement, and if it results in reaching a bowl game?
Win. Win.
Iowa State columnist Randy Peterson is in his 51st year writing sports for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at rpeterson@dmreg.com, and on Twitter @RandyPete
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State football expectations: A bowl appearance, more wins
