Iowa State Cyclones College Football Pregame Quote, 09/17/2024

On potentially tying Dan McCarney for Iowa State’s all-time coaching wins mark

Yeah. Number one, obviously, what Coach Mack did here for the longevity of his career, what he took over when he came into Iowa State, obviously, what he was able to build here laid the foundation for everybody following him to really have a chance to have true success.

I think, for me, you’re just grateful that you’re able to be at one place for as long as we’ve been able to be here. I would say any success we’ve had is because of great coaches and obviously great players along the way. You’re just grateful in this profession to be able to have some longevity and be able to build something that means something.

I think Coach Mac really laid the foundation and he laid the opportunity for all of us to be able to build and have success in this program.

On the way the LBs played at Iowa

Yeah, that group has had just a warrior spirit in terms of how its responded. I think the first point is you have to talk about the guys that are injured and how they’ve been elite coaches.

What Carson Willich as done every day in practice and how he’s been coaching that group. And how Caleb has been. Literally, Caleb is in the hospital and Cael is sitting in the hospital bed going through practice film with him. To watch those guys and watch Will McLaughlin and the value of being able to play as a young freshmen, helping those guys from a mentality standpoint, it’s been really rewarding to watch. And it’s been really rewarding to watch the guys who have played just continue to grow and get better.

I mean Kooper’s game from Week 1 to Week 2, I think he made a huge jump in his game, his play and his confidence.

Obviously, Cael wasn’t really playing that position, so you threw him into two practices to get ready for, obviously, that opponent and that environment. I thought the courage to do it and to progress throughout the football game was really huge. Now, to get another week of practice and get some time to get really engrained in that position it’s been fun to watch.

Obviously what Jacob Ellis has meant coming back off of two years of injury. Really, has missed two full seasons of football. To be able to finally be back and getting his opportunity and seizing it, it has been awesome to watch.

So, that group in general has been really impressive. I guess you’re right, progression would be the right word. I think leadership would be the other word that comes to my mind from those guys that have, obviously, going through personal hard but being able to have enough courage to come and lead the others. It’s been awesome to watch.

On how beneficial the Cyclone’s bye week was

I don’t think you ever know until you get back on the field and play. I think what we really wanted to have is, ‘Geez, what did you see in the first two weeks? What adjustments could we make whether it be personnel or scheme related?’

And then we were beat up. We had a really physical fall camp. It was a really good fall camp in my opinion. I thought we played a physical brand of football the first two weeks of the season. Not that it was perfect, but I think the physicality matched what we wanted to get accomplished.

I think getting some guys back to full strength. And I think all of those things were really big. I think we are so young in so many areas that we really looked at it as another week of fall camp. We were able to have really quality practices last week, which I thought was huge.

It’s different than maybe a later end of the season bye week. We were able to stay on par with what’s our rhythm of how we prepare for a game. I thought our kids handled it really well.

On the advantage of an early season bye week

Yeah, I think that is nice. From my end of it, you don’t control really the schedule. So you play the cards you’re dealt and you try to use it the best way possible. I was certainly excited about how our schedule fell in terms of having that early bye.

For this team to use tangible evidence of game video, where are you, where are we? Everybody has stuff they need to work on. Whether it’s coaches or players. Man, how do we address it? How do we fundamentally grow? How do we schematically grow?

And, I thought our kids really good great humility from our first two football games and understood there was a lot of room to grow if we want to be great as the season progresses.

Obviously, there is a lot of work to do for us.

On the impact OT Jalen Travis and OG Deylin Hasert can make for Iowa State vs. Arkansas State

Yeah, I don’t know. Obviously that is going to be a battle. That offensive line played, I thought, really well last Saturday and is continuing to grow. To me, there is great competition. Every position.

You have left tackle James and, obviously, getting Jalen back. Certainly, with left guard with what Trevor Buhr has done. Pushing what that looks like at center there. At right guard, obviously, we Deylin right now and where he is at. Certainly pushing Brendan. Tyler Maro, Tyler Miller, both of those guys have played.

To me, I still think we are kind of where we were at the beginning of the season. It’s early. We got to see what’s the best combination and who practices the best. The great thing is the guys who have played have earned some confidence, I think, along the way. And deserved confidence, real confidence because they have played two pretty stout opponents and, obviously, preparing for another opponent that is going to create a lot of chaos and its got great athleticism.

So, it will be a great challenge on Saturday.

On second, third-string players during the bye week

Yeah, I think, I’ll be honest with you, I don’t think it changed super much. At least how we have really practiced. I think we’ve been evaluating this team because there is still so much competition.

I think there are a lot of really talented guys that are continuing to push for playing time. Whether that be on special teams or certainly offense and defense. I don’t know if there is a name, per se, that rings a bell.

But I think that’s what is great about this. Saturday is coming. Man, if you’ve earned the right to play, you’re going to have a chance to get on that field to seize your opportunity. Again, I think, that’s probably been the fun part about this team so far. Some of the guys, the Cael Brezinas, some of these guys who have stepped in. You’ve heard me say this a lot, college football is about when you get your shot, you get your opportunity, you make the most of it.

Some guys do and some guys don’t. But it’s certainly how you prepare helps you make the most of those opportunities. It’s been fun to watch the guys do it so far and hopefully some others that will be on the way here that can really help our team.

On if Jalen Travis, Deylin Hasert will be available vs. Arkansas State

Yeah, I think both will be available. It certainly looks we are trending that way now. Again, both of those guys got reps the last two weeks. Both are on a really good progression.

I don’t know if I would say they are at full strength. But I would say they are really close to it. I think both guys would certainly be available.

On what stands out about Arkansas State on tape

It is certainly the most athletic team in all phases of the game. You look at their punt return and kick return teams, special teams, you have an elite punt returner. Multiple punt returns for touchdown. You have an elite kick returner. Both of those guys are electric on the offensive side of the football.

You look at their defense in all three levels of the defense, they’ve done a great job. You’re talking about athleticism and talent on the d-line. They are creating havoc and sacks. Man, you just turn on the film from last week.

Veteran linebacker crew that has played a lot of football for those guys. All-conference players in their conference that can run and tackle. There’s really the same thing in the secondary. They’ve don’t a great job of getting length, athleticism. They’ve made plays on the football early on.

You flip it on the other side, it’s going to be tempo. You’re going to get potentially two really talented quarterbacks that can both throw the football. They can really challenge you in the running game. Really great stable in the backfield that’s been super talented. Guys that are super explosive, can run.

Even their offensive line, I thought, really athletic. Veteran center. Some really good players that are showing up in a really positive way. And obviously the skill positions at receiver, probably the most impressive.

Collectively, across the board, guys that are making big plays and playmakers. They certainly challenge you. They challenge you differently than we’ve been challenged so far this season. They are going to play in space, they’re going to play with athleticism. And they are impressive.

Coach Jones has had success no matter where he’s been. He knows how to put together great teams. This is certainly a really talented team coming in here.

On the challenge of Arkansas State’s offensive tempo

Yeah, I think that word right there starts it all. I think when you play a team that is going to play with great tempo, they are going to really challenge your communication and your discipline of playing your responsibility.

The number one thing that has to happen is you have to get communicated. You have to have the ability to get lined up. I think this team, obviously, challenges you to do that. I think that’s why you see so many explosive plays from them offensively. Is there ability to almost get people out of rhythm, out of alignment, get their eyes wrong. They have the great ability to make plays down the field.

On this being the first game as a ranked team

I don’t there’s any added pressure. I think the reality of it is, we’ve learned this so many times along the way that the end of the season determines who you want to become. Obviously, you want to continue to grow and get better. I think the fool’s gold is you can get better from Week 1 to Week 2. You should. But the great teams get better every week.

It doesn’t matter where you’re ranked, where you’re at, what you’re doing, it’s how do you have humility? How do you learn? How do you grow? How do you work to get yourself better?

Every challenge is going to be different and unique. I think at the end of the day, we want to be out best at the end of the season. You got to work every week and every day to really get yourself there.

On RB Jaylon Jackson

Yeah, boy, I thought he was electric in that game. I think Jaylon’s deal has been really fun. He really started of spring ball with a bang. I would have told you mid-way through spring he was probably one of our more impressive players in spring practice.

Kind of got dinged up, missed the second half of spring ball. And then came back and had a really good fall camp.

So, I think what Jaylon brings is, number one, he brings great maturity. Number two, he’s been in multiple offenses, has had to play in different systems. I think his confidence in our system has just grown from fall camp to where we are right now. He’s got the ability with one vertical cut to make you miss.

He’s a great football player in space and he’s got great speed. Certainly, a guy that can unique and different and also a guy who can really add value to the offense.

On Jackson’s experience being valuable

I think what experience gives you in the world of precision and detail is the how to. I think that is what it takes. Man, how do you prepare and practice well on a Tuesday and Wednesday?

Man, how do you prepare to get yourself mentally right each and every Saturday? I think this sport is paralyzing to a lot of 18-22-year-olds with the pressure and noise that surrounds college football. Let alone, the personal pressures that all these young people have.

I think when you have veteraness and you’ve been through the highs and the lows that can get created in a football season, it really allows you to own your own process. What’s it take you to be the most consistent version of yourself that you can be.

Obviously, Jaylon has been through those roads. I think what you see from him is the same guys every single day. Obviously that is really valued from our football program.

On Cael Brezina and his wrestling background

Did Coach Dresser plant you here? No, Cael is, the first time I ever saw Cael was in recruiting his junior year. It was in the wrestling room. You have to be really tough to wrestle. Right?

I’m a huge fan of young people that grow up in that wrestling community because I think it takes precision and detail to win in wrestling. Cael came from a great high school wrestling program.

He was wrestling at a heavy weight that I think won the heavyweight state championship going into Cael’s junior year, he was a senior. When I went in and watched practice, that’s who his wrestling partner was through practice.

To watch this young guy watch this, man, really talented wrestler. I watched him move around the mat, his mentality, you knew there was this young person that had this chance to be really highly successful.

I think Cael would tell you, sure, his wrestling background had been a huge addition to his success and his ability to have confidence to be able to play the game of football. For me, obviously, multi-sport athlete fan because of I think it really challenges you in other areas to mentally really grow to prepare yourself to have some success.

On how the OL has taken steps forward

I mean, geez, they have certainly been put into some really tough situations early in the season. If you follow this North Dakota team, I think we felt very confident that would be a good challenge, a team that was going to really try to challenge the box. They did.

I think that is hard to get that early on in the season. They did that. I think, obviously, what we went against the following week in that environment. The ball is on the one yard-line, the ball is backed up, the ball is in some really tough spots. You got to protect in a two-minute situation. All hard things to do.

I think the one thing that has been rewarding for this offensive line is that it’s gotten really hard in moments in the first two weeks of the season. It’s been challenged. Are you where you need to be? Where can we continue to grow and get better? At least so far, this group has been able to stand up and answer some of those challenges and it still has a lot of work to do.

But it’s been really challenged, but, again, I think it will be greatly challenged this comint week.

On how the OL’s pass protection has merged with QB Rocco Becht

Yeah, I think, obviously, the offensive line is such a big piece of that. I think it’s a huge contributor to the running backs and the tight ends and obviously one thing about Rocco is he has such a great understanding of the game of football.

At times directing protections and helping that group out. I think Jarrod Hufford’s veteraness at center, his ability to be an anchor in there. I think they have a good 1-2 combination in terms of our protection game and really setting us up for success.

Out of those guys I think that group has done a good job so far.