Four position battles to watch as Iowa State begins fall camp

Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images

Checked in for camp‼️⛺️ pic.twitter.com/mvkJ5IPM4z

— Iowa State Football (@CycloneFB) July 22, 2025

Fall training camp is underway as the Cyclones are all checked in at the Gateway Hotel and ready to battle it out for playing time in Dublin against Kansas State. While a few positions like quarterback, running back, defensive tackle, offensive line (yes, you read that correctly) and tight end (along with safeties, to a lesser extent) are largely known commodities and have starters all but chiseled in stone, other groups are seeing significant turnover

and trying to find new personnel to fill the two deep.

The running back room is deep and talented with Carson Hansen and Abu Sama leading the charge as a two-headed monster and Dylan Lee, Ryver Peppers, and Aidan Flora making up the depth. What remains to be seen in fall camp and to start the season is exactly how snaps will be distributed and if any of the young guys step up and force themselves into the regular rotation.

Tight end is in a similar situation with Ben Brahmer and Gabe Burkle clearing leading the way, but we should absolutely expect to see Tyler Moore and Cooper Alexander in the mix, and potentially even Keaton Roskop, Kai Black, and Tripp Walsh. We’re likely looking at an abundance of 12 personnel (1 RB, 2 TE) and even some heavier 13 personnel (1 RB, 3 TE) sets, so there should be plenty of snaps to go around for anyone deserving of the playing time.

As I mentioned before, in my opinion, I think the offensive line personnel is fairly firm for at least four spots on the line, including James Neal III at left tackle, Dylan Barrett at left guard, Brendan Black at center, and Tyler Miller at right tackle. If there is a spot up for grabs on the line, it’s at right guard following Black’s switch to center. Trevor Buhr and Jim Bonifas would seem to be the favorites there, and both have played significant snaps at this point in their respective careers. Either would be a serviceable option there.

There is some young talent in the room that could pop up and earn some snaps in the rotation, but, for what seems like the first time in years, fall camp will be less about determining a starting five and more about building chemistry with what appears to be a mostly-known starting group and finding capable backups at each position.

Safety is a position group that will have some personnel turnover, but plenty of familiar faces in the 2025 edition. I think the easy favorites for the starting three spots are Jeremiah Cooper, Jamison Patton, and Ta’Shawn James. Cooper has been starter for the past three seasons and Patton has played tons of snaps in the secondary as Malik Verdon’s backup in that same time frame, and will slide into that role. James played every game last season and made two starts, and played full starter snaps in the Pop Tarts Bowl.

Drew Surges, Cam Smith, and a few others will absolutely be involved in the rotation and see plenty of snaps during the season, but Cooper-Patton-James is probably fairly close to a lock to be your starting three. I suppose it’s possible that Surges could contend for James’ spot, but James seems to have a much higher upside as a gamechanger on the back end than Surges, who projects more as a “just do your job” kind of player.

Wide Receiver

Following the departures of a pair of 1,000-yard receivers in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, the wide receiver room is possibly the most intriguing position battle on the entire team. Matt Campbell and the staff did about as well as they possibly could in the transfer portal to find replacements by securing the services of ECU transfer Chase Sowell and UCF transfer Xavier Townsend. Sowell and Townsend are almost perfect 1:1 replacements for Higgins and Noel, respectively, in terms of size, skill set, and athleticism, and would obviously be projected as the most likely starters at the X and Z positions, assuming everyone remains healthy.

Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images

Assuming Townsend and Sowell are indeed the starters at the X and Z, the Y-receiver remains the biggest position to be filled, and there are tons of names that will be battling it out for snaps. Let’s put them in tiers so we can get a lay of the land. Keep in mind that this is my own evaluation and not necessarily how the staff views the situation.

Clubhouse Favorites

Carson Brown (R-Jr) has played regular snaps for Iowa State over the last two seasons and has been a pretty consistent performer, even if he has thus far lacked some of the big-play ability we’ve seen from his teammates. Last season he hauled in eleven catches for 141 yards and a touchdown, with a long of 44 yards.

Brett Eskildsen (Soph) only caught two balls for seventeen yards in his true freshman season, but showed some significant promise and was actually listed as a starter for the Pop Tarts Bowl against Miami. It’s fair to expect a significant jump in usage and production for Eskildsen in his second season with the program.

Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

Eli Green (R-Sr) had a strong showing in his Cyclone debut against North Dakota with four catches for 44 yards, but was ultimately hampered by injuries for much of the season and only caught six more passes in the remaining twelve games he appeared in. Assuming he is fully healthy, expect Green to be in the mix for this spot.

Daniel Jackson (R-Sr) is probably the biggest wildcard in the group given his injury history. He’s shown some significant flashes as an offensive weapon in a few games of his freshman season before that season was ended by injury, then only played sparingly in 2021 and 2022 (also due to injury). 2023 was Jackson’s best season, playing in all thirteen games and catching sixteen passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns, and giving him a headstart on being the third starter for 2024. Unfortunately, Jackson tore his Achilles in camp and never saw the field.

If anyone deserves a fully healthy season and a chance to finally showcase the promise and potential we saw coming out of high school, it’s Daniel Jackson. If he is and can stay healthy, expect him to be in the mix at least for a rotational spot until he can get all the way back up to speed.

Exciting Young Players

Dominic Overby (R-Fr) only caught one pass during his redshirt season as a freshman, but it’s hard not to be excited by his frame and athleticism. Overby is a high-end track athlete that was a state champion long jumper in high school and ran sub-11 in the 100 meter dash, and boasts a 6’5” frame to pair with that speed. His route running was still pretty raw coming out of high school, but if he continues to work on his craft learns how to use his routes to create separation from the defender, his potential is through the roof.

Michael Parkes (R-So) is a player who will be familiar as a fun developmental player to those who played College Football 25 and/or 26, but has yet to see the field in a Cyclone uniform due to a 2023 redshirt and injuries in 2024. Parkes was a four-star prospect coming out of high school, and represents significant untapped and unknown potential.

Zay Robinson (Fr) is maybe the single most exciting freshman receiver Iowa State has had since Allen Lazard in terms of potential. Zay is without a doubt a blue-chip level talent that would have seen a full national-recruitment effort by larger schools had he not dealt with a number of injuries in high school. The entire key to Zay’s potential in Ames lies in his ability to stay healthy, but if he can do that, then you’re looking at player with the potential to be one of the most dynamic playmakers we’ve ever seen at the position at Iowa State.

Lily Smith/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Defensive End

It’s no secret to Cyclone fans that the defensive line (and pass rush as a whole) hasn’t been the same since Will McDonald graduated, and 2024 was maybe the weakest showing of the Matt Campbell era. JR Singleton led the team with four sacks, but the defensive ends contributed only five total sacks, and four of those came from the now-departed Joey Peterson and Kenard Snyder. Even though he never really reached his potential in Ames, Tyler Onyedim presented probably the best returning option until he transferred to Texas A&M.

Reestablishing a competent pass rush is absolutely critical if the Cyclone defense is to return to being one of the best in the conference and one of the most reliable in college football. The secondary has always been a marker of consistency, but combining that with an effective pass rush can put this group firmly in the company of the elite.

Given Iowa State’s system, the defensive ends will likely never be solely responsible for getting to the quarterback unless we find another generational player like McDonald, but the Cyclones need at least a few of these names to step up and establish themselves as effective pass rushers.

Ikenna Ezeogu (R-Jr) is the only returning defensive end that recorded a sack last season, and seems to be the obvious choice as a breakout candidate if there is one in this group. At 6’5” and 285 pounds, he has every bit of the size you’d like to see in a high-end pass rusher, but he needs to find another gear and learn to how be a physically dominant force on the edge.

Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Myles Meneszoon (R-Sr) has been in the program forever, and is now in his second season on the defensive line after moving down from the linebacker position. With another year under his belt, he should have the experience needed to increase his production. He doesn’t possess elite athleticism, but a high motor can easily make up the difference if he chooses to play with one.

Vontroy Malone (R-Jr) is one of three transfers brought in to bolster the unit. Last season at Tulsa, he registered 25 tackles and 5 TFLs, including two sacks, in twelve games.

Tamatoa McDonough (R-Sr) is the second of the transfers and registered 27 tackles and 6.5 sacks in ten games for Yale (Ivy League only plays ten), and seems to be the most promising name in the room outside of Ezeogu.

Cannon Butler (R-Sr) is the third transfer and comes to Iowa State by way of Cedar Falls, where he registered fifty-nine tackles and eight tackles for a loss in 2024 for the Panthers. He will surely play snaps, but his impact on putting the opposing quarterback on the turf is somewhat difficult to project. If he can at least be the type of player we saw from Zack Peterson during his senior year as a solid run-stopper and an occasional pass rush threat, that would be a nice outcome for everyone.

Linebacker

To say 2024 was a difficult season for this group is an understatement. By my count, at least twelve linebackers saw action last season due to injuries, including at least seven different starters. The group was constantly decimated by injuries, and the defense suffered as a whole because of it. By November, the starting group was a redshirt sophomore, a true freshman walk-on, and another true freshman. With that type of inexperience, the safeties were often tasked with covering up for mistakes and were out of position at times, leading to more explosive plays and a worse run defense than we’re used to seeing.

With everyone back and healthy, the Cyclones suddenly have an embarrassment of riches available to them. It’s essentially unheard of to see a team have a dozen different players at a position group with significant Power Four conference snaps under their belt. For that reason, this “battle” is less about trying to fill holes and find replacements as it is about trying to figure out how to divvy up snaps.

Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK

If I were a betting man, I’d be putting my money down on some combination of Caleb Bacon, Cael Brezina, Will McLaughlin and Kooper Ebel making up the starting group. Ebel and Brezina played tons of great snaps last year, but McLaughlin was really strong late last season coming off injury, and Bacon projects to be the best player in the position room if he can build off his 2023 campaign. No matter what those four will all play a lot of snaps in 2025.

Behind those four you have some very impressive depth in the form of Zach Lovett, Rylan Barnes, Beau Goodwin, Carson Willich, Jacob Imming, Mason Miller, John Klosterman, and true freshman Will Hawthorne. Even as a four-star prospect coming out of high school, Hawthorne may just simply be buried behind too much experience to even see the field this season.

Cornerback

A bastion of consistency at the position, Iowa State has had a very strong tradition of cornerbacks under Matt Campbell, but 2024 may have been the best iteration of the room yet, with Darien Porter, Myles Purchase, and Jontez Williams forming the best secondary in the Big 12 and one of the best in college football.

Williams, in particular, was arguably the biggest breakout performer and registered an interception in four consecutive games in conference while allowing a passer rating of just 19 (!!!) when targeted. For reference, if a quarterback were to simply spike the ball every single play, they would register a 39 passer rating. It was literally more productive for a quarterback to throw the ball directly into the ground than it was to throw in the direction of Jontez Williams.

Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

The good news is that Jontez Williams is back. The bad news is that Darien Porter and Myles Purchase are not. Obviously, Iowa State will need to find CB2 to play across from Jontez, as well as their backups.

The two frontrunners for the spot seem to be Tre Bell and Quentin Taylor Jr, though I would be shocked if they didn’t essentially split snaps at the spot to start the season.

Bell arrived in Ames this season as a transfer from FCS Lindenwood with two seasons of eligibility remaining. Last season, he finished with twenty-four tackles and an interception versus Kansas. At 6’2”, he fits the mold of the long, rangey corners Iowa State has tended toward in recent years, and will be a veteran presence in the room. How quickly he can make an impact will depend on how quickly he can make the transition to the speed of Power Four football.

Taylor Jr. is the in-house contender for the spot, but is not nearly as experienced as Bell. He played in two games last year and finished with one tackle, but there seems to be a lot quiet enthusiasm for Taylor’s potential down the road as he gets more and more snaps under his belt.

Right now, I’d lean in the favor of Tre Bell due to Campbell’s tendency to favor experience over raw potential, but both will see the field plenty in 2025.

More from widerightnattylite.com:

• The Mid-Morning Dump: Humbled in a Week
• How The Game Was Lost: Kansas State
• Impact Player: Tyrese Haliburton
• Iowa State Falls to Kansas State 58-57
• Wrestlers Host Fresno State
• Gamethread XVI: Wheat Farmers
• Classic Teams in Cyclone Football History: 1906 (9-1)