2004 Statistics

Quarterback
Bret Meyer and Austin Flynn split time at quarterback through the first five weeks of the season before the Cyclones let Meyer fly solo in the second half. "We were never nervous with having a freshman come in because we knew of the ability and the talent he has," running back Stevie Hicks said. "As the season went on, he started getting better and better." Indeed, Meyer can throw AND run. Meyer's accuracy leaves a lot to be desired, no question, but so does Flynn's. What's not as much of a question mark is Meyer's decision-making - he threw just six interceptions in 290 attempts. Again, a lot of that probably has to do with his fleet feet, so then why was the team sacked 34 times? Meyer has to decide when to run and then just do it. His upside is much greater than Flynn's (41% completion rate), so the larger Meyer will be the man until he relinquishes such. This unit is a glass-half-empty/glass-half-full kind of thing, depending where you sit.

Running Back
Stevie Hicks is THE MAN. We've called him the poor man's Ricky Williams, but after a 1,000-yard season as the featured back there's nothing poor about him. He'll continue to be pushed by Jason Scales, and another "Hitman" like Hicks (Scales pummels opponents who think they're about to hurt him) is a great option to have as a backup TB, but unless Hicks gets injured or starts coughing up the ball, it's Hicks and his size-speed tandem. What separates Hicks from the rest is an extraordinary sense of vision and a feel for a crease (inside especially). He hits an opening better than any back in the conference. Tyease Thompson is hugely-heralded out of Lakeland, and too brings deceptive power with blazing speed. Fullbacks in a Barney Cotton offense rarely do anything more than block, but Ryan Kock surprised everybody in the bowl game when he got the ball in a short yardage, goal-line situation. We'll see more of that this year, but it's not like the FBs will be any more central to the offense than blocking.

Receiver
The Cyclones are going to ask mammoth Todd Blythe to again be their big play receiver. In fact they're going to ask him to be their best offensive weapon. And they're going to ask him to do all this after recovering from knee surgery that is keeping him out of spring ball and will limit him until early summer. But the Cyclones are optimistic. "Todd is dealing with this really well," head coach Dan McCarney said. "He's a hard worker and he'll be ready to go full speed when fall practice begins." Blythe set a freshman receiving mark last year with nine TDs. Ironically, he isn't ISU's most accomplished here - that would be Jon Davis. The problem for the Cyclones is that Davis isn't the big play guy that Blythe is (12.8 vs. 21.4 yards per catch). Davis needs to rectify a serious case of the drops because when Blythe does come back, defenses will key on him. The fact that only Blythe was over 13 per catch shows how he is the designated "field-stretcher" and everyone else works underneath. When the average per pass is more than 6.4, you will see this offense blossom.

Tight End
Walter Nickel, a top 25 JUCO player according to rivals.com and the top junior college tight end according to collegefootballnews.com, serves up immediate help here. Sophomore Ben Barkema is back, but Nickel has the better hands (and 4.6-40 speed), and Barkema is the bigger, better blocker. Though there will be some rotation, coordinator Cotton does love his double-TE formations (for inside running), so expect to see the incoming class' other three recruits bulk up so their speed has some girth (average weight is 214 lbs) and therefore impact.

Offensive Line
Starters Aaron Brant, Seth Zehr and Kory Pence are all back. In fact, it could be four returning starters here if center Luke Vander Sanden gets his hardship request for an extra year approved by the NCAA. Scott Stephenson will likely fill one of the vacant guard positions and although he's technically a "newcomer," he's been around the program for a while having watched and learned while sitting out his transfer year from Minnesota. Further help comes in the whopping 6-8, 330-pound frame of Paul Fisher, a top 100 junior college player who will step in immediately and make his presence known (with brother Scott right there too). This is a unit that has great depth, and hopefully, that will help, but this is a set of guys who really could not get the push needed to make their run efforts work (73rd-ranked in I-A). With 34 sacks to boot, they will have their work cut out for them, but those tougher days will soon be behind them as the balance this team should have will soon be achieved.

OFFENSIVE BREAKDOWN
Well, at least offensive coordinator Barney Cotton is a man of his word. Early on in the 2004 season, he popped into a defensive team meeting and thanked the defense for carrying the time while the offense was finding itself. Cotton promised that in the second half of the season, the offense would more than hold its own. He was right. There should be no early problems early on again. Cotton likes to operate out of the pro-set, with the added bonus of having a mobile quarterback who can not only scramble out of trouble, but also produce via his number on set plays. Cotton is committed to a balanced offense predicated on running (on) first, ask questions later, and hope it opens up the pass (59% run, 41% pass). It worked perfectly over the last half of '04 to the tune of winning five of the last six. It will work even better this season with an experienced, more comfortable Meyer running the show. Look for the role-playing WRs to make the QB play improve via execution and/or route-running. Suffice to say that we're sure that Iowa State will improve on its anemic scoring offense that finished 97th last season.

Defensive Line
This is he best unit on the team. NG Nick Leaders and DT Brent Curvey are the best interior linemen combo in the conference. Both are big enough and have great footwork/technique. Curvey had fumble returns for TDs in back-to-back games, and he will again force double-teams while still getting 50+ tackles. Leaders cannot be ignored with an ability to affect a play just through his fast push. Cephus Johnson and Shawn Moorehead are quick, undersized defensive ends, but accomplish their tasks and will work well together to contain the sidelines. Korey Smith and Travis Ferguson give ISU strong depth here. There's a reason why the Cyclones held opposing teams to just 139 yards rushing last year, good for 46th in the country and ISU's best effort in more almost 60 years. This is an intelligent, spirited defensive line and we anticipate even better results.

Linebacker
Of the three defensive units, this is the shakiest since the Cyclones lost two starters. But at MLB - a position that drops back much of the time - starter Tim Robbins and backup Matt Robertson are both back. Jamarr Buchanan stepped in and did a decent job on the weakside, but needs to be better. The SLB spot remains a question mark with RS sophomore Ron Prelow having the inside track on a pair RS freshmen, but watch out for incoming recruit Alvin Bowen' speed and prowess to bolster their need for range here. The two LBs who did the run-stuffing are now gone, so the tailor-fit of toughness for that purpose is crucial for this unit to have impact (and not just athletes who annually fail to stop the major in-conference foes).

Defensive Back
Well-sized CB DeAndre Jackson is the best cover man on the team, able to be left on that "island" coaches pray can be single-handedly defended. Safeties Nik Moser and Steve Paris are solid, and Moser is especially good at sneaking up and plugging holes on run support. Filling the vacant CB spot will be senior LaMarcus Hicks, a former nickel-back who can tackle with authority and will lock down the other side well, too. The depth here is immense, with so many DBs coming in the last few years that the speed afforded via raw talent and rotated, fresh legs will keep this unit improving until the last gun of their bowl game. Only leadership has to be found with CB Hobbs gone, so watch the established guard take these underclassmen and slingshot them into a successful crew that can improve on their 15:17-TD:INT ratio and the Cyclone's 20th-ranking for pass defense.

DEFENSIVE BREAKDOWN
ISU's defense would get more headlines if not dwarfed in the media by the Ds in Austin and Stillwater. State was the 29th-rated total defense, but that fact doesn't calm the winds of scrutiny Cyclone fans create in wanting that "next level" achieved from this side of the ball. Still, this is a fast, aggressive defense with a nose for the football. They know how to bring back TOs for scores (four INTS, two fumbles went for six) while winning the TO-margin battle almost weekly (ranked 12th in I-A). Defensive coordinator John Skladany favors the 4-3 and that won't change. In fact, it doesn't have to. Skladany has the horses again, and given the experience he has back and the depth waiting in the wings, Skladany can afford to be even more aggressive than he was, so look out. Only the smaller LBs pose a weak link, but even they will hold their own as they tork it up a notch (of intensity).