AMES — For the Iowa State football team, which has the second-highest production in the nation according to ESPN rankings, there are still a lot of questions going into the Cyclones' spring game.
On Saturday afternoon, during scrimmage/practice, I had some questions answered about the missing holes at kicker, defensive back, and other positions. Additionally, there were standout performances from running back Dylan Lee and kicker Kyle Conradi.
Check out all the action below for what you may have missed from the Iowa State spring football game.
1:00: Coach Matt Campbell listens to Iowa State players after spring game
12:30: Spring game ends with a 33-4 defensive victory.
Scoring means little in the grand scheme of things, but the defense ultimately had the better day on the scoreboard and the eye test.
The leader of the defense on the day was Tashaun James, a redshirt freshman defensive back who recorded eight tackles and one tackle for a loss. The defense had 5 sacks and 8 tackles for loss on the day.
On offense, Dylan Lee was the star. Expected starter Abu Samah did not appear in the scrimmage, but was in his practice attire, carrying 17 times for 84 yards and a touchdown. In total, the offense gained 148 rushing yards on his 36 carries, averaging 3.2 yards per carry.
Quarterback JJ Cole completed 6 of 8 passes for 38 yards but was sacked twice. Connor Moberly had the second most, completing 5 of 7 passes for 32 yards.
Defensive back Darian Porter also said after the game that he was proud to help fill the void left by TJ Tampa, but believes the defense should take a leap forward.
On special teams, Kyle Conradi had the most attempts of any kicker. He completed four of his five attempts, three of which went for over 40 yards with his longest run coming from 42 yards into the wind. After the game, he said he was comfortable being out 60 yards.
11:33: Kyle Conradi makes 3 of 3 field goals again.
Conradi went 3-for-3 on the day and had one more hit from about 41 yards left after a promising drive by J.J. Cole and several penalties stalled the offense. As a result, the defense gained a 24-3 lead.
11:25: Dylan Lee had an outstanding day at running back.
Lee, a true freshman from Arizona State, has played most of his minutes at running back in the Abu Samah outfit, but has yet to take the field in a full-scale scrimmage. Lee has made some big strides in his carries, including recently running more than 40 yards on the first play of a drive with the first-unit offensive line and quarterback J.J. Cole. .
He also scored a touchdown early in the game, and the offense drove him down the field, making it a 19-13 trial.
11:17: JJ Cole gets reps with starting offensive line.
It's hard to say exactly what the first and second teams will be because the Cyclones have been shuffling their lineup, but Cole is starting James Neal, Jim Boniface (left tackle), and Jarrod Hufford (left guard). He was getting reps on the offensive line. ), Brendan Black (center), and Tyler Miller (right tackle). But in the end, the defense won out, making the score 21-13.
11:08: Carter Davis comes on as kicker and hits a short field goal from about 25-30 yards.
Davis now took the shot at the kicker, making a short field goal from about 25-30 yards out after starting in the red zone after Tanner Hughes bought time as quarterback.Defense leads 17-14
11:06: Conradi makes a 40-yard field goal.
On his second field goal attempt, Conradi made the shot, this time from 40 yards out. He was outscored 16-11 by the offense and the defense.
11:05: Connor Moberly leads the offense and scores a touchdown, Dylan Lee runs for a touchdown.
From 17 yards left, Lee brought the ball to the right edge of the sideline with explosive speed and made a solid block to score. The score was 13-6 and the defense was in the lead.
11:00: Kyle Conradi makes a 41-yard field goal.
With the wind again, Conradie made a 41-yard field goal to give the defense a 13-0 lead on special teams.
Conradi has yet to miss a field goal try in warm-up or practice settings and hopes to replace Chase Contrales if he keeps up his form.
10:50: Defense is slowing down attacking units so far.
It looks like we'll be getting a bit of an early start here in Ames as we'll see an early scrimmage with the Cyclones.
So far, the offense has yet to gain a first down through three different series, thus giving the defense a 10-0 lead over the offense. JJ Cole and Connor Moberly have taken snaps so far, but so far they haven't gained more than about 3 yards on any play.
10:20: Warming up for Iowa State's spring game.
The game is scheduled to start at 11am, but here's a little bit of news from the start.
Rocco Becht will start, with James Neal, Jim Boniface (left tackle), Jarrod Hufford (left guard), Brendan Black (center), and Tyler Miller (right tackle) starting on the offensive line, with Ab.・Sama started at tailback. .
10:00 Kicker Kyle Conradi hits the wind for a 45-yard field goal.
Kicker Kyle Conradi, a redshirt freshman at Dubuque Senior, was taking kicks in warmups. He regularly kicked into the wind from about 45 yards out, a good sign as the Cyclones search for a replacement for Chase Contreras.
In an offseason with no adversity, Iowa State is trying to create some.
2023 was a year filled with controversy, but the Cyclones had a quiet offseason in comparison.
In many ways, that's a good thing. Not having any outstanding legal issues or NCAA issues is always an advantage. However, Coach Campbell is still looking for ways to create adversity in the practice environment to help his players prepare for whatever happens in the 2024 game.
“We haven't encountered (adversity), but it's coming,” Campbell said. “The biggest gift to this team is that this team had to deal with so much last year, so the confidence that we can deal with injuries, setbacks, difficult things and continue to learn how to deal with them. “And at the end of the season, if you want to reach your full potential, you have to be able to work through adversity. ”
Click here to read more from Cyclone columnist Randy Peterson on how Campbell practices crisis and adversity in spring practice.
Or am I the only one who thinks Ikenna Ezeogu has gotten bigger?
Defensive lineman Ikenna Ezeogu put on 5 pounds in the offseason, and you'd be forgiven for thinking much of it was from eating Chipotle.
“I like to eat Chipotle a lot,” Ezeogwu said.
Click here to read more about why Chipotle in particular is inspiring Ezeog season from our very own Tommy Burch. The former four-star recruit will look to improve on last season's record of 16 tackles, one sack, three pass breakups and two quarterback hurries.
Eli McCann covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. To contact him, Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @EMcKown23
