ESPN Highlights Rocco Becht's Potential in 2026 NFL Draft Outlook

The Iowa State Cyclones have plenty of reasons to be excited for the upcoming season, and a lot of it starts with quarterback Rocco Becht.

Becht is coming off a fantastic season in which he threw for 3,505 yards with 25 touchdowns to nine interceptions and another 338 yards on the ground and eight scores. Throw in a trip to the Big 12 championship, and the rising redshirt junior is riding a solid wave of momentum that could eventually carry him to the next level.

ESPN draft analyst Jordan Reid recently highlighted the 2026 quarterback class, and while Becht wasn’t among the top names to know, he was mentioned as a player who could make a solid case for himself this season.

“The 6-1, 210-pound Becht doesn't have the physical tools of other passers in the class, but he is consistent in keeping his eyes down the field and can make tough throws with pressure in his face,” Reid wrote in his quick analysis of the Cyclone signal caller.

Size and Athletic Profile Could Limit Becht’s Ceiling

Becht didn’t make a huge leap from Year 1 to Year 2 as Iowa State’s full-time starter, but he did display remarkable consistency. How he continues to impress could shape his NFL potential, though his size profile is something that may continue to hold him back.

Small-statured quarterbacks often have to rely on precision accuracy and elite anticipation or possess elite athleticism to shake doubts about their size. Having completed just 59% of his passes in 2024 and only rushing for 338 yards last season doesn’t wash away those concerns for Becht.

Of course, Becht will have his work cut out for him after losing his top two receiving threats in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel to the NFL. But that’s also a pathway towards developing as a leader and a high-IQ player.

“He can take another huge step in leadership,” ISU quarterbacks coach Jake Waters said via Cyclone Fanatic. “And he’s all about it. We lost a lot of good leaders last year, obviously, (so it’s important) for him to take a step there and then clean up some things fundamentally that we noticed throughout (last) year. You go back and watch the cut-ups and there are little things here and there. He’s an extremely accurate thrower of the football, but there are some little things he can clean up. And just total, big picture, situational football — processing, getting through reads, things like that where he can take another step, he recognizes that and he’s working his tail off to do that.”

Becht will be on NFL scouts’ radars this season. If he makes a significant leap, he could raise his stock considerably in what is shaping up to be a promising quarterback class. Though with that in mind, even if he does make that leap, playing a fourth season in Ames may turn out to be the best option for him.

Either way, the Cyclones know they have a quarterback with a high ceiling who can take them to high places in the Big 12 and the greater college football national landscape.