Iowa State Cyclones Must Fix Glaring Weakness Before it's Too Late

The Iowa State Cyclones enjoyed a historic year last season, going 11-3 and defeating the Miami Hurricanes in the Pop Tarts Bowl.

It represented the best campaign in Iowa State history, marking the first time the Cyclones collected double-digit wins in any one individual season.

Head coach Matt Campbell has done an incredible job building the program over the last several years, and now, many are starting to take Iowa State seriously as an emerging national power.

However, if the Cyclones seriously want to take that next step in 2025 and beyond, there is one massive area of weakness that they desperately need to rectify: the pass rush.

Iowa State amassed a grand total of 16 sacks last season. Sixteen. For reference, Boise State led the nation with 55, and the national champion Ohio State Buckeyes totaled 53.

The ironic part about the Cyclones' inability to get to opposing quarterbacks is that they also led the nation in pass defense, surrendering just 165.6 passing yards per game, but there is no question that they absolutely need to put more pressure on the quarterback.

J.R. Singleton — who is now working out with the Seattle Seahawks — led the team with four sacks in 2024. Joey Petersen and Kenard Snyder finished with two apiece. Petersen ran out of eligibility, and Snyder transferred to Texas State. Beyond that, Iowa State had eight players finish with one sack last year, which is a scary thought heading into 2025.

Do the Cyclones have an answer in the trenches? Can junior defensive end Ikenna Ezeogu break out next fall? Or maybe someone like Domonique Orange, Myles Mendeszoon or Zaimir Hawk will take a step forward? Even more frightening is the fact that only half of those players — Ezeogu and Orange — even logged a single sack in 2024.

It's something that Campbell and the coaching staff will have to figure out, because it's genuinely going to be difficult for Iowa State to remain successful with such a skimpy pass rush.

To be fair, the Cyclones are really just getting started, and no one is expecting them to win a national championship next year. But we all know how important a dominant pass rush is, and Iowa State is miles and miles away from possessing anything even close to that.

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