College Football

CFB Top 50, #24: 2025 Iowa State Cyclones

by
Bracket Yard
July 30, 2025

Now on to number 24 in Bracket Yard’s CFB Top 50 countdown, we give you the 2025 Iowa State Cyclones.

Iowa State had a strong year in 2024, finishing in the top 15 and winning a bowl game, but they couldn’t get over the top and win their way into the College Football Playoff. Arizona State wrested that crown from them, but the Cyclones still think they have a shot to win the conference title this year. They may be right, but they have lost a few important players.

2025 Iowa State Cyclones Basic Facts

Head Coach: Matt Campbell (10th season)

2025 Conference: Big 12 Conference

2024 Record: 11-3 (7-2), runner-up in Big 12

Final Resolution of Last Season: Won Pop Tarts Bowl, ranked 15th (AP)

2024 Scoring Offensive Rank: T-41st (31.1)

2024 Scoring Defensive Rank: T-40th (22.9)

Iowa State Key Additions and Subtractions

IN – Chase Sowell, wide receiver. Transferred from East Carolina.

IN – Will Hawthorne, linebacker. Four-star recruit from Iowa.

OUT – Jayden Higgins, wide receiver. Drafted by Houston in 2nd round of 2025 Draft.

OUT – Darien Porter, cornerback. Drafted by Las Vegas in 3rd round of 2025 Draft.

OUT – Jaylin Noel, wide receiver. Drafted by Houston in 3rd round of 2025 Draft.

Best Game on the Schedule in 2025

November 1 vs. Arizona State. This is a rematch of the 2024 Big 12 title game, in Iowa State’s stadium. Iowa State lost that game, as previously mentioned. Should be a game that is circled on the big, proverbial calendar in the Cyclone locker room, and payback may or may not be a synonym for a female dog.

2025 Iowa State Cyclones: Outlook

Iowa State is running it back in 2025 with their prior starting quarterback, Rocco Becht. He threw for over 3,500 yards last season, including 25 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. The problem is that his top receiver, Jaylin Noel, is now playing at the next level. So is his number two receiver, Jayden Higgins, who had almost the exact same offensive output as Noel. About two-thirds of Iowa State’s 2024 receiving yards now play for the Houston Texans. Becht is going to have to throw it to someone, one would think, so transfer WR Chase Sowell might be getting a lot of attention.

The news doesn’t get a ton better on defense, as defensive back Beau Freyler, who led ISU with 84 tackles last season, has moved on with no more eligibility. Their secondary was quite something last year, by the way, as they had the best pass defense in FBS. Losing Freyler hurts, but they should get continued contributions out of guys like Jontez Williams and Jeremiah Cooper.

Iowa State is a team that, similar to BYU in a prior article, should still be good, but they’ve certainly lost some talent between last season and this one. I am sure Matt Campbell believes in “next man up,” as virtually every coach ever does, but will there be any sort of backslide? If so, we might find out right away as this team has a Week 0 date with K-State, and then their rivals Iowa two weeks later.