There is plenty of optimism in the Iowa State football program as the Cyclones open spring practice. ISU finished 7-6 in Paul Rhoads first season at the helm and capped it off with a victory over Minnesota in the Insight Bowl. Rhoads says the win sends you into the offseason with a lot of positive feeling and a good outlook. He says the players have attacked the offseason workouts and are ready to get practice going again.
A number of of starters return from last season but Rhoads says there are some holes to fill, especially on defense. He says they lost five at the lineback spot that started or played a lot and he says the people who will fill in are young. Quarterback Austen Arnaud returns for his senior season to lead an experienced offense that Rhoads feels will be more consistent and put up bigger numbers.
Rhoads says they’ve talked about a lot of statistical things that are not good enough, including the 20 points per game. Spring drills conclude with an intrasquad game on April 17th.