Iowa State will host North Dakota

By CHRIS JOHNSON

cjohnson@messengernews.net

Iowa State will open the ninth year under head coach Matt Campbell as they host North Dakota on Saturday.

The Fighting Hawks were a playoff qualifier in 2023 and are ranked 22nd in the FCS poll.

Game time is set for 2:30 p.m. inside Jack Trice Stadium. The game will be televised on FS1.

This is the first meeting between the two schools, and the Cyclones are looking for their fourth straight season opening win under Campbell.

Iowa State brings back 19 starters, tied with Iowa for third most in the nation behind Virginia Tech (22) and Oklahoma State (21).

Sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht, who was the Big 12 offensive freshman of the year, leads an offense that also returns running back Abu Sama, all five linemen and the top four receivers.

Becht threw a touchdown pass in his first eight games last year, completed 75 percent of his passes in five games, and finished as the school freshman record-holder for completions (231), passing yards (3,120) and passing touchdowns (23). He threw 23 touchdowns, intercepted eight times and did not fumble.

Safety Beau Freyler, who had three interceptions and team-leading 107 tackles, is among nine returning starters for a defense that has led or ranked second in the Big 12 five straight years and six of the last seven.

Beau Freyler, Jaylin Noel and J.R. Singleton will be the team captains for the 2024 season.

Freyler has been a mainstay in the Cyclone lineup since arriving on campus in 2021. He has 25 career starts.

Noel was an All-Big 12 performer last season and is a threat on both offense and special teams.

Singleton has made eight starts as a redshirt junior, and had his most productive season with 22 tackles and a career-high 3.5 sacks – all of which came in Big 12 play.