Freshman Wide Receiver Has Earned More Opportunities for Iowa State Cyclones Offense

The Iowa State Cyclones passing offense could use more of this freshman wide receiver.

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One of the things that the Iowa State Cyclones coaching staff certainly discussed during the team’s bye week was how to get their passing game going at a higher level.

Things have been a work in progress when it comes to their aerial attack. A big reason for that is having to place two NFL-caliber wide receivers. Last year’s leading pass catchers, Jadyen Higgins and Jaylin Noel, were both selected in the 2025 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.

Higgins led the team with 87 receptions and nine touchdowns. Noel had the most yards with 1,194. Replacing that kind of dynamic production isn’t easy. They accounted for 2,377 of the 3,580 receiving yards the team recorded; no one else reached 300. That duo had 167 of 277 receptions and 17 out of 25 touchdowns, too.

It would be unfair to expect anyone on the current roster to replicate what that NFL duo was producing. But, for the Cyclones to reach their potential, they will eventually need some players to step up to elevate this offense to the next level.

Dominic Overby earning more chances out of bye

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One player to keep an eye on as a potential spark moving forward is Dominic Overby. He is someone that the coaching staff spoke very highly of during the offseason. Everything they liked in the spring and summer has slowly but surely shown through this fall.

The redshirt freshman hasn’t received a ton of opportunities thus far in 2025, but when the ball has been in his hands, good things have happened. He has only four receptions, but half of those have gone for touchdowns. The other two receptions have resulted in first downs to keep drives alive.

Catching only four out of 11 targets isn’t an ideal conversion rate, but he has made up for the lack of efficiency with such a positive impact when he gets his hands on the ball. Thus far, he has been on the field for 92 snaps in four games, and that number could very well continue growing coming out of the bye.

Brett Eskildsen is the only wide receiver who has received more targets than Overby thus far. Xavier Townsend is tied with 11 as well. The only players with more are tight ends Benjamin Brahmer and Gabe Burkle.

This has been a methodical offense thus far, with Rocco Becht’s passing yards per game sitting at 215. Last year, that number was at a career-high 250.4 yards per game. To see an increase in that, targeting a big-play machine such as Overby could be in the cards for Matt Campbell and his staff.