Iowa State's Rocco Becht Receives Promising NFL Draft Outlook

With less than a month to go before the Iowa State Cyclones take on the Kansas State Wildcats in Ireland, quarterback Rocco Becht continues to receive high praise ahead of the 2025 season.

Longtime college football analyst Phil Steele ranked his top quarterbacks for the 2026 NFL Draft earlier this offseason, with Becht claiming the No. 10 spot while being the second highest-rated quarterback in the Big 12 Conference behind Arizona State's Sam Leavitt.

"Becht has thrown a touchdown pass in 18-straight is now a three-year starter," Steele wrote in his Iowa State quarterback preview. "Becht is like a coach on the field and should continue to improve, and is one of the Big 12's best."

As a former three-star quarterback in the 2022 recruiting cycle, Becht quickly became a household name for the Cyclones. The young talent from Wesley Chapel, FL established himself in the program's offense during first chance as the starting quarterback in 2023, throwing for 3,120 yards and 23 touchdowns while completing 62.9 percent of his attempts. Becht continued to grow in 2024, as he reached the 3,500 passing yard mark last year while also throwing 25 touchdowns in the process.

In addition to his improvements as a passer, Becht also displayed his ability to use his legs in the run game last season. The redshirt junior finished his 2024 campaign with 318 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 98 carries, which allowed for the Cyclones offense to become more dynamic.

However, Becht will have to overcoming losing his top two targets from last season in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, who were both selected by the Houston Texans in the 2025 NFL Draft. The duo combined for over 2,500 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns last year, so Becht must rely on the team's younger pass catchers this upcoming season.

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