What a Successful First Year With Iowa State Football Would Look Like for Jimmy Rogers

With the start of the regular season right around the corner for the Iowa State Cyclones, the team will be hoping the new era for the program gets off to a strong start.

Following a lot of success during the Matt Campbell era, the Cyclones will now be entering the Jimmy Rogers era. Iowa State was able to bring in Rogers very soon after Campbell left for the Penn State Nittany Lions and he will be tasked with rebuilding the program.

While Rogers doesn’t have a ton of coaching experience at a big school, he has been successful and is hungry to prove what he can do at a Power Four school. With the Washington State Cougars last year, Rogers did really well in his first year, and the team was able to play in a bowl game.

As the Cyclones start to prepare for the upcoming season, figuring out what the team can be will take some time. For Rogers, even though he should get some time to build this program, year one will be setting the tone.

What Would a Successful First Year for Rogers Look Like?

Iowa State Cyclones coach Jimmy Rogers — owa State coach Jimmy Rogers reacts during the university’s football open practice at Johnny Majors practice field on August 8, 2026, in Ames, Iowa. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Due to all of the roster turnover, expectations for the Cyclones are pretty low coming into the season. While the Big 12 isn’t the strongest of the Power Four conferences, the amount of talent Iowa State lost from last year will undoubtedly impact them negatively.

Now, in the first year with Rogers, there are going to be ways for the team to be successful and come out after the season pleased. While winning a Big 12 title would be the top goal, there are more realistic ways the team can still be successful.

When looking at the schedule, Iowa State coming away bowl-eligible would be a really nice accomplishment. As they head into the year, the Cyclones will be facing three teams ranked in the Top 25, and from a talent standpoint, it would be hard to expect them to win any of those three games.

While there are some easier games on the schedule, winning six games feels like it would be a successful season all things considered. While on the field success will be important, so too will their recruiting.

Iowa State needs to have some good classes in a row to replenish talent lost when Campbell left. That could take some time to really get going, but it has to start right away.

Overall, there are certainly ways for Rogers to be successful and have a good first year at Iowa State.

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