Iowa State Cyclones Landing Four-Star Recruit Was a Massive Steal

Which recruit for the Iowa State Cyclones was a massive steal for the program?

Dec 11, 2025; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones new football coach Jimmy Rogers speaks during the Cyclones game with the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones have finished up National Signing Day and are now going to start preparing for spring practice and 2027 recruiting. 

It has been a fairly wild couple of months for the Cyclones. After Matt Campbell left for the Penn State Nittany Lions, the team knew that they were going to be seeing a lot of turnover in the roster. That certainly was the case with a plethora of starters entering the transfer portal and leaving the program. 

New head coach Jimmy Rogers didn’t inherit a great situation, but the young coach is hungry to try to take this program to the next level. That had to start with replenishing talent in the portal, but he also had to think about the future. Like players entering the portal, the recruiting class also went mostly with Campbell to Penn State. Luckily, Rogers was able to bring in some of his players from Washington State to help salvage things. A recent flip was especially key for the program. 

Hunter Shelton of On3 recently wrote about some of the biggest steals of the 2026 recruiting class, and the Cyclones made the list with their late addition of four-star offensive lineman Benjamin Makelela. 

Makelela is a Fantastic Addition

Signed✍️

Welcome to Ames, @BMakelela🌪️ pic.twitter.com/Jh9jrZ2fdA

— Iowa State Football (@CycloneFB) February 4, 2026

Rogers being able to flip Makelela over to the Cyclones just before signing day was a big addition to the 2026 recruiting class. The new head coach of Iowa State has been working hard following the transfer portal, trying to put the final touches on his first class with Iowa State. Since he didn’t have as much time as he would have liked and had to prioritize rebuilding a roster for next year, the recruiting class was never going to be as strong as it was with Campbell. 

However, stealing Makelela is a good move for the Cyclones, with him being a Rivals Top 300 player and a four-star recruit. In his position, he ranks 24th in the class, making him a potential impact player. 

Even though he is a bit new to the game of football, he has a lot of potential and will be a player that the coaching staff will be seeking to develop in the coming years. Overall, the class for Iowa State looks fairly good, considering the tough circumstances with a coach leaving. Furthermore, the ability to add the talented four-star recruit helped a lot at the buzzer.