Iowa State Cyclones' Talented Freshman Leaves for Kansas Jayhawks in Transfer Portal

The Iowa State Cyclones have lost a talented freshman to a Big 12 rival

Jul 12, 2023; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of the Iowa State Cyclones helmet and logo during Big 12 football media day at AT&T Stadium. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

It has been a hectic couple of weeks for the Iowa State Cyclones, who have seen a ton of turnover on their roster. Recently, one of their talented defensive backs from the 2025 campaign chose his new school. 

Following the departure of Matt Campbell, it was no surprise to see a ton of players announce their intent to enter the transfer portal. So far, a number of them have joined their coach with the Penn State Nittany Lions, but others have explored other opportunities. 

Fortunately, new head coach Jimmy Rogers has done a really strong job of bringing in some of his own players from the Washington State Cougars, but he has also cast a wide net around the country to bring in some other talent. Furthermore, he hasn’t been afraid to dip into lower divisions to take top talent from there and hope that they will be able to transition to the next level. 

So far, there has certainly been a focus on the defensive side of the ball for Rogers and the coaching staff. That likely stems from the amount of good talent that the Cyclones had on that side of the ball. Recently, defensive back Khijohnn Cummings-Coleman announced that he will be heading to play with the Kansas Jayhawks. 

Cummings-Coleman Heads to Kansas

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The talented freshman defensive back was able to get some playing time with Iowa State in 2025 right away. This was a unit that was a strength of the team until about the midway point in the campaign, and then multiple starters were ruled out for the season. Unfortunately, the talented freshman was one of the key players to get hurt. 

This is a significant addition for the Jayhawks’ secondary, and on the flip side, it was a notable loss for the Cyclones. Being able to play meaningful snaps as a freshman is rare, and Cummings-Coleman was slated to be a key piece of the defense for years to come. 

Now, Iowa State has been focused on trying to rebuild this unit, but having a young player like Cummings-Coleman to lead the way in the secondary would have been beneficial. 

The Cyclones and Jayhawks won’t match up against each other in 2026, so they luckily won’t have to see the talented defensive back next year. Hopefully, Iowa State can continue to bring in talent through the portal, as it will be needed to replace all that they have lost.