Top Three Offensive Players to Watch for Iowa State Cyclones in Week 7

Here are the top three offensive players to watch for the Iowa State Cyclones in Week 7.

Aug 30, 2025; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell watches his team prepare for the South Dakota Coyotes at Jack Trice Stadium. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones are heading on the road once again to play the Colorado Buffaloes in Week 7 of the college football season. Last week, the Cyclones were handed their first loss of the year by the Cincinnati Bearcats in what ended up being a very high-scoring game. 

Even though the defense let the team down in this one, Iowa State got one of their best offensive performances of the year. For the last two weeks, this has been a unit that has seemingly improved quite a bit coming off their bye week and that should be exciting going forward. 

While losing their first game of the campaign in Week 6 wasn’t ideal and sent them tumbling down in the rankings, the program should be excited about what their offensive unit was able to accomplish. As they head into Week 7, here are three offensive players to watch. 

Chase Sowell

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Even though he might not have been the top receiver against Cincinnati, Sowell was able to put together his second straight strong game for the Cyclones. After a very slow start to the season, the transfer has been playing a lot better of late, and he is one of the players who looks much improved after the bye week. Sowell started his college career at Colorado before going to the East Carolina Pirates, and this game will surely mean a lot to him. 

Abu Sama III

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One of the main concerns coming into this week is going to be the health of running back Carson Hansen. The talented junior and the leading rusher on the team is listed as questionable currently for the game and his status remains very uncertain.  In his absence last week, it was Sama who took over as the lead-back and he performed very well. The junior finished just short of 100 rushing yards in what was his best game of the season. 

If Hansen is going to be out, Sama will once again be getting much of the workload in the backfield. While having both healthy would be ideal, Iowa State should feel comfortable with how Sama has performed. 

Rocco Becht

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It is no secret who the straw that stirs the drink for the Cyclones’ offense is, and that is their quarterback, Rocco Becht. The talented signal caller was able to recently move into third all-time in Iowa State history, eclipsing the 8,000-yard passing mark. 

Becht is coming off arguably his best game of the season, and the Cyclones will need him to do that again. Against the Bearcats, he was able to total 314 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns in an impressive performance. If he can replicate that game, Iowa State should be able to win this one.