Iowa State football releases first depth chart ahead of 2026 season opener
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Iowa State has released its official Game 1 depth chart ahead of Saturday’s season opener against Southeast Missouri State (SEMO).
The season-opening release answers several key questions for the Cyclones, most notably cementing senior Jaylen Raynor as the team’s starting quarterback. Raynor, a 6-foot-1, 208-pound signal-caller, is backed by redshirt sophomores Connor Moberly and Zane Flores, who are listed as co-No. 2 options with an “OR” designation.
In the backfield, redshirt sophomore Aiden Flora has claimed the starting running back role. He will be backed by sophomore redshirt Cameron Pettaway, with both players also slated to handle kickoff and punt return duties.
The Cyclones’ passing game will feature a competitive receiving corps. Redshirt senior Cody Jackson and redshirt sophomore Dominic Overby are battling for the starting spot at the WRZ position, with freshman Jamal Polite Jr. providing depth. Offense mainstays Evan Boyd (WRX) and redshirt senior Omari Hayes (WRF) secure starting roles, backed by Carter Pabst and Ty Claiborne, respectively.
At the tight end/hybrid positions, senior redshirt Tyler Fortenberry and junior redshirt Vince Benetti are co-starters at the “Y” position ahead of Christian Greenlaw, while AJ Petersen gets the nod at the “F” position over Rylan Barnes.
Upfront, junior redshirt Jake Taylor will anchor the offensive line at left tackle, backed by senior redshirt Gabriel Greenlee. Junior redshirt Caden Maas starts at left guard ahead of Garret Rutledge, while sophomore redshirt Braden Smith wins the center battle over freshman Kingston Fotualii. Redshirt freshman Trevor Bindel and junior redshirt Austin Barrett are locked in a battle at right guard, with DeAndre Carter as the backup. Senior redshirt Maasai King will start at right tackle, backed by sophomore redshirt Colin Amick.
Defensively, the Cyclones are led by senior edge rusher Isaac Terrell at one defensive end spot, backed by Blake Hawkins and Jack Janikowski. Senior redshirt Bryson Lamb starts at defensive tackle alongside Max Baloun, who is sharing the other starting defensive tackle spot with Zaimir Hawk. Sophomore redshirt Jace Gilbert and sophomore Donovan Fitzmaurice provide interior depth. At the other defensive end spot, senior redshirt Caden Crawford and junior Malaki Ta’ase are co-starters ahead of redshirt freshman Trey Verdon.
The linebacker unit is anchored by senior redshirt Carson Willich at Will linebacker, backed by Beau Goodwin and Montreze Smith Jr.. At middle linebacker, sophomore Sullivan Schlimgen is backed by Tristan Exline and Landon Kalsbeck. Junior Willie Breland III starts at Sam linebacker, with senior redshirt Malcolm Jones backing him up.
In the secondary, junior redshirt Drew Surges will start at strong safety ahead of senior redshirt Micah Harper. Junior redshirt Brody Miller and senior redshirt Duhron Goodman are co-starters at free safety, with senior redshirt Eddie Lemos in reserve. Redshirt sophomore David Coffey is the starter at one cornerback spot over junior redshirt Beni Ngoyi. On the opposite side, redshirt sophomore Seth Johnson starts ahead of a co-backup battle between senior redshirt Jaheim Singletary and redshirt sophomore Keyon Washington.
On special teams, sophomore redshirt Jonah DuPont will handle punting and holding duties, with freshman Ethan Gurney backing him up. Junior Caleb Schmidt won the long snapper job over redshirt freshman Gavin Schieler. Junior redshirt Kyle Konrardy is the primary placekicker, backed by redshirt freshman Adlai Lounsbury.
OFFICIAL GAME 1 DEPTH CHART
Below is the complete positional depth chart released by Iowa State for its matchup against SEMO:
OFFENSE
QB: 1 Jaylen Raynor (Sr.) | 5 Connor Moberly (So.#) OR 6 Zane Flores (So.#)
RB: 21 Aiden Flora (So.#) | 0 Cameron Pettaway (So.#)
Y-TE: 19 Tyler Fortenberry (Sr.#) OR 37 Vince Benetti (Jr.#) | 88 Christian Greenlaw (Jr.#)
F-TE: 39 AJ Petersen (Jr.#) | 41 Rylan Barnes (Jr.#)
WRX: 8 Evan Boyd (Jr.#) | 4 Carter Pabst (So.)
WRF: 9 Omari Hayes (Sr.#) | 89 Ty Claiborne (Sr.#)
WRZ: 2 Cody Jackson (Sr.#) OR 11 Dominic Overby (So.#) | 13 Jamal Polite Jr. (Fr.)
LT: 79 Jake Taylor (Jr.#) | 71 Gabriel Greenlee (Sr.#)
LG: 77 Caden Maas (Jr.#) | 65 Garret Rutledge (So.#)
C: 63 Braden Smith (So.#) | 52 Kingston Fotualii (Fr.)
RG: 55 Trevor Bindel (Fr.#) OR 72 Austin Barrett (Jr.#) | 78 DeAndre Carter (So.#)
RT: 51 Maasai King (Sr.#) | 56 Colin Amick (So.#)
DEFENSE
DE: 88 Isaac Terrell (Sr.) | 91 Blake Hawkins (So.#) OR 93 Jack Janikowski (Jr.#)
DT: 99 Bryson Lamb (Sr.#) | 55 Jace Gilbert (So.#)
DT: 97 Max Baloun (Sr.#) OR 0 Zaimir Hawk (Jr.#) | 89 Donovan Fitzmaurice (So.)
DE: 92 Caden Crawford (Sr.#) OR 98 Malaki Ta’ase (Jr.) | 44 Trey Verdon (Fr.#)
WLB: 10 Carson Willich (Sr.#) | 34 Beau Goodwin (Jr.) OR 31 Montreze Smith Jr. (So.#)
MLB: 7 Sullivan Schlimgen (So.) | 8 Tristan Exline (Sr.) OR 40 Landon Kalsbeck (Fr.)
SLB: 11 Willie Breland III (Jr.) | 16 Malcolm Jones (Sr.#)
FS: 24 Brody Miller (Jr.#) OR 21 Duhron Goodman (Sr.#) | 19 Eddie Lemos (Sr.#)
SS: 6 Drew Surges (Jr.#) | 4 Micah Harper (Sr.#)
CB: 18 David Coffey (So.#) | 5 Beni Ngoyi (Jr.#)
CB: 3 Seth Johnson (So.#) | 9 Jaheim Singletary (Sr.#) OR 1 Keyon Washington (So.#)
SPECIALISTS
P: 99 Jonah DuPont (So.#) | 95 Ethan Gurney (Fr.)
LS: 56 Caleb Schmidt (Jr.) | 57 Gavin Schieler (Fr.#)
H: 99 Jonah DuPont (So.#) | 95 Ethan Gurney (Fr.)
PK: 97 Kyle Konrardy (Jr.#) | 98 Adlai Lounsbury (Fr.#)
PR: 21 Aiden Flora (So.#) | 9 Omari Hayes (Sr.#)
KR: 0 Cameron Pettaway (So.#) | 21 Aiden Flora (So.#)
(Note: # denotes a player who has redshirted)
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