Welcome to our 2022 position previews, where we will spend the last few weeks before kickoff going over each position group for the 2022 team, this week will be the offense, and next week will be the defense. Today, it’s the offensive line.

Departures

Collin Newell and Darek Scheigeer were both multi-year starters on the offensive line for Iowa State. While The Cyclones got a bit of a glimpse of life after Newell during the Cheez-it Bowl, they have yet to really know what the line will be like without the versatility of Derek Schweiger.

New Guys

Hunter Deyo

This is undoubtedly an interesting one to watch as his time goes on in Ames. Deyo was a 4-star recruit on the defensive line and also played on the offensive line in high school. He just so happens to be equally as talented on the offensive line. According to the roster, Deyo has moved to the offensive line. Keep an eye out here.

Deylin Hasert

Hasert, a 3-star recruit out of Minnesota can play both inside and outside and he was a priority recruit in the 2022 class. By all accounts, the staff seems pretty high on his ability to do great things during his time in Ames.

James Neal

Neal is a junior college transfer from Independence Community College. The 6-6 300-pound tackle may be trusted to lock down the right side with the news of Jake Remsburg’s injury during fall camp.

Oluwafunto Akinshilo

Akinshilo was originally signed to play at Boise State but a change of heart landed him in Ames. He is a versatile lineman that plays guard but has the ability to play tackle as well if needed.

Leader Of The Pack

Trevor Downing has been Iowa State’s best offensive line. The redshirt senior has started 25 games for Iowa State over the course of his career. This season will be his first starting at center full time after making one start in the middle during the Cheez-it Bowl. Downing was named First Team All-Big 12 last season and will most certainly need to replicate that performance during the 2022 season. With Breece Hall not in the backfield anymore Downing will have to create a massive push up front starting in the middle to give the Iowa State backfield room to develop.

The Backups

Some names mentioned earlier in the new guys will see themselves in the two deeps early on. Others you may see are Zach Ross at the center spot. Grant Treiber at tackle who may become the starting right tackle with the Remsburg injury if James Neal isn’t the choice. Hayden Pauls and Brady Petersen may be the last two names to see in the two deeps. Depth will be tested early on with the Remsburg injury and will be a talking point early on.

2022 Outlook

Iowa State has a quarterback with a rocket arm and all the talent in the world. The running back room has a ton of depth and the wide receivers and tight ends have plenty of dudes that can make plays. Where this team's success on the offensive side of the ball lies along the offensive line. The Cyclones were pretty good protecting the quarterback in 2021 but they lacked the ability to really create huge running lanes last season and Breece Hall relied on his talent to really create on his own. Iowa State will have to create push up-front and get to the second level in the run game. It will all start in the middle with Trevor Downing, if he gets off the ball and makes that initial push the rest will fall into place. If Iowa State can effectively run block this offense has a pretty high ceiling.