Football

Ankeny, Iowa, native Paul Rhoads is entering his sixth year at the helm of the ISU football team. A graduate of Missouri Western, Rhoads was the defensive coordinator at Pittsburgh and Auburn before coming back to his home state as head coach at Iowa State.

Rhoads has a career record of 27-36, including an overtime victory against No. 2 Oklahoma State on Nov. 18, 2011. Since Rhoads took over, Iowa State has reached three bowl games and was the champion of the Insight Bowl in 2009.

Volleyball

Coaching in the NCAA Tournament has become the norm for ISU volleyball coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. The 2009 Big 12 Coach of the Year has guided the team to the tournament eight times since taking over the program in 2004. 

With a career record of 190-91, Johnson-Lynch is the winningest coach in program history. In 2012, Johnson-Lynch and the Cyclones defeated No. 1 Nebraska for the second time in program history and its first win against a No. 1 ranked team. 

Track and field/Cross country

In 2013, after Corey Ihmels left as coach of the ISU track and field teams, Martin Smith was brought on as director of the men’s and women’s track and field and cross country teams. With four national titles and two NCAA Coach of the Year honors, it was easy to see why Smith fit the bill. 

In Smith’s first year, 12 Cyclones were named to All Big 12 teams, including Christina Hillman, who won indoor and outdoor national titles in the shot put. 

Also in her first year, Andrea Grove-McDonough serves under Smith as the coach of the women’s track and field and cross country teams. Before Iowa State, Grove-McDonough served as coach of University of Connecticut’s track and field team. 

In 2013, Grove-McDonough led the women’s cross country team to its third straight Big 12 Championship. At the NCAA Championships, the team finished third and had two All-Americans, Crystal Nelson and Bethanie Brown.

Soccer

The inaugural year for coach Tony Minatta after working as an assistant coach for the past two years will be 2014. Minatta was hired in December 2013 after Wendy Dillinger’s contract was not renewed, allowing Minatta to serve as the interim head coach during the Cyclones’ Big 12 tournament game against Baylor. 

The 2013 appearance at the Big 12 Tournament — a 1-0 loss to Baylor in the first round and a fourth place finish in the Big 12 — was a first since 2007. 

Men’s Basketball

Fred Hoiberg, or “The Mayor” as he is affectionately known amongst the ISU faithful, has given fans a reason to smile since he took over the team in 2010. The Ames native and former ISU basketball player has led the team to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Sweet Sixteen berth in 2013, which added to a victory in the Big 12 Championship. 

Hoiberg spent 10 years playing in the NBA before acting as an executive for the Minnesota Timberwolves. After last season, Hoiberg signed a 10-year contract worth $20 million.

Women’s Basketball

Entering his second decade as the coach of ISU women’s basketball, Bill Fennelly’s 416 career wins trump the 237 total wins that the program notched during the 20 years prior to his hiring. 

From 1988-95, Fennelly was the head coach at Toledo and his .703 career winning percentage lands him in the nation’s top 25 among active women’s basketball coaches. In 2007, Fennelly was awarded a lifetime contract by athletic director Jamie Pollard. 

Gymnastics

Jay Ronayne has spent eight years as the coach of ISU gymnastics and in that time has coached gymnasts five times to the NCAA championships in the all around. 

Last season, Ronayne’s team finished second at the Big 12 Championship and third at its NCAA regional meet. Prior to Iowa State, Roynane was an assistant coach at Auburn from 2003 to 2006. 

Softball

Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler is heading into a ninth season as coach of ISU softball with a record of 173-231 in the time. Gemeinhardt-Cesler coached at Emporia before coming to Iowa State and her career record is 326-207. 

Key wins under Gemeinhardt-Cesler have come against No. 8 Oregon in 2013 and No. 14 Texas A&M in 2012. 

Tennis

It didn’t take Armando Espinosa long to make an impact for the ISU tennis team. In 2008-09, Espinosa’s first season as head coach, he led Iowa State to a 10-13 record as well as the team’s first conference win in seven seasons.

During Espinosa’s tenure, he has coached four of the top 10 players with the most career wins. A graduate of Drury University, Espinosa last coached at Oregon as an assistant before joining the Cyclone staff as an assistant in 2006-07.

Wrestling

Captain of the 1987 ISU wrestling team that won a national championship, Kevin Jackson is entering his sixth year as coach of the Cyclones. Last season, Jackson coached three wrestlers to All-American honors. 

At the 2010 NCAAs, Jackson coached two wrestlers to becoming NCAA champions. Jackson was a four time All-American in college as well as an Olympic gold medalist, winning the 82-kilogram weight class at the 1992 summer games in Barcelona.

Swimming/Diving

ISU swimming and diving coach Duane Sorenson enters his 18th season as head coach after a 2013-14 campaign that saw his squad finish third at the Big 12 Championships, the best finish since the beginning of the Big 12 era. 

Sorensen has compiled a 90-75-1 (.545) during his time at Iowa State.