Spring football is usually a bit of a learning process. Learning new plays, schemes and terminology all while adjusting to new personnel and coaches can sometimes make the learning curve rather sharp.

So went the story of spring football for the ISU football team.

After inking a handful of new position coaches in the offseason, the slate was wiped clean for an ISU team that finished the 2013 campaign with a 3-9 record. Headlining the new hires for Iowa State was offensive coordinator Mark Mangino, who most notably led his 2007 Kansas squad to an Orange Bowl victory while garnering coach of the year honors.

Mangino inherited an ISU offense that saw two quarterbacks, Sam Richardson and Grant Rohach, start every game between the two of them throughout the 2013 season. Richardson took snaps for the bulk of the season, starting the first eight games before succumbing to injuries sustained early in the season.

Rohach took the offensive reigns for the final four games, which included victories in the final two contests, which ignited the quarterback competition discussions before the offseason began. With the coming of Mangino, however, both quarterbacks are on an even playing field as far as the playbook is concerned.

“It’s coming along nice,” Richardson said of Mangino’s offense April 7. “It’s definitely becoming more second nature with thinking before the play and all that.”

It was Rohach, though, who stood out during the spring game on April 12, completing 22-of-38 passes for 171 yards to accompany his 8-yard touchdown run. Richardson also saw action, throwing 13 times for eight completions, including a 12-yard touchdown to Damein Lawry in the fourth quarter.

Not to be forgotten is Joel Lanning, who threw 14 times in the spring game and connected on seven of those attempts. 

“Part of the handcuffing is on ourselves with three quarterbacks to rep,” Rhoads said after the spring game. “[It’s] hard to get a separation with that in mind, but we will come out of spring with two leading candidates so we can better fit those reps in August.”

The most unexpected loss in the coaching department came on the morning of Jan. 15 with the death of defensive line coach Curtis Bray. Bray had been a member of Rhoads’ initial staff at Iowa State.

Making a new hire at defensive line was certainly not what Rhoads planned on doing, but on Feb. 7, Rhoads hired Stan Eggen as the new defensive line coach.

The loss of Bray forced the defensive line unit to learn and adapt to Eggen and his style of coaching. Almost right away, Eggen was “all in.”

“They [defensive line] have been well coached before I got here, they understand what to do, and they have kind of jumped in with both feet with my personality and the way I coach and I love it,” Eggen said.

Eggen’s unit performed well at the spring game, as both Cory Morrissey and Mitchell Meyers accounted for 3.5 sacks a piece.

Meyers said he and Morrissey, who will wear the number 58 jersey this season to honor his late coach, have become closer since Bray’s passing.

“Me and Cory have a really good bond,” Meyers said. “After coach Bray passed, that kind of brought us together.”

The spring season has ended for the Cyclones, who now will look toward August before they see the game field again. The first game of the 2014 season will be against North Dakota State on Saturday, Aug. 30 at Jack Trice Stadium.