After eight weeks of strength and conditioning, the ISU football team is finally ready to take the field. Spring practice officially started March 10, and coaches and players alike are more than ready.

“I’m very excited about getting started with spring practice,” said ISU coach Paul Rhoads. “You’ve got eight weeks of strength training, so everybody now thinks that their game is elevated from all the work they’ve been doing. It’s really time to temper that and get back on the field doing the things necessary to play football well.”

The Cyclones have implemented many new changes during the past offseason, along with the hiring of several new coaches. One of the bigger hires for Rhoads comes in the form of Mark Mangino, who will take over as offensive coordinator.

Even though he has only been on staff for a few months, Mangino hasn’t wasted any time implementing his new system. In fact, since Mangino joined staff, Rhoads hasn’t had much input on the offensive side.

“Mark’s locked me out of the offensive meeting rooms, so I don’t know what we’re going to get out there,” Rhoads said. “Mark knew exactly what I wanted when he came in, and they’ve been working diligently ever since.”

One thing that is still uncertain on the offensive end is who will take the starting quarterback job. Both Sam Richardson and Grant Rohach took snaps last season, however neither has been named the starter at this point.

While the pressure may start to build for Mangino to name a starting quarterback, he doesn’t feel it yet. In fact, he says he has no timetable.

“I thought they did some good things, and I thought there were some things I wasn’t too pleased about,” Mangino said of the quarterbacks. “Overall I think there is an intense competition there. I don’t have any time frame on when to name a starter. We’re going day to day, and the competition is healthy. We have to find out who is going to execute our offense the best.”

While some might be focused on who will be named the starter, Richardson isn’t focused on it. The redshirt junior just wants what is best for the team.

“Honestly, I’m just trying to approach it the same way I did a year ago,” Richardson said. “Just take every rep that you get and make the most of it. We will just make each other better, and at the end of the day we will have the best guy out there on the field.”

With either Richardson or Rohach, the offense will have plenty of experience. The Cyclones return 13 total starters on offense, including every lineman from last year.

While the added experience certainly helps the team, Mangino sees something else as well. He’s noticed a sense of urgency.

“When you’re talking about players with a lot of pride, I don’t think they liked their record last year,” Mangino said. “They decided collectively that they were going to do something about it. I sensed that urgency as soon as I got here. They want to learn, they want to get better, and they want to win. As a coach you can’t ask for more than that.

“They’re on their way.”