NEW YORK — Friday’s loss in the Pinstripe Bowl marked the final time that 19 ISU seniors donned the cardinal and gold.

The 27-13 defeat at the hands of Rutgers had many underclassmen not just upset about the loss, but also contemplative toward the time they spent with their graduating teammates.

“This may sound strange, but I couldn’t care less whether we won or lost,” said sophomore running back Jeff Woody. “It’s just what’s in me right now is knowing that I’m not going to see guys like Zack Spears, who is a senior, and Darius Darks and Darius Reynolds. I don’t know if I’m going to see those guys until pro day and then who knows after that. So that’s what’s hitting home right now.”

In all, 12 seniors started on Friday, highlighted by kicker Zach Guyer making 2-of-4 field goal attempts, Reynolds hauling in two catches for 40 yards and linebacker Matt Tau’fo’ou tying a career high with 10 tackles. Tau’fo’ou is one of six starters who will need to be replaced on the defensive side of the ball to play alongside junior linebacker Jake Knott and others on the 2012 unit.

“[We have] guys who are NFL-capable,” Knott said of the seniors. “To be able to watch that and those guys that you know and root for and just hope the best for because they’ve completely worked their butt off for Iowa State and they deserve everything.”

One of those NFL-capable players is 6-foot-6-inch, 347-pound left tackle Kelechi Osemele. The Houston, Texas, native started each of the last 43 games of his career, the longest active streak on the ISU roster.

“I wanted to come to Iowa State because I wanted to go to a school where I could make an impact and leave some sort of legacy. I thought that I did that at Iowa State,” Osemele said. “For the guys who stuck it through as a senior class, who didn’t quit or didn’t transfer — which is very few of us — it just was a reflection on that character.”

His durability and size have opened the eyes of NFL scouts and NFL draft publications, as he’s been projected as a first- or second-round draft pick in April’s draft. With his first-day draft status, Osemele will likely receive an invite to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis in February and has already accepted an invite along with teammate Leonard Johnson to the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 28.

“It’s a little too early to start thinking about that,” Osemele said about the draft. “Right now I’m just thinking about getting back home and seeing my family for a couple days before I go back out and start training for the Senior Bowl.

“[The Senior Bowl is] an extra opportunity that a lot of people don’t get and I’m just going to make sure I take full advantage of it.”

Johnson, along with kicker Grant Mahoney, were the only two Cyclones to play in all 50 games of their ISU careers. The Clearwater, Fla., native improved his draft stock this season while matched up against a handful of the nation’s best receivers, including on Friday when he held Rutgers star wideout Mohamed Sanu to six catches for 62 yards.

Johnson is excited for the opportunity to showcase his coverage skills later this month in Mobile.

“It’s a process, and right now I’ve been programmed to have tunnel vision, so it’s been a wonderful experience just to be able to play in the Senior Bowl,” Johnson said.

Johnson will spend the next month refining his coverage skills so that he can “dominate the receivers all game and all night” as he tries to impress NFL personnel over the next four months.

The senior class departs with a 20-30 record over the last four seasons, including two bowl appearances and three wins over ranked opponents — No. 22 Texas in 2010 and No. 19 Texas Tech and No. 2 Oklahoma State in 2011.