Ah, to be back in Ames again for another year of my own adventure. There are many new people to meet and ideas to share. The weather is beautiful as summer wanes and gradually gives way to the unique beauty that is Iowa in the fall. This can be described as truly pristine, as nature shows off one last time before hiding underneath a blanket of snow for the winter.

But who am I kidding? None of that crap matters. It’s football season. Time to watch Austen Arnaud and the boys hit it hard. The only problem is that, as much as I love college football, I find it very hard to love the football team representing the school I attend. Part of the reason for that is the tremendous amount of losing that takes place, but it’s also the fact that my enthusiasm drops off like support for Obama’s health-care reform. It’s hard to attend a late November game against Kansas State when the weather is bitter cold and both teams aren’t looking at any post-season hopes.

This is not a shot at the Cyclone players. I have a tremendous amount of respect for them, and they are far more talented than I could ever hope to be. This is just the mood of the Cyclone Nation’s spirit after about week four of the season.

But all that is about to change in a major way, especially this season. You see, Paul Rhoads is a much different breed of coach than Gene Chizik. Personable, fierce, loyal and you can see in his interviews and the way he conducts himself that he is excited to be here and wants to win.

Rhoads himself has called this his dream job, according to ESPN, and we’ve all seen that “CyclONE Nation” commercial on TV. Shoot, if that doesn’t make you want to lace up and go hit someone, check your pulse. Rhoads is not here to get another, better job down the line, but to put Cyclone football on the map. Rhoads has the best motivator on his side to have a great season.

It’s not pride, fame or glory. No, this motivator is very “Iowa State.” . A lot of people might not realize that, but spite is a motivator, and we see it employed every time we beat the University of Iowa. Here is how it works:

The Hawkeyes roll into town ranked in or on the verge of being in the top 25, lose to us and then continue on to have a great season. We usually win the opening game of the season and then hold off on wins until our in-state rivals show up. We beat them and then proceed to go downhill in a hurry after that.Football pundits will say this makes Iowa State look bad, but it’s not so. It’s the University of Iowa that looks like the east end of a west-facing horse after losing to the Cyclones.

At the end of every year in which they lose to us, people around the nation look at the U of I’s loss and wonder how they could lose to a team that went 3-7. When we lose games after beating the Hawkeyes, it is not because the other teams are better — except maybe Texas. No, it is solely to make the U of I look worse.

So how does this translate to having a good year this time around?

Gene Chizik.

Yes, that quitter is now the sole target of all our cardinal and gold spite, and luckily for us, he’s going to have a decent year. Matt Hooper of the Birmingham Weekly predicts the Tigers of Auburn will be going 6-6 this year.

Obviously, predicting college football before the season starts is a very safe and reliable method, so let’s do it for our Cyclones. In our spite-filled season this year, we will do just as well as Gene Chizik or better, and that means going at least 6-6. We’re going to open the season with six straight wins against North Dakota State, the University of Iowa, Kent State, the Army football team, K-State and Kansas. Then we’ll suffer a setback against Baylor and Nebraska, rebound against Texas A&M only to be thwarted against Okie State. Finally, to end the season, we’ll split the final two games with a win against Colorado and a loss to the Mizzou. That’s an easy 8-4 season, a bowl game and Arnaud with some serious Heisman consideration.

And that is more than enough to make Chizik doubt his decision to leave.

So whether this actually happens or not is not up to me, but nonetheless, this year let’s support our team every week. Let’s do so despite cold weather and the off-chance we don’t do so hot, just to drive the point to Chizik that he didn’t break our spirit.

We are a “CyclONE Nation,” and hopefully the Tigers can hear us roar, even in the South.

Justan Spaid is a sophomore in history from McCallsburg.