As Phillip Bates signed autographs on Saturday morning before the ISU football team’s annual spring game, he already had to shake off a young Cyclone fan’s preconception.

“I had a kid look up at me and say ‘Hey, you play receiver, right?'” Bates recalled after the game.

It’s an understandable conclusion, given Bates’ stats from last year – five catches for 73 yards, including a 38-yard reception to set up a game-winning field goal against Iowa – as a true freshman.

After Saturday’s performance – 15-for-27 passing for 140 yards and two touchdowns – the sophomore from Omaha might not have as hard a time convincing the Cyclone fan base of his true position.

“He’s the man,” said linebacker Cameron Bell, who is also Bates’ roommate. “He’s really stepped up and taken a leadership role on our team. I’m really proud of him.”

Bates is challenging sophomore Austen Arnaud for the starting quarterback position. Arnaud, who shared time at quarterback with senior Bret Meyer last season as a redshirt freshman, came into the season as the leading quarterback candidate and started on the first-team offense in the spring game. Arnaud had a rough day, however hitting only 7 of 21 passes and throwing three interceptions.

“I thought Austen had his moments, but if you just look at who drove the football team better today, I don’t think there’s any doubt that Phillip Bates did it today,” said coach Gene Chizik. “That doesn’t mean he did it Thursday and he did it Tuesday, but I think today anybody that was out there saw Phillip moved our football team better.”

Arnaud was unavailable for comment after the game, but Chizik, Bates and other teammates reiterated that Bates’ superior performance on Saturday didn’t necessarily separate him in the quarterback race.

‘It’s a day-by-day thing. Some days, I’m more comfortable with Austen, and some days I’m more comfortable with Phillip – but neither one really sticks out more than the other,” offensive lineman Doug Dedrick said.

Chizik said the final decision of who will start as quarterback won’t come until Iowa State opens the season against South Dakota State on Aug. 28. Dedrick said he could envision both quarterbacks sharing time on the offense, something he was OK with.

Bell said he felt comfortable with both.

“Phil, he’s so smooth under pressure. That’s what I love about Phillip Bates. He’s going to shine when the spotlight’s on him,” Bell said. “That’s just the same with Austen – which is why it’s a quarterback battle. These guys are looking so great out there.”

The rest of the offense had some bright spots, with running backs Jason Harris, Alexander Robinson and Rickey Thompson all pulling off over 50 yards of rushing, but as a whole, Chizik saw the game as an offensive struggle.

“Offensively, we were sluggish, had a hard time completing footballs, turned the ball over too much – just really sloppy on offense today,” Chizik said.

Part of that may have come from good defense, including Christopher Lyle’s sack and two tackles for losses, Chizik said. Overall, however, the team has a long way to go.

“Thank God we’re not playing tomorrow,” Chizik said.

Bass suspended indefinitely

ISU running back J.J. Bass did not play in Saturday’s game, and coach Gene Chizik revealed after the game that Bass was suspended indefinitely from the team.

Chizik declined to say exactly why Bass was suspended, but did say he was not in trouble with the law.

“You don’t have to dig about where he’s at. There’s no brushes with the law, there’s none of that,” Chizik said. “There’s a standard that we hold every guy on this team to, and if they’re not doing it, they won’t be a part of it.”

Chizik said Bass is not permanently off the team. Bass is still listed on the team roster.

“I use the word ‘indefinitely,’ which means there is a chance for him to return if he lives up to the standard we expect from him when it comes to things on and off the field,” Chizik said.