The Gene Chizik era got off to its official start Wednesday with the Cyclones opening the first of 15 NCAA-allotted spring practices.

Chizik, who was hired in November, said he has been itching to get out on the practice field and get his first real work in with his new team.

“It seems like I’ve been here for nine months waiting for this practice,” Chizik said. “I’m excited, the players are excited, and we’re just ready to get rolling today.”

Chizik’s staff will get its first look at players, as well as the first chance to make real judgments on the players’ talent outside of what they’ve seen on tape.

Chizik said the spring practices will essentially be auditions across the board for the team.

“[Evaluation] is our number one goal,” Chizik said. “We have to evaluate our football team at every position. It’s going to be a 15-day evaluation process.”

With the first practice, the Cyclones finally got to play some ball after a new, grueling off-season workout schedule.

Chizik and his staff shook up the Cyclones’ routines by holding crack-of-dawn workouts and intense weightlifting sessions. The boot-camplike workouts are part of an effort by the staff to build up the team’s toughness.

“I’m really proud of these guys,” Chizik said. “It was a tough off-season. It was really hard and that was by design. I told these guys, ‘You’ve been through something that was very hard and you ought to be proud of that.'”

But Chizik said he made sure players won’t be expecting a break, as the spring practices will also be cranked up in intensity as part the staff’s quest to have one of the most physical teams in the conference.

“We’re going to talk about being a physical football team,” Chizik said. “This spring is going to be very physical. We’re going to have a lot of contact – as much as the NCAA will allow.”

Like Wednesday’s practice, Thursday’s practice is open to the public. Practice beings at 7 p.m. at the Steve and Debbie Bergstrom Indoor Training Facility.

The Cyclones received some less encouraging news earlier in the day when it was announced that junior college transfer and offensive lineman Joe McMahon had left the team.

Iowa State was counting on McMahon to be able to step in and anchor a depleted Cyclone offensive line, but now the team will have to look elsewhere.

“Joe met with me and indicated that he wanted to leave the team for personal reasons,” Chizik said. “I respect Joe’s decision, and we wish him all the best in the future.”