Last season, inexperience raised many questions for the ISU football team. This year, it appears to be why the team is optimistic. The Cyclones return 20 starters — eight on offense, eight on defense and four on special teams to a squad that won seven games.

On defense, Iowa State returns Nick Leaders, Brent Curvey, Shawn Moorehead, Tim Dobbins, DeAndre Jackson, LaMarcus Hicks, Nik Moser and Steve Paris. Leaders, Dobbins, Hicks, Moser and Paris are seniors.

Offensively, the Cyclones bring back quarterback Bret Meyer, receivers Todd Blythe and Jon Davis, and linemen Kory Pence, Seth Zehr and Aaron Brant. In the backfield, runningback Stevie Hicks returns along with fullback Ryan Kock. Pence is the only senior on offense.

Even with the large amount of returning starters, head coach Dan McCarney said there are still question marks at many positions, both in the remaining starting positions and backup spots.

“There still are some spots that are really wide open on this team,” McCarney said at media day on August 4. “Clearly, there are some other spots where I know what’s going to happen if they stay healthy, God willing.

“They’re going to be ready to go. Sept. 3 they’re going to be my starters because I know they’ve already been tested against some of the best in the country.”

Those who have already proven themselves to McCarney have spoken of confidence in the team’s ability. Curvey, who was an honorable mention all-Big 12 lineman in 2004, said the defensive unit has kept the same mentality as last season, mostly by supporting each other on and off the field.

“I don’t think we’ve lost too much personality,” he said. “We know, if I fight for him, he’ll fight for me.”

Leaders, a second-team all-Big 12 lineman, said there are plenty of defenders stepping up to try and fill the hole caused by former star cornerback Ellis Hobbs’ absence.

“We’ve all played positive football. Eventually somebody will be picked as a captain, but we have so many leaders on defense,” he said. “This year, we don’t have as many question marks going into the season.”

Big 12 Defensive newcomer of 2003 Jason Berryman has been reinstated on the team after serving out a jail sentence for theft and assaulting two ISU students.

On the offensive side of the ball, Meyer and Hicks bring back the firepower which helped Iowa State bring home the Independence Bowl trophy last December.

Meyer, who threw 10 touchdowns and six interceptions last year, enters the season as the starter. That’s a big contrast from last year, when he battled with Austin Flynn for the job early on.

Flynn has since moved to the receiving corp for this season.

“It’s a different kind of pressure this year,” Meyer said. “[I] don’t have to worry about looking over my shoulder or anything. For me, it’s just kind of a different role. I feel like I can step up into a little bit bigger of a leadership role.”

At wideout, Blythe is returning from the torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee he suffered last spring, joining Davis and Flynn. Blythe, who says he has come back stronger since the injury, was a first-team all-Big 12 selection last season on espn.com, and a second-team selection by the coaches and The Associated Press. He set the school record for a single season with nine touchdown receptions.

“I feel great, I feel really good,” he said. “I came into last season knowing that they’d given me opportunities to make plays, and I’m going to go into this season with the same mindset.”

Paul and Scott Fisher, each coming in at 6’7″, and about 330 pounds, bring a monstrous force in front of Meyer and Hicks, although completely unproven McCarney said after transferring from Dixie State College in Utah.

“If you walk out on that field like I was, you’ll see the Fishers and go ‘Oh my God, look at the size of those guys,'” he said. “They’re big, they’re strong, they’re good-looking guys, but that doesn’t get you any touchdowns on game day.

“You have to play, you have to learn how to play with great relentlessness, with great effort and great toughness, and those are things that they have to develop.”

As for the high expectations, Meyer said the team isn’t phased by any of the hype.

“The same guys who pick you to win will pick you to lose, so I’m not really worried about that,” Meyer said.