Redshirt freshman Brian Thompson, Iowa State’s third-string running back for much of the season, will see action in the first half of Saturday’s game against Missouri, head coach Dan McCarney said.

McCarney hopes the move will help solve Iowa State’s recent lack of production on the ground.

In the last two games, both of which were losses, the Cyclones had a combined 75 yards rushing.

“He’s made a lot of progress and his mental errors have been few in practice,” McCarney said of Thompson. “He really has done a nice job, and we’ll get him in the game the first half, that I can promise you. Whether it’s two snaps or 20, I don’t know. My gut feeling on Tuesday would be start Mike Wagner, get B.T. ready and have Hiawatha [Rutland] ready to go too.”

Thompson racked up 92 yards and two touchdowns on just 14 carries in the fourth quarter of the Cyclones’ 45-3 win over Kansas earlier this season. He has played sparingly at running back since then and has amassed a total of 167 yards on 40 rushing attempts.

Although no stranger to the field due to his play with the special teams unit, McCarney said he thinks it’s time to see Thompson in the backfield more often.

McCarney said he has seen vast improvement from Thompson in his blocking and brings many other positives to the table.

“He’s got good hands, he’s coachable and he’s tough,” McCarney said. “He’s very elusive and he’s got another gear. He can make a guy miss.”

Iowa State generated only 17 rushing yards against Oklahoma and 58 yards in last Saturday’s 21-10 loss to Texas. The Cyclones had 630 rushing yards through three games, but have slipped near the middle of the pack in the Big 12 with an average of 108 yards over the last six games.

JaMaine Billups, who played closely with Thompson earlier this year as a running back before switching to safety, said the 187-pound Thompson lacks some size compared to Rutland, but his uses his quick feet to make up for it.

“I think he has every bit as much talent as Mike and Hiawatha. He’s just a little smaller and doesn’t have that much experience,” Billups said. “If he gets a chance to be out there, I don’t think there’s going to be any pressure on him.”

After starting the season as the No. 1 running back, Rutland has skidded down the depth chart, partly because of a nagging ankle injury.

McCarney said last week he hoped Rutland would be back to 100 percent for the Texas game, but he didn’t look like himself against the Longhorns with just 21 yards on 13 carries.

“Coming out of the game the other day, Hiawatha still was not 100 percent. He didn’t look like it, and we expect more out of him. He’s got to play better,” McCarney said.

“He’s a great team guy and a tough guy, but there’s a real good chance you’re going to see Brian in the game second … and then Hiawatha will be ready to go.”

McCarney said he has stressed to his players that nothing is set in stone on the depth chart. He said he feels that a player is only as good as his last game. The eighth-year coach, who has seen a running back reach the 1,000-yard plateau each year he’s been at Iowa State, said Wagner and Rutland will get their share of time on the field.

“We’re not giving up on Wags and Hiawatha, but B.T.’s going to get a chance to play this week,” McCarney said. “We’re going to get him on the field. He might not be the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, but we want him to go out and play winning football for us.”

* Tailback Stevie Hicks, who is redshirting this season, has received very high praise from McCarney on a regular basis this season for his play in practice. With the running game struggling, there had been speculation that McCarney might give him a chance to play, leaving him with three years of eligibility left after the season.

But McCarney laid that rumor to rest Tuesday.

“A lot of our defensive guys would like to pull that redshirt off him and get him the hell off that scout team,” McCarney said. “We’ve come this far with it, and there’s no question we’ll finish the season redshirting him. Gosh almighty is he going to be special.”