George Trice is just an average Iowa State freshman. At least he would like to be.

His last name probably sounds familiar to Cyclone football fans, and it should — George’s grandfather was a first cousin of ISU’s first black student athlete, Jack Trice.

Jack Trice was the man for whom the ISU football stadium is named and the only ISU athlete ever to die as a result of injuries sustained during sports competition.

George Trice is a freshman in mechanical engineering from Solon, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He admitted that ISU was not his first choice for college — it was the University of Michigan.

Trice changed his mind after making a four-day visit to ISU last February to see the statue of his relative. During his visit he discovered ISU had much to offer in many areas.

“Here [tuition] is half the price for out of state — that was a good thing, and then they also have good engineering,” Trice said. “And then when I found out that the stadium is named for my cousin, that really got me here.”

Living in the dorms is something that Trice said he is “still getting used to.” As a resident of Friley Hall, he said, “Dorms are cool. … I have air conditioning.”

Trice’s first time in the stadium named for his ancestor was when he attended the Cyclone’s home-opener football game against Texas Christian on Sept. 5.

“There was a lot of excitement there in the beginning and a lot of tailgating,” Trice said.

An active athlete in high school, George Trice participated in football, basketball and track.

With the shadow of his cousin behind him, Trice said he “may even think about going out to play [football at ISU] myself.”

Trice said he would like his cousin to be remembered for his accomplishments as a student and an athlete — not for his untimely death.

“From what I hear he was a great football player, a great athlete and he was a nice person also,” Trice said.

Trice said he is enjoying his first few weeks at ISU, and he said the friendly people are what he likes best about the university.

As for the downside of ISU, Trice said he dislikes trigonometry and the stillness of the city of Ames, a small town compared to Cleveland.

“The worst thing is that I’m just not used to the quiet,” Trice said. “Once I meet people I’ll be cool.”