It’s coming! College football will be here soon. More importantly, Dan McCarney’s brand of Iowa State football will make its mark on Jack Trice Field. August 31 will mark the beginning of the road to the Orange Bowl, Troy Davis winning the Heisman trophy and Todd Doxzon smashing all of ISU’s single-season total offense records.

Okay, so I got a little carried away. But the point is that Cyclone fans have a lot to cheer about. Walden and his playground triple option crap are gone, a dedicated coach is in control, Troy Davis will finally get the chance to show us his Barry Sander/Emmit Smith-like moves on a regular basis, and hey, they have new uniforms! How can you go wrong with new uniforms?

After cheering for the ‘Clones through 11 losses and realizing that if I had coached last year’s squad we could have only lost one more game, I have never been more ready for change.

Enough about that. Let’s talk about potential superstar running backs. Let’s talk about Davis. Here is a kid who would enter the game to the crowd’s cheering delight, rip off a 30-yard run, and under the gracious Walden wisdom, take a seat on the bench for the rest of the game. What in the hell was going on? I can’t possibly fathom what kind of coaching genius could stand by and watch a player with exceptional skills produce whenever he got a shot, and then actually tell Cyclone fans that the football team has many athletes with his talent. No, I’m sorry. I didn’t buy it, and I don’t think anyone else did either. Whoa! Had to get that one off my chest.

On to this year. Davis will get his long awaited shot. McCarney has installed a pro-set offense that will showcase his explosiveness, assuming that the offensive line will be at least mediocre. If what Davis has shown us in his limited playing time is any indication of the future, we should all start the tailgating a little early.

Then there is the question of what exactly a successful season is. Is it two wins, four wins or even five wins? Wins can measure success with such powerhouses as Nebraska, Penn State, Florida State and Notre Dame. Success can’t be measured by wins at Iowa State. If the ‘Clones have a positive attitude, compete until the final tick and unite as a team, then I consider that a huge improvement over last season. And who knows, maybe they’ll shock a few teams and end up with four or five wins.

One of those wins should come on August 31. The Ohio University Bobcats, the only other Division 1 school to finish winless last season, will enter the confines of Jack Trice Field to face the McCarney driven Cyclones.

I get the feeling we will be observing a team that’ll be going nuts. I’m not just talking a little crazy, or a little fired up. I’m talking a bunch of snot snorting lunatics that would be willing to whack their own mother if she was unfortunate enough to be wearing Ohio green and white.

I can imagine it right now.

Bobcats’ first offensive series. Ohio running back Hank Ray gets plowed by ISU linebacker Angelo Provenza on third and short. The crowd goes hysterical. The players indulge in hi-fives and complimentary smacks on the rear. McCarney gives a slight nod of approval while maintaining his intense scowl. Finally, we’ll all be able to scream with pride for Cyclone football once again.

Chad Calek is a sophomore in journalism from Persia, Iowa. He is assistant sports editor of the Daily.