Fall camp has begun for the Cyclones. After the first few practices, there has been no shortage of talking points for both Running Backs and Wide Receivers Coach Nate Scheelhaase and Defensive Line Coach Eli Rasheed.

Linemen Forming Tight Bond

Something that Rasheed and Offensive Line Coach Jeff Myers were looking to emphasize going into this season was forming a bond between the offensive and defensive lines. The only way one of the groups is able to get better is if the other pushes them to the limit.

The coaches decided that the best way for these two teams to get closer together was with a nice summer cookout.

“There was a lot of plates and a lot of food being tossed around,” Rasheed said. “But that’s the thing we want to build here, that brotherhood amongst what we call our bigs.”

Defensive Lineman Blake Peterson said the two groups have always been close, but doing joint events such as this changed the culture a little bit.

“Here in fall camp we are going against each other every day, but still at the end of the day we are all trying to win a Big 12 Championship,” Peterson said.

Offensive Rising Stars

There are a lot of young talents on the offense for the Cyclones with a lot of potential, but Scheelhaase said he feels that the player that has grown the most this offseason is Jaylin Noel.

The sophomore wide receiver has already shown what he can do on the field, playing in 13 games during his freshman year, but Scheelhaase said his strong offseason could turn him into a star caliber player.

“Mentally he’s still made a big jump,” Scheelhaase said. “He had a play today where he had a route where there was a couple different options, and man I thought the safety did a good job of disguising what was going on. If I was in his shoes I don’t know if I would have made the right decision, but he made the right decision.”

This decision resulted in a long touchdown that Scheelhaase felt would not have happened for Noel in his freshman year.

A second rising star that Scheelhaase mentioned is redshirt freshman Eli Sanders.

The Cyclones running back group is a group in which each player plays a bit of a different role. 

Jirehl Brock has the in-game experience and speed, Cartevious Norton and Deon Silas have big bursts of energy on their runs. Sanders feels that he has his own skillset that will allow him to see the field in the coming season.

“I have the speed, I can catch out of the backfield,” Sanders said.

Sanders also credited the whole group as good blockers when they are not asked to be the playmaker.

Scheelhaase mentioned while this year’s running back crew will be different after losing All-American Breece Hall, he feels confident in this group to fill in with ease.

“I think the exciting part about this group is that you’ve got a lot of guys that we’ve seen behind the scenes have some really, really good moments,” Scheelhaase said.