Former Arkansas State quarterback Jaylen Raynor announced his commitment to Iowa State from the transfer portal a few days into 2026.

Raynor will be a crucial part of the Cyclones’ retool under a new coaching staff, led by head coach Jimmy Rogers. 

After losing two quarterbacks to Penn State in the portal, the senior will be competing for the starting job and the face of the new-look Iowa State Cyclones this upcoming fall.

Raynor was a three-star quarterback prospect from On3 and got two stars from Rivals out of North Carolina. He was ranked the fourth-best recruit at the position.

The dual-threat quarterback led his team to a 10-2 record in his senior year of high school, with a 40-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He added 1,259 yards on the ground and 17 rushing touchdowns. 

He played at East Forsyth High School in the Central Piedmont 4A Conference, widely regarded as one of the most competitive conferences in North Carolina. 

“Playing in that high level of high school through the last three years of college, I feel like have prepared me so much for this opportunity sitting ahead of me for this year,” Raynor said.

After declining offers from schools like Army, Air Force, Navy, UMass and Miami (Ohio), Raynor joined the Sun-Belt Conference with the Arkansas State Red Wolves.

He started as the number three quarterback on Arkansas State’s depth chart as a freshman, but in week three against Stony Brook, the starter, Jaxon Dailey, twisted his ankle. 

Late in the third quarter, the Red Wolves were in a third-and-short situation and designed a quarterback run play for Raynor in his first snap of college football.
They got a first down and rode with Raynor the rest of the drive, where they scored a touchdown. The coaching staff put him back out there, and he led them to another touchdown on the next drive. From there, Raynor took every snap the rest of the season.

“He was a testament of a guy in his preparation,” coach Keith Heckendorf said. “He prepared for that opportunity. Those first two weeks, he didn’t play a snap, probably took less than 10 snaps the whole week of practice, but he prepared mentally like he was going to start. And when that opportunity came, he took advantage of it, and he never opened the door back up for anybody else to play.”

Heckendorf was Raynor’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Arkansas State, and joined the Cyclones this off-season as the quarterbacks coach at Iowa State. 

Raynor started 11 games, including his last 10, and turned in a great freshman season. 

He was an above-average quarterback in the Sun-Belt in his first season of collegiate football, finishing with 2,550 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and seven picks.

Raynor led the conference in yards per attempt and yards per completion, and piled up 373 rushing yards and five rushing scores.

He was announced as the Sun-Belt Conference Freshman of the Year in 2023, the first true-freshman to earn the award since 2007. 

Raynor aired it out in his sophomore campaign, attempting the most passes in the Sun-Belt in 2024. His completion percentage rose by three ticks to 61.7%, but stats like yards per game, yards per attempt and yards per completion went down. 

Raynor passed for 2,783 yards, 10 interceptions and had 19 total touchdowns. 

Raynor’s stats regressed slightly, but Heckendorf thought he drastically improved.

“Year two, he was a much, much better quarterback,” Heckendorf said. “You could see him, eyes in the right place. You could see him being more conscious about his footwork… but the numbers didn’t always reflect that in the games… I think at times we get caught up in stats and numbers, and I tell our quarterbacks all the time, there’s only one stat that matters. And that’s win.”

Arkansas State had its best season since 2019 going 8-5 and winning a bowl game that season. 

But Raynor knew he needed to improve from his sophomore season to get a shot with a Power-4 school, and he did just that. 

He led the conference in passing completions and attempts, and it wasn’t close. He beat the next best quarterback in completions by 79 and attempts by 101.

Raynor finished fourth in all of college football in completions last season, and his maturation as a quarterback was the reason why. 

“That’s a product of his mind and his understanding of coverage, his understanding of defense, and finding the answer,” Heckendorf said.

He passed the 3,000-yard mark for the first time after passing for 3,361 yards, which also led the conference.

He unleashed himself as a passer, but he wasn’t careless with the ball. His completion percentage rose to 66.5%. 

He led the Sun-Belt in interceptions with 11, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. His interception percentage was the lowest in his career at Arkansas State at 2.2%, and the average for the conference was at 2.7%. 

He passed the ball a ton, but his improvements flashed in his breakout season. 

His personal highs for rushing yards and touchdowns were also broken in his junior year. He accumulated 423 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. 

When asked about what he believes is his superpower on the field, he thinks it is his ability to pass and run as a quarterback. 

“I would say the ability to be multiple or create, I don’t feel like I have to do just one thing,” Raynor said. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to come out on top at the end of the day.”

Raynor finished top three in plenty of major stats like completions, attempts and passing yards in his three-year career at Arkansas State.

Many teams wanted him as he entered the transfer portal. Raynor, who was unranked by 247 as a high school prospect, was listed as a three-star transfer. 

Ultimately, Raynor chose Iowa State to compete for the starting spot in week one against Southeast Missouri. 

“Iowa State I felt like was a perfect fit,” Raynor said. “With the pieces coming in and then just the type of offense, I felt like this is a great, great way to prepare myself for the next level.”

Raynor has had the chance to play at Iowa State twice, but on the other sideline.

He put his athleticism on display last season, going for 83 rushing yards as Arkansas State almost beat the Cyclones in Jonesboro.

Raynor was 19-33, had 222 passing yards, an interception, and didn’t record a touchdown in their week three matchup.

His upside as an athletic, dual-threat playmaker makes the Cyclones confident that he can thrive in their system. 

Raynor has not only been flourishing on the field, but he’s also a motivator and uplifts his teammates every day. 

After around a week and a half of bonding with the team, he told Rogers he knew every single one of his teammates’ names. In their next team meeting, Raynor went around the room and rattled off every name, not missing one. This example speaks to who he is as a person. 

“Building those connections on and off the field, mostly off the field, I feel like translates the best once you get into those critical situations,” Raynor said. 

“He walks in every day with a smile on his face,” Heckendorf said. “He’s one of those guys that just, he brightens up your day. He’s got passion and energy to not just understand schematics and learn the scheme, but he’s a people person… he’s a connector.”

Raynor’s goal is to hear his name called in the NFL Draft, and don’t be surprised if it does after a strong senior season with Iowa State.

But for now, Raynor is the perfect candidate to lead the Cyclones in the 2026-27 season.