Matt Campbell had a shorter press conference than most this season, but covered a few key topics leading up to the Iowa State and Texas Tech game this upcoming Saturday.

Jacob Park not on depth chart

Before Monday’s press conference, the Iowa State football team released the latest depth chart and there was a big player missing.

Jacob Park.

Park wasn’t listed in the quarterback depth chart for the first time since his absence from the team before the Oklahoma game a couple weeks ago. The depth chart included Kyle Kempt as the No. 1 and Zeb Noland as the No. 2, but not Park.

Park has been out the past couple weekends due to personal health concerns and didn’t travel with the team when they upset Oklahoma in Norman on Oct. 7.

“Same thing I said last week,” Campbell said. “Honestly, I didn’t want to put in any conversation, but nothing has changed.”

Trever Ryen wins Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week Award

Redshirt senior Trever Ryen has shown his abilities with returning punts and kickoffs throughout the past couple of years and this past weekend showed the end result.

A touchdown.

Near the end of the first quarter, Ryen was back to return a punt and found a lane to the end zone. He also had a key block by De’Monte Ruth to allow the lane to open for Ryen.

Because of his punt return and his consistency as a returner, the Big 12 Conference named him Special Teams Player of the Week.

Campbell said he’s seen the growth in Ryen and his work ethic has developed into the results he’s wanted over the past couple of seasons.

“Trever [Ryen] is kind of one of those guys that’s done it for so long that you give him a lot of freedom out there,” Campbell said.

Along with Campbell’s congratulations on the award, a handful of Ryen’s teammates showed their support on Twitter.

Texas Tech preparation

Iowa State will be heading to Lubbock, Texas, on Oct. 21 to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Campbell understands the challenge ahead in a hostile territory like Texas Tech.

Texas Tech’s offense averages 45 points per game, so Campbell is using many strategies this weekend to reduce that number with Iowa State’s defense. He’s hoping the turnovers that the Cyclones caused this past weekend against Kansas can roll into play against Texas Tech.

On the other side, the Red Raiders give up about 30 points per game to the offenses they play each week. Campbell said the Cyclones need to capitalize on each drive to keep the game favoring Iowa State until the final horn.

Iowa State is receiving votes in the AP Top 25 and with a win next week they could be ranked for the first time since 2005.

“They really revamped their personnel on the defensive side,” Campbell said on Texas Tech. “You can tell [the defense] is much improved and that’s a credit to the coaching staff. You can see the growth of that defense.”

Injuries

Campbell didn’t have much to report on regarding injuries, except for Willie Harvey. The redshirt junior linebacker played about 15-20 snaps last weekend against Kansas. He didn’t play against Oklahoma, but it’s been a gradual process to get him back to full strength.

Campbell also mentioned that Harvey isn’t at 100 percent yet, but was happy to see him play in the tough conditions with rain and wind on Saturday. He also liked how Mackenro Alexander and Reggan Northrup stepped in and took over the linebacker position with minimal challenges.

“That group, it was nice to see some guys and creating some depth,” Campbell said. “But, Willie [Harvey] is really important to our defense and get him back and get him healthy.”