Football

Iowa State signs JUCO DE Matt Leo

COURTESY: @JUCOFootballAce on Twitter

Iowa State has signed junior college defensive end Matt Leo, per the Twitter account JUCO Football Forer. The school officially announced the signing in a release shortly after the tweet.

Leo is the No. 5 junior college weak-side defensive end in the class, per 247Composite. He’s the No. 45 junior college prospect in the country and chose ISU over Oklahoma, Arizona, Kansas and a host of others.

“One word comes up with Matt, and it’s size,” said Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell in the school’s release. “He’s got great length and really does a great job coming off the edge. He has the ability to rush the passer, but also the strength and ability to stop the run.”

Not surprisingly, the rest of the ISU coaching staff was pretty jacked up about the signing.

The 6-foot-7, 265-pound prospect visited Ames for the Cyclones’ win over San Jose State in September. He took an official visit to Oklahoma last weekend.

He made 17 tackles, 6.5 of them for loss, and 3.5 sacks in 2016 for Arizona Western College.

Leo joins junior college wide receiver Matt Eaton as players to sign with ISU on the first day of the early enrollee signing period. Stay tuned to Cyclone Fanatic for anymore news on early signees.

Jared Stansbury

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Jared a native of Clarinda, Iowa, started as the Cyclone Fanatic intern in August 2013, primarily working as a videographer until starting on the women’s basketball beat prior to the 2014-15 season. Upon earning his Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Iowa State in May 2016, Jared was hired as the site’s full-time staff writer, taking over as the primary day-to-day reporter on football and men’s basketball. He was elevated to the position of managing editor in January 2020. He is a regular contributor on 1460 KXNO in Des Moines and makes regular guest appearances on radio stations across the Midwest. Jared resides in Ankeny with his four-year-old puggle, Lolo.

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