COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF: 28 days

Each day leading up to Iowa State’s season opener against South Dakota State, Cyclone Fanatic will check another day off the calendar with a memorable statistic, player or game as part of our Countdown to Kickoff presented by Tailgate Clothing.

Iowa State football does not officially retire numbers, but the No. 28 might as well be. No Cyclone has worn the number since Darren Davis completed his college career in 1999, but it was his brother Troy who made the number famous.

Troy Davis remains the only player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in back-to-back seasons. He accomplished the feat in 1995 and 1996 while twice ending the season as a Heisman finalist.

Troy is still Iowa State’s all-time leading rusher with 4,382 career rushing yards while Darren is second on the list with 3,763 yards between 1997-1999. The two brothers also combined more 62 rushing touchdowns and are both in the top-10 in program history in the category.

Troy was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016 and is widely considered the best player in Iowa State football history. For those reasons, it is likely that no player will ever wear the number 28 for the Cyclones again.

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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