Caleb Bacon stands for a photo during Iowa State Football media day at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024. © Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK
AMES — Jubilant shouts rang out. Heartfelt hugs ensued. Former Iowa State walk-on linebacker Caleb Bacon had just been put on scholarship last December and while he enjoyed the moment, he chose to consider it as a beginning, not a crowning achievement.
“It meant a lot, obviously, and it was really exciting,” said Bacon, who emerged as a budding star for the Cyclones last season. “But now it’s like nobody really cares anymore. I’m not a walk-on. I’m on scholarship and expected to do my thing every single game.”
And Bacon — a 6-4, 245-pound junior for Lake Mills — wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s on pace to earn his first career start in the Aug. 31 season-opener against North Dakota at Jack Trice Stadium. He also proved to be highly productive as a reserve last season, finishing second on the team in tackles with 60 while adding 6.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.
“He probably talks a little bit more and smiles a little bit more, but yeah, he’s completely transformed who he is as a player and a person,” ISU’s first-year linebackers coach Colby Kratch said. “It’s been awesome to see.”
Bacon’s a headliner in the Cyclones’ greenest position group. Fellow junior Will McLaughlin is ISU’s most experienced linebacker with 16 career starts. Sophomore Jack Sadowsky is next after starting every game as a true freshman last season and Jacob Ellis made two starts in 2023. Beyond that, junior Zach Lovett gained valuable reps after transferring in from Missouri last season, sophomore Kooper Ebel continues to turn heads, and true freshmen Cael Brezina, Beau Goodwin and Mason Miller have been impressive in fall camp.
So there’s plenty of depth in the linebacker room, but much of it is unproven.
“I think they do a great job of complementing each other and (that) makes competition in the room (strong) because so many guys are good at different things,” said Kratch, who served as a graduate assistant on Matt Campbell’s staff from 2017-22 before joining North Texas for the 2023 season. “I think they’ve done an awesome job of working together and understanding it’s not just the three starters or the (number) twos, it’s everybody, and I think it’s been awesome the way they’ve really pushed each other.”
Lovett served as a quarterback spy at times last season and three of his 11 tackles were sacks. He and Ellis can both showcase their versatility at the position, providing solid support against both the run and the pass.
“If they give you a role you’ve just got to lock in,” Lovett said. “If it’s special teams, if it’s spying on a package, if it’s playing linebacker in base — honestly, I just take it all the same.”
Ebel is similarly positioned to earn more reps this season. He was so good on special teams in 2023 that ISU chose to play him in eight games rather than attempt to preserve his redshirt.
“He’s completely transformed what he looks like,” Kratch said. “Day one when he got here, he was 190 pounds in high school, and he’s almost at 245 right now, so he’s a guy that should make a huge impact.”
Bacon already has, but he’s determined to do more.
“(I’m) just setting my expectations for myself really high,” he said. “Just keep working every day.”
