Dec 29, 2023; Memphis, TN, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell (right) reacts with Iowa State Cyclones offensive linemen James Neal (75) during the second half against the Memphis Tigers at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
AMES — James Neal considered each request but politely declined.
Then the requests turned to pleas and the then-high school basketball player consulted with his parents. They had forbidden their 6-6 son from playing football to that point, but Neal — who started all 13 games on the offensive line last season for Iowa State — finally convinced them to let him try.
“I mean, I was like, ‘Why not?’” said the 330-pound junior from Grayson, Ga.. “I’m not afraid and I hope you guys aren’t. They understood that and they’re fully supporting me. (It’s now) a great idea, in their minds.”
Neal finally played football his senior season — and Grayson High School won the 7A state title. Coincidence? Probably, but Neal’s rapidly developed into a quality offensive lineman for a Cyclones group that features five returning players with starting experience. He started at left tackle last season, but could move inside this fall to accommodate graduate transfer Jalen Travis, a 6-7, 340-pound Princeton alumnus. Travis, it turns out, also shined on the basketball court, and as a sophomore, he played with former ISU basketball standout Gabe Kalscheur at DeLaSalle (Minn.) High School.
“He really has no pride, no ego, he’s humble,” the Cyclones’ second-year offensive line coach Ryan Clanton said of Travis. “He came in with the intent to learn and to help in any way possible. And that goes even outside of football. It’s been really fun to watch because not just the competitiveness from the rest of the group and himself, from his physical stature and his abilities, which are amazing, but his ability to make friendships, real friendships fast — that’s impressive to me. And I was a transfer, so I know how hard it is to jump into a position group, let alone a team, that fast.”
Clanton’s swiftly working to sort out his starting five up front while determining how many of his linemen are ready to contribute in a rotation. Depth is key at a position where injuries are common and that’s one reason Clanton works out his players at every position. It’s all part of his “violent and versatile” mantra that he preaches to a unit that’s produced mixed results in the past several seasons.
“Last year, I think we had a little bit of depth but there were still some young guys in the room,” said offensive lineman Deylin Hasert, who missed all of last season with an Achilles injury. “And then this year, the transition is there (are) a lot of guys that can play. There (are) a lot of guys that are showing flashes — even from the fours to the ones, there (are) guys that are showing they’re violent, they’re aggressive, their footwork’s good. It’s awesome to see because at the end of the day we’re gonna put out our best five and everyone’s pushing each other to be better.”
Clanton’s added new wrinkles to his teaching methods but continues to try to make complex concepts easy to learn for a unit that needs to consistently perform better this season, particularly in the running game.
“We’re trying to really test their mental capacity in a way of, ‘What situation are you in in practice? How are you gonna handle this pressure and you don’t know what the defense is gonna do?’” Clanton said. “It’s been really fun to watch those guys compete and try to rise to the challenge, and that’s the sorting process because at times you’ll have people that won’t do that, and as a coach, you’re watching that. Day by day, (we’re) going through the grades, looking at it, and going, ‘OK, these are the people we can trust on Saturdays.’ That’s really what we’re looking for.”
Neal became one of those “people” last season and plans to be even better in 2024.
“It was just coming to practice every day and tried to make sure I got better at something each and every day,” he said. “(I’m) just keeping that mentality now and throughout my whole career.”
