We are 38 days away until Iowa State kicks off the season against Kansas State in Ireland. To keep getting you prepared for the season, we will continue with out position previews every weekday through July 25. Next up is a group with a blend of experience and unknowns; the wide receivers.
Returners
Daniel Jackson (RS Sr.)
Missed 2024 with a lower leg injury. Caught 16 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns in 2023. Played 16 total games from 2021-2023.
Carson Brown (RS Jr.)
Emerged late in 2024 with 11 receptions for 141 yards and one touchdown as a redshirt sophomore from Dowling Catholic.
Eli Green (RS Sr.)
Recorded 10 catches for 115 yards in his first season as a Cyclone after transferring from North Dakota State. Had 46 yards in a road win against West Virginia.
Brett Eskildsen (So.)
Had two catches for 17 yards as a true freshman, both came in a win against Cincinnati. Played in all 13 games.
Dominic Overby (RS Fr.)
Had one catch for nine yards as a true freshman and earned a redshirt.
Michael Parkes (RS So.)
Missed 2024 due to injury.
Carson Robbins (RS Fr.)
Redshirted in 2024.
Wyatt Archer (RS So.)
Played in one game in 2024.
Jonathan Vande Walle (RS. So.)
Practice quad member in 2024.
Ty Claiborne (RS Jr.)
Played in one game in 2024.
Additions
Xavier Townsend (RS Jr.)
Transfer from UCF. 521 receiving yards in 2.5 seasons as a Knight, along with 278 rushing yards. The 5’11 receiver scored four touchdowns while at UCF.
Chase Sowell (RS Jr.)
Transfer from East Carolina. Had 600+ yards in both seasons as a Pirate, including 19.9 yards per catch in 2024.
Zay Robinson (Fr.)
6’1 three-star prospect from West Des Moines Valley High School. Was a consensus top-10 prospect in the state of Iowa by all major recruiting outlets.
Karon Brookins (Fr.)
6’5 three-star prospect from Atco, NJ. Also had offers from Pitt and West Virginia.
Dyllan Malone (Fr.)
6’3 three-star prospect from Montgomery, Illinois.
Sam Zelenovich (Fr.)
6’2 preferred walk-on from Southeast Polk. Won three straight 5A Iowa High School State Championships under his dad Brad Zelenovich.
Departures
Jaylin Noel
Drafted in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Had 1,194 yards and eight touchdowns as a senior in 2024. Third most career receiving yards in program history with 2,855.
Jayden Higgins
Drafted in the second round of the NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Finished with 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior. Over 2,000 yards in his two years in Ames.
Isaiah Alston
Transferred to James Madison. Had two catches for 42 yards in his only season as a Cyclone.
Season Outlook
No matter who’s coming in, there are massive shoes to fill in the receiver room. Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel are both bonafide top-10 receivers in school history. To have them at the same time made for a pretty special connection in 2024. With that being said, Iowa State does have a pretty good history of replacing elite receivers. Just look at Allen Lazard, Hakeem Butler and Xavier Hutchinson.
Chase Sowell and Xavier Townsend will be the two expected to slide into those Higgins and Noel roles. Can they do it? It can’t be just those two, so who will slide in to be the third and fourth options? Those are the questions I’m going to try and answer.
Can Sowell and Townsend live up?
In 2024, 61.6% of Rocco Becht‘s completions were to Jayden Higgins and Noel. Those two made up for 67.8% of Becht’s passing yards and 68% of his touchdowns. First off, that’s pretty ridiculous to write out. Second, that’s pretty dang tough to replace.
It’s unreasonable to expect any two receivers to make up for that production, especially in their first two years in the program. However, I think it’s perfectly reasonable to expect Sowell and Townsend to be go-to guys on day one. No, they haven’t had dozens of games in Iowa State’s offense to build chemistry with Rocco Becht and offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser but they’ve had plenty of proven experience in high-level football.
Sowell has proven for two years now as a the prototypical X-receiver. His ability to high-point the ball and make tough catches is really similar to what Jayden Higgins showed in his time at Western Kentucky before Iowa State. Sowell is a big play guy that has shown ability to run after the catch as well. If there’s only hole to poke, it’s just four touchdowns in two years. Higgins was Rocco’s top red zone target and he was pretty much unguardable. Sowell doesn’t have to be “unguardable” but he has to be reliable on that side of the field.
Townsend is in a different spot than Sowell. Even though the two have been in Ames just as long, Townsend has a bit more chemistry with the QB. Townsend and Becht have known each other for a long time, dating back to their youth football roots in Florida. Rocco said that he’s been trying to get Townsend to Ames for two years. Now the “twitchy” receiver is here and will have the ball a lot. At least, that’s what Becht’s pitch to him was. Townsend is a playmaker, just like Jaylin Noel. Can he be as reliable as Noel was? Those are pretty big shoes to fill.
Who else steps up?
There’s plenty of players in the room that have already made big plays for Iowa State. Daniel Jackson has shown glimpses of brilliance but has also dealt with a ton of injuries. We just can’t be sure if he’s the same player as he was in 2023 after yet another leg injury. Carson Brown became the steadiest third receiver on the team in the second half of last season, making big plays against Texas Tech and Kansas State. Eli Green had a couple of really strong games against North Dakota and West Virginia but only had four catches outside of those two games. Brett Eskildsen was the unsung hero of the Cincinnati win but still only recorded two catches all season.
The point is, there’s certainly a hand full of guys that can step up but I truly don’t know who it’ll be. Rocco Becht said at Big 12 Media Days that he believes the room as a whole is better than last year. That’s a big statement. I could see a world where there maybe isn’t a clear-cut third receiver but instead, Becht shares the wealth a little more than in previous years. If that’s the case, the depth could be certainly be a strength.
We will continue our position previews on CycloneFanatic.com. You can check out our previews for the quarterbacks and running backs at those links.
