Aug 23, 2025; Dublin, IRELAND; Kansas State player Joe Jackson is tackled by Kooper Ebel of Iowa State during the Aer Lingus Classic between Iowa State and Kansas State at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO via Imagn Images
One win down. Another big adjustment to make. The second step for No. 22 Iowa State’s mettle-testing first quarter of the regular season is on tap this weekend.
So Cyclone head coach Matt Campbell’s meticulous map of the first four games of the 2025 season moves from Dublin, Ireland back to Ames on the heels of the last Saturday’s stirring 24-21 win over No. 17 Kansas State on the Emerald Isle.
Next up: A South Dakota team in flux, with a mostly-new coaching staff and a slew of transfers to go along with a handful of returning stars who will try to spoil ISU’s home opener at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Jack Trice Stadium.
“We’re gonna have to come out strong, unlike what we did in the K-State game,” said Cyclone running back Carson Hansen, who rushed for a team-best 71 yards against the Wildcats. “We’re gonna have to start fast.”
ISU’s also going to have to do that against a familiar face — for the longest-tenured Cyclones, anyway. The Coyotes’ sixth-year quarterback, Aidan Bouman, spent two seasons in ISU’s program before transferring and becoming one of his program’s all-time greats at the marquee position.
“I think the first thing I would say about Aidan is, boy, the respect,” said Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell, whose 1-0 team opened as a 15.5 favorite against FCS No. 5 South Dakota. “We recruited him. We love his family. We love Aidan. What he’s been about was nothing short of first class here. I think he found an unbelievable opportunity, and he’s maximized it.”
Bouman boasts a 42-to-11 touchdown-to-interception ratio in nearly three seasons as a starter for the Yotes. He’s also completed 66.4 percent of his passes in that span and led South Dakota to its first-ever appearance in the FCS Playoff Semifinals last season.
Couple Bouman’s strong, accurate arm with one of FCS’s top returning running backs in Charles Pierre, Jr. (1,245 rushing yards, 16 rushing touchdowns last season), and the Yotes bring a potent combination of offensive playmakers to Ames for the first meeting between the two programs since 1959.
“(Bouman’s) definitely got something to prove, coming (back) to Iowa State her on Saturday and I’m sure his team will have the same mindset,” said ISU linebacker Kooper Ebel, who notched five tackles and his team’s lone sack in Dublin. “So we’re gonna have to be ready to roll and attack.”
All of that helps form the framework for Campbell and his staff’s four-point plan to handling the unique challenges of the first quarter of the season. Following Saturday’s matchup with South Dakota, the Cyclones veer into Cy-Hawk week to face Iowa — an 11 a.m. kickoff that will be featured in FOX Sports’ prime national daytime time slots. Then ISU must refocus to face a solid Sun Belt team, Arkansas State, in Jonesboro, Ark.
“There’s got to be great growth between week one and week two,” said Campbell, who guided the Cyclones’ to a season-opening victory for the fourth straight season. “I still think this football team, (we’ve) got no idea who we are and what we’re about. I think we grew (last) Saturday. You saw us grow even from quarter to quarter. But how do you respond? How do you continue to move yourself forward? That’s a one day at a time journey here and I feel that way no matter who the opponent truly is.”
Bouman — whose father, Todd, spent several seasons in the NFL — likely views Saturday’s game as a great opportunity to show his old team that he should have risen higher in the depth chart than he did in 2020 and 2021 while toiling well below Cyclone star quarterback Brock Purdy.
“I mean, he’s coming here to beat us,” said veteran ISU defensive back Jeremiah Cooper, who shifted from safety to cornerback for his final season in cardinal and gold. “Put yourself in his shoes. You’re gonna want to come (back) here and beat them. … So I think that’s his whole mindset right now, which I totally get, so he’s gonna come in and try to play his best game.”
