Brent Blum

Blum: The Final Ascent

This has been a conflicted week in Cyclone Nation. Somewhere between the high of defeating Baylor and the low of finding out Jake Knott’s season-ending shoulder surgery, sits an ever-important game with the Sooners. That’s the thing about sports and life, the world keeps on spinning. Time stops for no man. The tributes and farewells …

Football

Blum: Homecoming

It is Homecoming week at Iowa State. In my four years up in Ames, I didn’t think much of Homecoming. I wasn’t part of a fraternity, didn’t participate in any of the Homecoming committees and didn’t quite understand the hullabaloo. The first time I heard a large "Yell like Hell" practice, I thought I had …

Football

Blum: Avoid Regret

"We know what we want to do. We’re going to run the football. We think we need to be a run first football team." The preceding statement was said by Paul Rhoads at Iowa State’s Media Day in early August. Half way into the season, Iowa State is 85th in the country in rushing offense …

Football

Blum: Bare-Knuckle Brawl

As the illustrious soothsayer Phil Collins once said, "Can you feel it coming in the air tonight? Hold on." Ok, so Mr. Collins probably didn’t have the 2012 Farmageddon game on the mind when throwing that bad boy together back in the early ’80’s, but it seems to fit. In our contemporary culture everything is …

Football

Blum: September Shank

I play an unhealthy amount of golf. Each year the story is the same. The first time I hit the links during the spring, my game has a few kinks to iron out; the distances are a few yards off and my short game is frustratingly finicky. After about round number four, I find a …

Football

Blum: The Next Hurdle

When Paul Rhoads picks up the microphone, people stop and listen. About a month ago, Rhoads took center stage for the keynote address at the Iowa State coaches night in a jam-packed 7 Flags Events Center in Clive. Most of these "rubber chicken" occasions are ripe with jokes and pleasantries; earlier on in the evening Iowa State …

Football

Blum: Big 12 Premiere Week

September is a very underrated month. In the hierarchy of months, July and December get much more hype than September. July has the 4th, while December has the 25th and 31st. Yet, despite not having a headlining day, September flat-out produces. The ninth month of the year debuts the college football and NFL seasons. It …

Football

Blum: Ultimate Grinder

I was hanging out with some friends in the lobby of the Iowa State team hotel Friday night when Cyclone defensive coordinator Wally Burnham walked by. Our group had just returned from a solid evening out at the local Chili’s (we only do it big on the road), where we took advantage of the two-for-one …

Football

Blum: Imagine the Possibilities

The day has finally arrived. There are very few things that can rival the trek to the Cyclone football opener. In this generation of instant gratification and shorter memories, the anticipation for the season to begin is a welcome delay. Seconds can feel like hours. The nervous excitement as palpable as the forthcoming stench of …

Football

Blum: No More Roller Coasters

If college football were an amusement park, last season’s Iowa State team was the most terrifyingly exciting roller-coaster around. This year they aim to be more like the ferris wheel – steady, but effective. From the first snap a year ago, Paul Rhoads’ club was a hangover-inducing firestorm – for the good and bad. They …

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Blum: The Final Ascent

Blum: Homecoming

Blum: Avoid Regret

Blum: Bare-Knuckle Brawl

Blum: September Shank

Blum: The Next Hurdle

Blum: Big 12 Premiere Week

Blum: Ultimate Grinder

Blum: Imagine the Possibilities

Blum: No More Roller Coasters

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