Iowa State Football Working with New System on Defense

Ames, Iowa — Spring practice is underway at Iowa State, and the defensive meeting room has a new voice, a new scheme, and a new urgency. First-year Cyclones defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit is using the 15-practice window to install a four-man front that will define the program’s first season under head coach Jimmy Rodgers.

Bobbit, who inherited a unit that finished 2023 in the middle of the Big 12 pack, says the objective is twofold: teach the new structure and sort out a depth chart that remains wide open at nearly every position.

“We’re not just putting in a defense; we’re putting together a roster,” Bobbit said after Monday’s workout. “Every rep is a résumé, and every player knows it.”

The front that Bobbit is implementing is familiar territory for graduate-transfer defensive tackle Bryson Lamb. The 6-3, 305-pound senior started all 12 games last fall at Washington State in an identical four-man alignment before arriving in Ames this winter. Lamb believes the Cyclones have the pieces to make the transition seamless.

“I’ve lived in this system,” Lamb said. “If we buy in the way we’ve started to, we’re going to field a strong defense.”

With Rodgers preaching competition at every level, Bobbit has turned the spring into a month-long audition. Veterans and early-enrollee freshmen are rotating series, special-teams periods are being treated like fourth-quarter drives, and position meetings are ending with pop-quiz film sessions designed to accelerate learning.

The Cyclones will conclude spring drills with the annual spring game on April 20, giving Bobbit one final evaluation before preseason camp begins in August.