AMES — When Arkansas State transfer Jaylen Raynor first announced his commitment to Iowa State back in January, despite an offseason filled with uncertainty and massive roster turnover, it appeared the Cyclones had just landed their new QB1.
Raynor would reunite with Arkansas State offensive coordinator Keith Heckendorf, who made the move to Ames to become the Cyclones’ new quarterbacks coach. Raynor looked like a clear front-runner for the starting job.
Not so fast.
Coming down the final stretch of spring football, head coach Jimmy Rogers shared that Raynor and Oklahoma State transfer Zane Flores have been evenly matched.
“It’s been a pretty solid match between Raynor and Flores so far, throughout spring ball,” Rogers said last week. “They’re both learning a new system and, at times, one does better in a certain situation and one does better in the other situation, so we’ve been kind of mixing, matching who goes with each group.”
Perhaps it’s coachspeak to incite competition and eliminate complacency at this phase of the offseason with a brand-new team. Maybe there is credence to Rogers’ words and the new system has laid the stage for a heated position battle.
“The other day, we did some live-scrimmage stuff and the first drive, Jaylen hit a big play that put us into the red zone and then threw a touchdown pass a few plays later on a critical third down, which was huge,” Heckendorf said. “Then the very next drive, Zane scrambles and uses his feet and scores. It’s going to be different every day. There’s been days where Zane, all his plays have been throws and Jaylen has had some great scrambles, but it’s been back and forth.”
It’s been several years since the Cyclones last had a close race for QB1.
Rocco Becht and J.J. Kohl shared time under center during the 2023 season-opening win against Northern Iowa. Hunter Dekkers was originally slated to start, but he was one of several college athletes wrapped up in a gambling probe and lost his NCAA eligibility before finishing out his career at Iowa Western.
For the last spring-camp quarterback competition, you may need to go back to 2016, when Jacob Park and Joel Lanning were jockeying for position under center.
More may be revealed at the scheduled Saturday, April 25 spring showcase, an open practice that will give the first public glimpse of the Cyclones. The free event is slated for 10:30 a.m. CT at Jack Trice Stadium.
Until then, here’s a look at the quarterback battle that appears to be brewing at Iowa State and what both signal-callers have to offer the Cyclones.
Jaylen Raynor quarterback stats
Zane Flores quarterback stats
What Jaylen Raynor brings to Iowa State
Raynor gave Iowa State fans a taste of what to expect when the Cyclones went to Jonesboro, Arkansas, to face Raynor and the Red Wolves on Sept. 13, 2025.
Iowa State won, 24-16, but Raynor made some impressive plays and had a couple of touchdowns called back for penalties before the Cyclones were able to pull away.
He completed 19-of-33 passes for 222 yards and one interception. He also ran for a team-best 83 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
Raynor has some experience playing against power-conference foes, facing the likes of Iowa State, Michigan and Arkansas over the last three years.
Heckendorf believes he is more than ready to go against power-conference competition each week.
“He just kept flashing and our team kind of started figuring out this kid’s pretty good,” said Heckendorf, thinking back to when Raynor rose from third in the depth chart at Arkansas State and ultimately won the starting job as a true freshman in 2023. “There’s something about him. When you turn the lights on, it’s time to go. He makes plays.
“As far as seeing him at this level, I’ll be honest, I think there are really good quarterbacks at the top Group of Five schools in the country and the quarterbacks in the power conferences, there’s not that much difference. If you’re good at quarterback at any level, you got a chance to be good at quarterback, and you’re seeing that with all the transfers from lower-level schools coming up and having success.”
For Raynor, his ability to improvise and scramble will be huge. There are plenty of unknowns surrounding the Cyclones’ offense, but his ability to run loose if a play is breaking down or if an opening presents itself will add a dynamic element to his game.
As a passer, he’s firmly in the top five or top 10 in various single-season and career-passing categories at Arkansas State. He also has much more in-game experience than Flores, serving as a full-time starter for three seasons and amassing 9,877 yards of total offense and 67 touchdowns.
“The ability to be multiple or create, I don’t feel like I have to just do one thing, I’m going to do whatever it takes to come out on top at the end of the day,” said Raynor of his greatest strength. “What’s best for my team? Certain games might call for different things, like you might have to pass 30 times one game and the next game, you might pass only 10, just whatever it takes to win that game.”
While Heckendorf is a familiar face, he is still learning offensive coordinator Tyler Roehl’s system.
“The biggest challenge and biggest difference I’d say right now is definitely just the offense, coming from more an up-tempo shotgun, college-style offense, compared to the one we’re running here,” Raynor said. “More of a pro-style, going in and out of under center, mixing up launch points, play action, different personnels and all of that is probably the biggest challenge so far, but the more and more you do it, you get more comfortable.”
What Zane Flores brings to Iowa State
He’s been making the most of his fresh start and reportedly hanging with Raynor as they compete through spring practice.
The Oklahoma State transfer was in a tough situation last year. Longtime head coach Mike Gundy was fired and the Cowboys played under interim coach Doug Meacham. They finished 1-11.
Flores was primarily the quarterback after an injury to TCU transfer Hauss Hejny in the season opener. Flores missed a few games due to injury before returning to play in the final four contests.
In total, Oklahoma State had eight different players attempt at least one pass for the year. Converted wide receiver Sam Jackson V had to start under center in Flores’ place while he was injured. There may be plenty of unknowns for Iowa State early on, but there certainly isn’t that level of dysfunction.
Flores played against Iowa State in the regular-season finale. He completed 19-of-30 passes (63.3%) for 166 yards and one interception. He was sacked three times in the Cyclones’ 20-13 win on Nov. 29, 2025.
His best showing came in a 38-21 loss to Kansas on Nov. 1, 2025. He completed 22-of-28 passes for 235 yards in a turnover-free outing. Flores had two of his three passing touchdowns for the season during that game.
“All of our quarterbacks are really great and they all have their own unique tools,” tight end Keaton Roskop said. “… Zane is just a really smart guy. His work ethic is unmatched and he works in the shadows. It’s something special.”
While he might not have the level of athleticism or experience of Raynor, he has good arm strength and footwork, but will need to work on his decision-making and awareness. Despite it being his third year in the program, last season was his first taste of action at Oklahoma State. There is still plenty of room for growth and development.
“Zane is super smart,” Raynor said. “He’s super, I would say, intent with what he does, just through individual drills on how he studies the film and everything, and that’s what you want out of a quarterback room, just the attention to details, attention to technique and being a good communicator.”
Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: A look at Iowa State football quarterbacks Jaylen Raynor, Zane Flores
Reporting by Eugene Rapay, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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