DALLAS − There’s no downplaying the impact Iowa State football’s defense had in its epic start to the 2024 season.
The unit helped the campaign get off to a winning start, claiming seven straight victories for the first time since 1938, en route to a historic finish, the program’s first 11-win season.
Many of the longtime fixtures, valued leaders, and big names who helped raise program standards have graduated from that talented defense: Beau Freyler, Darien Porter, J.R. Singleton, and Malik Verdon.
Before spring football kicked off, defensive coordinator Jon Heacock posed a question and a challenge.
“That may be the biggest question that we have of all the questions − who’s going to lead when it gets crazy? I think that’s the one thing those guys were able to do,” Heacock said in March. “Beau (Freyler) had been here so long that he could fix problems. He knew the problems and never overreacted. Darien Porter, the same guy, Jaylin Noel, Jayden Higgins − those guys were all seasoned, scarred players.
“When things got a little crazy, those guys wanted the ball. The guys on defense wanted to be in the game.”
Leadership candidates have arisen throughout the spring and summer. On the defensive side of the ball, it’s looking like Domonique Orange, Jeremiah Cooper and Jontez Williams have taken the torch from their predecessors.
The Cyclone trio were the only Iowa State representatives on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
“We kind of know what we got to do,” Cooper said. “Watching what Beau, Malik, Darien (Porter) and (Myles Purchase) did, they just set a standard and we just got to keep raising that standard.”
They’ll be the first to say the preseason accolades don’t matter much, but they aren’t taking the high expectations lightly, whether they come from the Big 12 or inside the locker room.
“It says a lot, we were selected to be preseason All-Big 12, but I think we look at it as another challenge, just to keep getting better on ourselves and keep working,” Williams said. “We got to lead this team, because we’re the older guys now, so just being that leader for everybody, bringing all the guys with us. I think we’re going to step up in the big role.”
Cooper has been a mainstay at safety since his freshman season, first cracking the starting lineup in 2022. Last season, he had 48 tackles and two interceptions and earned All-Big 12 honorable mention status. He was previously an All-Big 12 first-team selection in 2023.
Williams is coming off of a breakout redshirt sophomore season, which netted a spot on the All-Big 12 second team. He had 46 tackles, including two for a loss, and four interceptions in his first campaign as a starting cornerback.
They will be two pillars in a secondary that allowed an FBS-best 165.6 passing yards per game last season. The Iowa State defense also finished in the top 25 nationally in turnover margin at plus-9.
Orange, a senior, is a two-time All-Big 12 honorable mention selection, but he feels his best football is ahead of him. The 6-foot-4, 325-pound defensive lineman is on some NFL Draft radars and resisted transfer portal temptation to return for one final season in Ames. He had 24 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, and one sack last season.
“I’m not even going to lie, it’s kind of hard, because those guys − like what (Singleton) did, what Beau (Freyler) did, it’s completely incredible,” Orange said. “Definitely trying to implement some of the things they did, trying to make sure the team is in the right place because ultimately, we’re trying to get back to the Big 12 championship. Hopefully the national championship, just trying to take things a little bit from their playbook and implement my own way. I think these guys are letting us lead them in the right way so we can get it back to where we were before.”
There is still plenty to work out after these three, and new starters to identify on Iowa State’s defense.
Replacing multi-year starters in the secondary and seasoned defensive linemen like Singleton, Joey Petersen and outgoing transfer Tyler Onyedim will be no easy task. At the three starting linebacker spots in Heacock’s 3-3-5 defense, Iowa State will have plenty of potential candidates to pick from now that the Cyclones are healthy at that position group.
Position battles will be tighter than ever heading into preseason camp, with a marquee matchup in Ireland against rival Kansas State on Aug. 23 looming. But the Cyclones will have a strong foundation to lean on.
“Preseason All-Big 12, yes it’s cool, but I think for us three, we don’t care,” Orange said. “It is what it is, at the end of the day, we came here to lead a young defense and our leadership is way more important than what those preseason polls are saying. It’s cool, but at the end of the day, we focus on our team and focus on the big picture.”
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: Iowa State football’s preseason All-Big 12 trio ready to lead young Cyclones defense
Reporting by Eugene Rapay, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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