FRISCO, Texas — Jimmy Rogers did his homework before taking the Iowa State job. It helped getting previously acquainted with Jack Trice Stadium in person, albeit as an opponent.
His introduction to the Cyclones came as an opposing linebacker for South Dakota State in 2008. There was a return trip in 2018 as an assistant coach for the Jackrabbits. South Dakota State fell short in both instances, but those experiences left an impression.
While coaching up his own teams, Rogers watched Matt Campbell bring success and stability to the Cyclones over the last decade.
Once Rogers was hired to be Iowa State’s new head football coach and Campbell’s successor, he made quite the first impression in his first public appearance. Rogers demonstrated his knowledge of what the Cy-Hawk rivalry meant by invigorating Hilton Coliseum with his fiery speech during halftime of the Iowa State vs. Iowa men’s basketball game in December.
At his first Big 12 Football Media Days, Rogers fielded various questions, including one about the Cy-Hawk rivalry. A reporter asked him what a potential third straight victory for the Cyclones would mean.
The first-year coach made sure to clarify a key detail.
“Well, it’d mean one straight for me, because I haven’t been part of the other,” Rogers said. “Not going to take claim to anybody’s success that I wasn’t a part of.”
Rogers isn’t interested in stolen valor or shortcuts. He needed to rebuild the roster amid the coaching transition, and the new-look Cyclones will have 82 newcomers this fall. There won’t be many outsiders offering sympathy once games kick off. While he would like to continue Campbell’s success or even build on of it, there are also large shoes to fill.
He won’t be alone in the Big 12, though, as there are four new head coaches in the conference. Three of them, including Rogers, are taking over for longtime coaches at their respective schools.
“It’s somewhat unique timing that there’s four of us coming on at the same time,” Rogers said. “For one, I know I’m blessed. I’m really fortunate to be at Iowa State with great leadership and I don’t take those things for granted. So, more thankful than anything, but at the same time I have to earn my keep with this staff and these players and put a product on the field that we’re all proud of.”
Who are the new coaches in the Big 12?
The rosters and players change from year to year, but a few coaches were constants at their schools within the Big 12.
The last of the longtime head coaches and familiar faces within the conference are gone and a new wave of coaches has arrived.
When Mike Gundy got canned three games into his 21st season as head coach at Oklahoma State, it was simultaneously the end of an era for the Cowboys and the beginning of a changing of the old guard in the Big 12 that would persist into the offseason.
Campbell arrived in Ames in 2016 before drastic realignment impacted the Big 12, and the three-time conference coach of the year departed for Penn State after a 10-year run in which he became Iowa State’s winningest coach.
Utah is relatively new to the Big 12, but Kyle Whittingham also made a seismic career move and took the Michigan job after 21 years at the helm of the Utes.
Before their departures, Gundy, Campbell and Whittingham were all among the top 10 active longest-tenured coaches in the country at their respective schools.
Iowa State’s Rogers, Utah’s Morgan Scalley, Oklahoma State’s Eric Morris and Kansas State’s Collin Klein (who replaced Chris Klieman after a seven-year run) are all part of an influx of new head coaches in the Big 12.
There is pressure and privilege to take over a program after an institutional figure.
“Super excited, obviously, my predecessor had an amazing career in Mike Gundy,” Morris said. “All the respect in the world to how much success that he had there, being somewhere 21 years, and then obviously he was such a great player there. Obviously, as a competitor you’re always chasing that, and the bar is set pretty high.”
Who is the Big 12’s longest-tenured coach?
After the offseason wave of coaching changes, that leaves BYU’s Kalani Sitake as the longest-tenured coach in the Big 12. Sitake took the crown as the elder statesman of conference coaches, but like rival Utah, the Cougars are also relatively new and didn’t join the conference until 2023.
“So, I’m the old guy now is what you are telling me,” Sitake joked.
After Sitake, Baylor’s Dave Aranda (seventh season), Kansas’ Lance Leipold (sixth season), TCU’s Sonny Dykes (fifth season) and Texas Tech’s Joey McGuire (fifth season) are the next longest-tenured active coaches in the Big 12.
In a 16-team conference, that’s a lot of coaching turnover in recent years.
Despite the new faces, Sitake expects the level of competition and parity to remain the same in the conference.
“There’s great coaches at every program here and they’re amazing culture-builders,” Sitake said. “The difficulty in that is the parity is there because there’s a lot of talent. Nothing is going to be easy in this conference. Nobody can predict it, everyone has tried and they all got it wrong.”
How the new coaches climbed the ladder
The wave of newcomers has shifted the dynamic within the conference. Each of them took unique paths to become head coaches in the conference.
Scalley played for Utah and returned to his alma mater in 2007 as a graduate assistant. He’s remained there ever since, gradually climbing the ranks. He recently served as the Utes’ defensive coordinator and safeties coach from 2016-25, before being promoted as Whittingham’s successor.
Whittingham went 177-88 over two-plus decades. He has the third-most career coaching wins among all active FBS head coaches.
“Did I dream of becoming head coach? Not until later in my life, but it is a responsibility I don’t take lightly,” said Scalley, whose entire family also attended Utah. “I’ve had opportunities to do everything within the program except coach offense. I worked in the weight room. I worked as the NFL liaison, the academic coordinator. You name it, I’ve done it. I think it’s uniquely prepared me for this opportunity.”
Klein is another coach who rose the coaching ranks at his alma mater after his playing days were over. A former standout quarterback with the Wildcats from 2008-12, he spent approximately a decade as a coach for Kansas State, with brief stints at Northern Iowa and Texas A&M wedged in between.
Klieman, a four-time national champion at the FCS level with North Dakota State, went 54-34 in his seven-year run as an FBS coach at Kansas State.
Klein was on his predecessor’s staff as a quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator from 2019-23. He left to fill the same position at Texas A&M from 2024-25, before returning to to his alma mater after Klieman’s retirement.
“I grew up a Big 12 kid and being able to be part of this conference as a fan, as a player, as a coach and now being part of helping move our game and our conference forward is absolutely tremendous to be a part of,” Klein said.
As for Morris, who takes over for Gundy at Oklahoma State, his path has more similarities to Rogers and Iowa State.
In his first head-coaching gig, he had success at Incarnate Word at the FCS level from 2018-21. He led Incarnate Word to its first two conference titles and FCS playoff appearances in school history. After a one-year stint as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Washington State in 2022, he got his FBS head-coaching breakthrough with North Texas.
Morris went 22-16 over three seasons from 2023-25, highlighted by the Mean Green’s 11-2 finish last season. North Texas made appearances in the top 25 for the first time in 66 years.
Like his fellow new Big 12 coaches, Morris has to deal with rebuilding the roster. He brought 19 players from North Texas with him to Oklahoma State and is also navigating ways to integrate the roster.
“The first thing I did when I addressed the team is I made (the 19 North Texas transfers) stand up, move and go sit by somebody they didn’t know so we could immediately start forming new relationships, because it’s not about us and them,” Morris said. “This is all about Oklahoma State versus a really good conference in the Big 12.”
New coaches get their chance come fall
There will be plenty of curious eyes on these new coaches. What will the transition process look like in their first year? How will they overcome rough patches?
However those questions are answered this fall, there’s no doubting this is an opportunity that’s not being taken for granted.
In Ames, Rogers is ready to prove doubters wrong and embrace the road ahead.
“I think it’s an unbelievable opportunity, centrally located in the heart of America,” Rogers said of coaching the Cyclones. “It has a national brand and a national conference. In this conference, you can be punching your ticket to the playoffs and have an opportunity to win a national championship.
“We have unbelievable fans, 60,000-plus at Jack Trice every weekend. It is what players want as far as an experience and we have unbelievable staff and support our players to utilize the resources that are in front of them with great people. Anytime there’s great people and you already have a great thing in line as far as the fan base and the support, I think it’s a no-brainer.”
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’s Jimmy Rogers among wave of new football coaches in Big 12
Reporting by Eugene Rapay, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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By Eugene Rapay, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
