When Paul Rhoads was fired and Wally Burnham retired, we were left with many questions left unanswered on what Iowa State’s defense would look like in 2016. Enter John Heacock and Matt Campbell, who made the trip from Toledo where they ran a 4-2-5 base defense for the past few seasons.
There was speculation over the summer if Iowa State would make the switch. We’ve already seen two different base defenses over the last two seasons. Why switch again?
Well, the linebacking position is thin with the departures of Jordan Harris, Levi Peters and Luke Knott. Plus, with the Big 12 throwing out powerful offenses week after week, who wouldn’t want to get more defensive backs and speed out on the field to at least make some opposing quarterbacks think harder than an Iowa graduate putting together a Big Mac?