Iowa State football coach Paul Rhoads is getting a reputation for ruining other teams’ seasons. In 2007, as Pitt’s defensive coordinator, it was Rhoads who devised the defensive game plan that shut down West Virginia’s high-powered offense and kept the Mountaineers out of the national championship game.
And last year, it was Rhoads who once again turned the BCS upside down when his Cyclones upset second-ranked Oklahoma State in overtime, 37-31, in Ames, eliminating the Cowboys from national title consideration. Although Rhoads didn’t lead the Cyclones to a winning record in 2011 (Iowa State was 6-7), he did lead them to their second bowl trip in three years that included a victory over Minnesota in the 2009 Insight Bowl.
The Cyclone men’s basketball tradition was revitalized by favorite son Fred Hoiberg, an Iowa State graduate and a 10-year NBA veteran, who led them to a 23-11 record in 2012 and their first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2005. Iowa State also made a return to the national rankings at No. 25 while finishing third in the Big 12 standings.
Women’s basketball also reached the NCAA tournament as a No. 10-seed, the Cyclones ending t
Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of other notable individuals in their respective fields.
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he year with an 18-13 overall record. It was the sixth consecutive year veteran coach Billy Fennelly has led the Cyclone women to the Big Dance, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2009.
Iowa State Bowl Game History 2011, Pinstripe Bowl vs. Rutgers (L) 2009, Insight Bowl vs. Minnesota (W) 2005, Houston Bowl vs. TCU (L) 2004, Independence Bowl vs. Miami, Ohio (W) 2002, Humanitarian Bowl vs. Boise State (L) 2001, Independence Bowl vs. Alabama (L) 2000, Insight Bowl vs. Pitt (W) 1978, All-American Bowl vs. Texas A&M (L) 1977, Peach Bowl vs. NC State (L) 1972, Liberty Bowl vs. Georgia Tech (L) 1971, Sun Bowl vs. LSU (L)
NFL First-Round Draft Picks 1973, George Amundson, RB (Houston)
Men’s Basketball:
Naismith Hall of Fame: None
Iowa State NCAA Tournament History 2012 2005 2001 2000, Elite Eight 1997, Sweet 16 1996 1995 1993 1992 1989 1988 1986, Sweet 16 1985 1944, Final Four
NBA First-Round Draft Picks 2001, Jamal Tinsley (Vancouver) 2000, Marcus Fizer (Chicago) 1995, Loren Meyer (Dallas) 1991, Victor Alexander (Golden State) 1988, Jeff Grayer (Milwaukee)
Popular Attractions: Reiman Gardens, Christian Peterson Art Museum, Farm House Museum, Story County Conservation Center, Perfect Games
Popular Restaurants: West Towne Pub, Wallaby’s, Dublin Bay, Valentino’s, Aunt Maude’s, Black Market Pizza, Hickory Park, Ge-Angelo’s Italian Restaurant, The Café
Lodging: Gateway Hotel and Conference Center, Best Western Plus, Hilton Garden Inn, Holiday Inn
IOWA STATE-WEST VIRGINIA HISTORY
Football: First meeting Men’s Basketball: First meeting Women’s Basketball: 1-0 (Last meeting 2010, WVU 64-53)
IOWA STATE-WEST VIRGINIA CONNECTIONS:
Iowa State’s Jack Trice Stadium served as a model for Mountaineer Field (now Milan Puskar Stadium), West Virginia officials going out to Ames to study the facility (constructed in 1975) before the official ground breaking of Mountaineer Field took place in 1977. Also, Iowa State is where former Pitt coach Johnny Majors got his start in the coaching profession in 1968. Majors and West Virginia coach Bobby Bowden had some classic battles in the Backyard Brawl in the 1970s.
DID YOU KNOW?:
Iowa State University is the nation’s first designated land-grant university, and the birthplace of the Atanasoff-Berry Computer, the world’s first electronic digital computer. Also, in 2010 Ames, Iowa was rated ninth on CNN Money’s Best Places to Live list.
NEXT WEEK: KANSAS
Michael Fragale, Julie Brown, Chris Ostien and Alyssa Casalino also contributed to this report
