2015 CYCLONE GAMEDAY

HEAD COACH

Paul Rhoads

RHOADS QUICK FACTS

AGE:
BIRTH PLACE:
HIGH SCHOOL:
ALMA MATER:
MASTERS:
WIFE:
CHILDREN:

48 (born Feb. 2, 1967)

Ankeny, Iowa
Ankeny High School
Missouri Western (1989)
Utah State (1991)
Vickie
Sons, Jake and Wyatt

BOWL GAME APPEARANCES

2012 AutoZone Liberty Bowl (Iowa State)

2011 New Era Pinstripe Bowl (Iowa State)
2009 Insight Bowl (Iowa State)
2005 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (Pittsburgh)
2003 Continental Tire Bowl (Pittsburgh)
2002 Insight Bowl (Pittsburgh)
2001 Tangerine Bowl (Pittsburgh)
2000 Insight.com Bowl (Pittsburgh)
1992 Hall of Fame Bowl (Ohio State)
Paul Rhoads, who was born 10 minutes from Jack
Trice Stadium and went to high school 20 minutes
from Iowa States home field, has proven to be the
perfect leader of the Iowa State football program.
Through hard work, determination and fiery passion,
Rhoads has catapulted Iowa State football into the
national spotlight. The personable Rhoads has led
the Cyclones to three bowl game appearances and
multiple signature wins in his first six years as the
Cyclone mentor.

Heading into the 2015 campaign, where Iowa State will

debut a beautiful south end zone stadium expansion at
Jack Trice Stadium, the Cyclone football program can
boast a school-record streak of 26-straight games of
over 50,000 fans in attendance at home games.
A total of seven Cyclones who competed for Rhoads at
Iowa State have played a game in the NFL, including
Kelechi Osemele, who earned a Super Bowl ring and
was named to the NFLs All-Rookie team as a Baltimore
Raven in 2012.

Setting new standards in Cyclone football has become

the norm for Rhoads. In his short period in Ames,
Rhoads has recorded three victories over ranked
opponents on the road, half of the schools all-time total
of road triumphs over rated teams (six). In all, Rhoads
has registered four wins over ranked opponents in his
six seasons.

The 2011 season was highlighted by the biggest win in

school history. On Nov. 18, 2011, Iowa State stepped
up on to the biggest stage it had ever played upon.
The Cyclones played host to No. 2 Oklahoma State in
prime time. The game was nationally televised. It was
a game with huge BCS implications further stoking the
rapt attention this contest commanded.

Perhaps Rhoads greatest accomplishment as the

Cyclone head coach is his ability to energize an entire
fan base. This was no more evident than the nearly
30,000 Iowa State football fans which swarmed
Memphis, Tenn., leading up to the Cyclones 2012
AutoZone Liberty Bowl game on New Years Eve. The
massive gathering of Cardinal and Gold affirms that
Iowa State football is flying at an all-time high, piloted
by a head coach whose popularity in his home state
transcends the programs fan base and has earned the
Cyclones national recognition. Iowa Staters know that
Paul Rhoads is one of their own.

Iowa State rallied from a 24-7 deficit to beat Oklahoma

State. Coming into the game Iowa State had an alltime 0-56-2 record against teams ranked among the
top six spots on the AP poll. The incredible comeback
affirmed Rhoads transformation of a Cyclone football
program that unmistakably bears his personal brand.

Rhoads enormous popularity has made Jack Trice

Stadium the place to be in the fall. Eight of the top-10
most attended games in school history have occurred
in the last three seasons. ISUs top-three single-season
attendance figures occurred in the last four seasons,
including a school-record season attendance average
mark of 55,361 set in 2013.

Looking back, Rhoads turned heads when he arrived

as Iowa States new head football coach in December
of 2008.
At the Dec. 2008 press conference introducing him
as Iowa States new head football coach, Rhoads
compared his return to ISU and his native state, to a
Hollywood script. On the last day of 2009, his team
wrote the best possible sequel, ending his inaugural
season with a Cyclone bowl game victory. The reward
for keeping that faith was a seven-win season and a
victory over Minnesota in the Insight Bowl played in
sunny Tempe, Arizona on New Years Eve.

Since the Insight Bowl, Rhoads has coached the

Cyclones to the 2011 Pinstripe Bowl and the 2012
Liberty Bowl.
The historical significance of Rhoads success in his
first Iowa State season was underscored by his place as
the first Cyclone football coach to win seven games in
his initial campaign since 1907. He was the first coach
in ISU history to post a winning record in his initial
Cyclone season since 1931. Jesse Smith led the Big
12 in tackles and was a first-team All-Big 12 selection,
while David Sims was named the Big 12 Defensive
Newcomer of the Year.
Born in Nevada, Iowa, Rhoads came back to Iowa State
after a year as defensive coordinator at Auburn. His
stellar track record complements his Iowa roots. The
man who was valedictorian at Ankeny High School,
one of the largest schools in the state, Rhoads was
the ideal individual to take control of the ISU football
program.
Rhoads familiarity with Iowa State goes back to his
youth growing up in central Iowa but also includes
a five-year stint as inside linebackers (1995) and
secondary (1996-99) coach with the Cyclones. He was
a member of Dan McCarneys first staff at Iowa State.
Six of Rhoads former defensive backs have been
drafted by the National Football League, including
Pitts Darrelle Revis (the 14th overall pick by the Jets) in
2007. He has coached in nine bowl games, including
the 2005 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and the 2000 Insight
Bowl (against Iowa State), and the 2002 Insight Bowl
with Pitt.
Rhoads earned a bachelors degree in economics in
1989 at Missouri Western and was the recipient of the
Chris Faros Scholarship, which honors the football
teams top senior student-athlete.