Big Game: ISU’s Knott ‘too small’ for everyone but Rhoads
Ames, Ia. — It was as if Jake Knott wanted nothing to do with the conversation Monday.
He’s all-in when it comes to Iowa State football, so to him, reliving the past — and about what coaches he saw most during his recruiting process — means nothing.
“Coach (Paul) Rhoads opened up his program to me and for that, I will always be thankful,” said one of the Cyclones’ starting linebackers. “I owe him everything in that respect.”
The sophomore from Waukee High School took a step toward paying his debt with a nine-tackle, two-interception, one forced-fumble showing during last Thursday’s 27-10 win against Northern Illinois at Jack Trice Stadium.
He can continue repayment with another solid performance during Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. game against ninth-ranked Iowa at Kinnick Stadium.
“Their offense is so well-run that eventually they’re going to create a mismatch,” Knott said, again trying to steer away from the past.
But what about those days Hawkeye coach Kirk Ferentz spent in Waukee, watching a guy who eventually would start against him?
What about the close recruiting relationship that formed with Hawkeye offensive line coach Reese Morgan?
“Coach Rhoads wasn’t at Iowa State when all that was happening,” said Knott, a sophomore who played special teams last season as a true freshman.
The bottom line is that Iowa didn’t offer him a football scholarship, and neither did Gene Chizik, the Cyclones’ coach at the time. He said Knott’s best bet to wear a football uniform would be to take a chance as a walk-on.
“Iowa recruited Jake starting in his junior year,” Jake’s mother, Laura, said Monday. “I think everyone naturally thought he was going to Iowa, and he actually could have.”
To play baseball.
“They offered me for baseball, but I think they thought I was too small for football,” Jake said.
Enter Rhoads, and exit any thoughts about being the next great infielder or pitcher.
“It was getting to the point where we didn’t think he was going to be a Cyclone,” Laura said, “but then things happened quickly when coach Rhoads was hired.”
Rhoads replaced Chizik in December 2008, just before Christmas. He was on the phone to Knott within a week.
“It all happened so fast,” Laura said. “Coach Rhoads came to Iowa State, and on a Sunday at the end of his first week, he and Jake had a lengthy conversation.”
The making of a Cyclone continued with a visit to Ames to see Rhoads, where Knott agreed to a scholarship.
“When coach Rhoads came here, that’s when I fell in love with Iowa State,” Knott said. “I’m lucky in that respect. He’s the only one that would give me a chance.”
Category: Iowa Hawkeyes Football
[...] permalink Originally Posted by Sloup The only reason somebody would call Jake Knott the "biggest overachiever" is because he plays at Iowa State. If he were playing at this level at Oklahoma, for instance, he would be in the conversation for best LB in the league. Perhaps this will explain why the "biggest overachiever" tag fits and is perfectly appropriate. He's the biggest overachiever because he was a hair's breadth from simply having to walk on to play BCS ball. I think he still is in the conversation for best LB in the league. Forgive me for the source… Big Game: ISU’s Knott ‘too small’ for everyone but Rhoads | Hawk Central [...]
Report this comment