Iowa State lost its greatest coach Friday, but wasted little time replacing him.
The Cyclones are hiring coach Jimmy Rogers away from Washington State to replace new Penn State coach Matt Campbell, they announced Friday evening.
“Jimmy Rogers is a rising star in college athletics who has very strong ties to the Midwest both as a player and as a coach,” Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard said in a statement. “He has been on my short-list ever since the first time I met him. He immediately impressed me with his interest in Iowa State University and told me during our first visit several years ago that he wanted to be the next head coach at Iowa State.”
Rogers, 38, played collegiately for South Dakota State and coached the Jackrabbits from 2023 to ’24. After winning an FCS national title in ’23 and making the semifinals in ’24, he was hired by Washington State, which he helped go 6–6 in 2025.
The Chandler, Ariz., native will have enormous shoes to fill: Campbell won 16 more games than any other coach in program history, helping turn a perennial gridiron doormat into a consistent Big 12 player.
On the flip side, the Cougars will look for their third head coach in as many seasons as they prepare to join a reconstituted Pac-12 in 2026.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Iowa State Hires Washington State Coach Jimmy Rogers to Replace Matt Campbell .
