For the first time in a decade, Iowa State lands three on preseason Big 12 football team

For the first time in a decade, Iowa State has more than two players on the Big 12 Conference’s preseason football team.

Running back David Montgomery, cornerback Brian Peavy and defensive end JaQuan Bailey were picked by the media on the team released Wednesday.

The last time the Cyclones had more than two preseason picks was 2006 — with receiver Todd Blythe, quarterback Bret Meyer, defensive back/kick returner DeAndre Jackson and defensive lineman Brent Curvey.

Montgomery, an all-Big 12 postseason first-team pick in 2017, is coming off an 1,146-yard rushing season in which he had six 100-yard rushing games. He led the nation with 109 forced missed tackles. He caught seven passes in the Oklahoma upset last October. 

“There’s a lot I can improve on,” Montgomery said. “Transitioning from quarterback to running back, I have to be able to protect the quarterback better. There’s keys and reads to follow.

“I have to be able to recognize things better.”

Montgomery can become the Cyclones’ first back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher since Ennis Haywood’s two-year run of 1,237 yards and 1,169 yards in 2000 and 2001, respectively.

“There’s intricacies of the position he’s still learning,” Iowa State running backs coach Nate Scheelhaase said. “There’s plenty of room for growth — like understanding the offensive line blocking schemes and understanding formations.

“There’s a ton of growth that he can make, but he’s just so natural with the ball in his hands.”

Peavy, a second-team postseason pick last season, received NFL draft feedback after helping Iowa State become the second-best pass defense in the conference.

“They questioned my speed — they wanted to know if I could run,” Peavy said during the spring. “It’s up to me to show them that I can play at that level.”

Secondary coach D.K. McDonald has a plan for his most experienced defensive back.

“Becoming the best corner in the nation,” McDonald said. “That should be his goal. Coverage ability, tackling ability — he has it all, so now, it’s just continuing to do that on a consistent basis.”

Bailey, a junior, is among the top two returning defensive ends in the conference after leading the Cyclones with seven sacks, the school’s fourth-best total in a season. His 10½ career sacks in two seasons puts him on pace to break Shawn Moorehead’s school record of 18½.

“He’s an animal,” Peavy said. “He’s relentless. When you say he can’t do something, he’s going to try it until you’re proven wrong.”