ISU’s Campbell Named to Bryant Award Watch List | News, sports, jobs

AP FILE PHOTO – Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell reacts to a play during a game against Oklahoma State on Sept. 23, 2023 in Ames.

AMES – Iowa State football head coach Matt Campbell has been named to the American Heart Association’s 2024 Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award Watch List, a list of current coaches eligible for the annual top honor.

The award, presented each January to a college football coach, recognizes contributions that improve the sport for athletes and fans alike through courage, integrity and a winning approach to coaching and life on and demonstrate next to the field.

Led by Campbell, No. 9 Iowa State is off to its first 6-0 start since 1938 and is bowl eligible for the seventh time in nine seasons. The Cyclones are 3-0 in Big 12 play for the second time under Campbell and first since 2020.

With 59 wins at ISU, Campbell passed Dan McCarney to become Iowa State’s winningest head coach this season.

The winner of the Coach of the Year award, now in its 39th year, will be announced live at the Post Oak Hotel in Houston on Wednesday, January 22, 2024, at an awards ceremony presented by Marathon Oil. The National Sports Media Association, the Bryant Awards Executive Leadership Team and the Bryant Family voted on the watch list, finalists and Coach of the Year.

Iowa State hosts UCF on Saturday at 6:30 p.m