Iowa State football: Midseason report card

Special teams: B

Oct 3, 2013; Ames, IA, USA; Iowa State Cyclones place kicker Cole Netten (1) kicks a field goal againt the Texas Longhorns during the second quarter at Jack Trice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports

Nothing to complain about here. Cole Netten has made all seven of his field goal attempts and has missed zero extra points this season. The transition from a reliable senior punter to a freshman also hasn’t been too rough — Colin Downing has gotten the job done, and Holden Kramer has come in for a couple of pooch punts. He apparently can add a little touch to his punts.

When healthy, Jarvis West has been great returning the ball on special teams. He even had a punt return for a touchdown against Kansas State.

So what drops the grade? Miscues. Most notably in the Oklahoma State with near back-to-back mistakes. When West went out, there was a huge gaffe when there was a communication problem between two returners and nobody got the ball on a kickoff. That resulted in a Cowboys touchdown. They had another one when Tyreek Hill took one to the house.