A.J. Klein

Classroom

Klein is a three-time first-team academic all-Big 12 Conference honoree (at least 3.2 GPA). He has been named an Iowa State scholar-athlete and is a four-time member of Big 12 Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll for maintaining at least at 3.0 semester GPA.

Character

His approach has caught the eye of his peers, as Klein was named a co-captain of the 2012 Iowa State football team. Iowa State head coach Paul Rhoads says maturity has made Klein a better player. Over time he has come to see that he needed to make changes to be successful at the collegiate level. As he progressed further in his collegiate experience, he matured and that is reflected in his grade point average from last fall. Today, he takes a studious approach to the game and does what it takes to compete successfully.

Community

Klein has worked with high-risk young people at Camp Wildwood in Iowa and has made appearances at local elementary schools for carnivals and to read to promote literacy. He has worked the Cyclone Kids Football Camp and when Iowa State University was hit by flash floods in 2008, A.J. helped sandbag the entire athletics facility.

Competition

Klein was voted by the Big 12 Conference coaches as the league’s co-defensive player of the year. A four-year starter, he earned first-team all-Big 12 honors and is a 2012 preseason All-American. He made 116 tackles in 2011, including 14 tackles in Iowa State’s 37-31 double overtime win over No. 2 Oklahoma State that clinched the Cyclones’ second bowl season in three years.