Ames, Iowa ? The next Iowa State football player who fumbles in practice isn’t going to be very popular with his teammates.

Running back Greg Coleman says offensive coordinator Barney Cotton always lets everyone know when somebody fumbles and this week, he might take it a step farther.

Coleman said the way he heard it, the offending player will watch while the rest of the team is put through “up-downs” – running in place, diving to the ground, then bouncing right back up to get ready to do it again.

Coach Dan McCarney and his staff are trying to make a point because fumbles are a big reason the Cyclones are 0-3 in the Big 12 Conference, dousing the enthusiasm and optimism that surrounded this team at the start of the season.

“It’s a big deal,” Coleman said Tuesday. “It’s not like they’re joking around with it. Coach is always putting a lot of emphasis on ball security. It’s the players that are doing it.”

Iowa State (3-3 overall) has seven turnovers inside the red zone this season, including four in conference play. Twice, the Cyclones have fumbled the ball into the end zone. Coleman did it while trying to score in a 23-13 loss to Baylor and fullback Ryan Kock had the ball knocked into the end zone after catching a pass in last Saturday’s 27-24 overtime loss at Missouri.

Also in the Baylor game, wide receiver R.J. Sumrall lost a fumble at the Bears’ 19-yard line when the Cyclones had a good drive going.

They’re hoping to get things cleaned up before hosting Oklahoma State (3-3, 0-3) on Saturday in what could be the pivotal game of the season.

“That’s the key to our losses, just little mistakes and they become big mistakes,” Coleman said. “You see another team fumble and they recover it. You see us fumble and it gets run back for a touchdown.”