AMES - One whisper of regret can be heard when Milan Moses discusses his five years as an Iowa State football player.

"I just wish I could have been a little more healthy," said the Cyclones' senior wide receiver.

Fair enough. Beyond his ongoing battle with Crohn's Disease, Moses has dealt with injuries - a broken foot in spring practice and then a separated shoulder in fall camp. Thus, it was tough for the Waterloo East graduate to impress head coach Gene Chizik and his new coaching staff while they sorted through ISU's deep corps of wide receivers.

"I've had so many setbacks, they just haven't been able to see what I can do," said Moses.

So there's a whisper of disappointment there. Moses, though, said he has not asked himself one question - why me?

"No," said the son of former ISU player Jerry Moses and younger brother of J.J., who played for Dan McCarney here. "I know God has a plan for everybody. I don't mourn; I don't pout about nothing like that. It's all in God's hands. He has a plan for us all. So I stay focused with that."

The people who have watched Moses play through good times and bad at Iowa State focus on the man himself. When Moses is the subject, the good words are easy to hear.

"When I think about him, I'm going to start laughing," said fellow wide receiver and former roommate Todd Blythe. "He's been the source of a lot of jokes and a lot of laughter through the years. He's a special kid."

To Chizik, Moses has been willing to do whatever it takes to help, even if it means waiting for his shot.

"He's been very unselfish," said the ISU coach.

He added, "He was a kick returner for a long time, and then he didn't return kicks for us until a couple of weeks ago. There have been some weeks where he's played a lot and some weeks he hasn't, depending on what we're trying to do personnel-wise. You could go down the whole list of guys in the senior class. They've been a great group."

Moses joined that group five years ago, following an all-state career in football and a state championship on the basketball court for East. He redshirted in 2003, then caught 14 passes for Iowa State the next season.

Diagnosed with Crohn's Disease in the spring of 2005, Moses played in eight games that fall and caught four passes. Ironically, Blythe's bout with Epstein-Barr virus and an injury to Jon Davis gave Moses a chance at expanded playing time late in his junior year. He made a loud and clear statement by catching 24 passes, all in the Cyclones' final half-dozen games, and returning 15 kickoffs for 325 yards. By the end of 2006, Moses held the Cyclone lead in all-purpose yards with 607.

Health trouble caught Moses again, though, in spring drills and workouts early this year.

"It's been an up-and-down rollercoaster," said the senior wideout. "I just keep my head up, go out there and work hard in practice and try to show what I can do. I just have to be patient and wait my turn."

Soon the waiting will be over. Moses' football career is dwindling to a few snaps. Iowa State has two games to go in 2007 - Colorado Saturday and Kansas on Nov. 17.

The Cyclones' meeting with the Buffs' will be the Jack Trice Stadium finale for Moses and fellow seniors like Blythe, Bret Meyer, tight end Ben Barkema and nose tackle Athyba Rubin. Some of those veterans have been in Ames for five years. Others came on board midway through the ride.

"It's going to be hard for us," said Moses of the final game at home.

Moses can still chuckle when he fades back to his early days, running from the dormitories to winter workouts, dealing with what McCarney used to call "Cyclone weather" that ranged from heat to bitter cold to tornadoes when Colorado visited Jack Trice Stadium two years ago.

Moses' playing days as a Cyclone kicked off then Northern Iowa visited Ames in 2004. They'll end in a matter of hours.

"I've been here five long years - five long years," he said. "There have been a lot of great games out there in Jack Trice Stadium. I'm going to miss them all.

"The seniors - we're just going to go out there and have fun. This is our last game in Jack Trice Stadium. We'll go out and play for each other and have fun. That's the key - just to have fun."

Contact Jim Sullivan at (319) 291-1434 or jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com