Game 8: Kansas State Wildcats

Jake Waters, who won the starting job at the end of the 2013 season, returns as the starting quarterback for 2014. The key question in the offensive backfield is who will replace John Hubert at running back. Tim Fitzgerald, publisher of Powercat Illustrated and Gopowercat.com, says the starting job at running back is wide open.

“Senior Demarcus Robinson was injured most of the spring, leading to more practice reps for sophomores Charles Jones and Jarvis Leveritt Jr. Freshman Dalvin Warmack may press for playing time when camp opens” said Fitzgerald. “There was no frontrunner coming out of spring football.”

With uncertainty at the running back position, Coach Snyder will likely need to rely heavily on Jake Waters in the beginning of the season. Waters runs well but he is a stronger passer than runner.

In terms of passing targets, Waters should have plenty of options. Tyler Lockett returns (for what seems to be his 7th year of eligibility) and will be the main focus of the passing attack. However, who will be the go to guy if Tyler Lockett is, predictably, double covered?

“Receiver is a position with decent depth for the Wildcats,” Fitzgerald said. “Sure-handed senior Curry Sexton promises to be a usual target for quarterback Waters, but there’s a slew of unfamiliar names that will start showing up on the stats sheet. Sophomore Deante Burton, a Manhattan (Kan.) High School product, offers Waters a bigger target, while redshirt freshman Judah Jones and junior college transfer Andre Davis are more out of the undersized but blazing fast mold of many K-State receivers.”

Defense

The Wildcats had an outstanding defense in 2013, ranking 26th in total defense. The reason for that success? Their defensive line.

I asked Fitzgerald about the Kansas State defensive line and he said that senior defensive end Ryan Mueller is the “anchor” of the highly touted defensive line. He also mentioned a few other names:

“Junior Marquel Bryant came on strong at the end of the season and sophomore Jordan Willis and redshirt freshman Tanner Wood provide depth at end,” said Fitzgerald. “It’s at defensive tackle where the Wildcats find themselves with surprising depth. The starters are expected to be junior Travis Britz and senior Valentino Coleman, but there’s a crowd of players behind them, including three newcomers. The headliner of that group is All-American juco transfer Terrell Clinkscales, and two redshirt freshmen from the state of Kansas, Conway Spring’s Matt Seiwert and Topeka’s Will Geary. Geary is a walk-on who has proven to be difficult to handle in practice.”

While the defensive line get lots of praise, KSU has to replace several of 2013’s seniors at linebacker and in the secondary. The Wildcats only return 5 defensive starters from 2013. Expect teams, especially early in the season, to test the KSU’s inexperience in the back seven.

Kansas State will have a successful season if…

Bill Snyder has been an innovator of college football for over two decades in Manhattan, and in-season improvement is a hallmark of his tenure. Bill Snyder turned ‘Futility U’ into a powerhouse by his method (

) and he isn’t going to change it now. His method is developing players in-season so that the team playing in September is a totally different team by Thanksgiving. Tim Fitzgerald put it another way:

“A hallmark of Bill Snyder teams is making steady progress throughout the season and that was certainly true last year. The Wildcats were completely rebuilding their defense and breaking in a new quarterback, which led to a 2-4 start, but they finished strong by going 6-1 (losing only to Oklahoma) and dominated Michigan in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl to end [the 2013 season] 8-5.”

Quite simply, KSU will be successful this Fall if they stick to Snyder’s tried and true recipe.

The Key To The Texas Game Will Be…

Getting the Wildcats at the right time.

As mentioned in the previous section, the Wildcats get better as the season goes on. Last year, the Longhorns were benefactors of the Bill Snyder method, facing Kansas State in late September. In 2011 and 2012, Texas played the Wildcats in November and December respectively. Not surprisingly, the Horns lost both of those games. This season, the Longhorns face the Wildcats in late October. Will the Wildcats be hitting their groove or will they still be figuring things out? Only time will tell.

When asked what the key for Kansas State will be in the Kansas State-Texas game, Fitzgerald offered, “K-State could be very good this season, but a trio of questions continue to pursue the Cats into fall camp. There’s the running back uncertainty, but the biggest issue on offense is settling on a pair of tackles that can handle Big 12 athletes. Defensively, K-State is still trying to settle on new cornerbacks, which is another area in the Big 12 that puts plenty of pressure on defenders. Quickly sorting out answers to these questions will hold a key to many K-State games this season.”

Both teams should feel confident about their chances in this game. With several unknowns plaguing both squads, in August, this game is a virtual toss-up. The only sure thing about the game is that it will be a major determinant in whether Texas has a successful season or a mediocre one.