Kansas State Breakdown: Dead End Ahead
9 comments so far
August 6, 2008 by
I've been calling all of the analysis in this series “breakdowns” but this is the first team where the name has a double meaning. The Wildcats look to have the most bleak future of any team that Nebraska will face this year. Ron Prince's reliance on JUCO transfers to patch this team up will cost Kansas State their long term stability – he's sacrificed the development of young talent to hold onto his job for a couple more years. The only way to make a dent in the Big 12 is if he somehow gets 5 or 6 great (not just good) players out of his JUCO frenzy.
In the interest of full disclosure, let me just say that the Wildcats are my least favorite team in the history of the world in any sport (tied with the Denver Broncos). But I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt. It's hard to do that when the coach is 12-13. His guys have show a splash of hope by being so explosive on special teams – they were the best punt returning team in the nation averaging 22 yards/return with 5 touchdowns. But imaging getting penalized an average of 8 times/game for 75 yards. That basically negates one drive or big play per game.
When you continue to look at the statistics from last year, you see 21 passing touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Not bad, it almost looks like Josh Freeman is the second coming of Michael Bishop when you compare straight numbers. But when you compare wins, there's no competition. It's just not enough points in this offense heavy Big 12 right now. 418 yards/game and 30 points/game used to be enough, but the Wildcats were in the bottom half of the Big 12 in both total offense and total defense.
By playing an aggressive, speedy game, Kansas State keeps themselves in every game against big opponents. While they only had one game REALLY get away from them, they just did not show that “it” factor or potential that so many young teams have going for them right now. Colorado will likely overtake them as the team to look out for in the next few years and Nebraska should handle them successfully in Manhattan, winning 34-17.
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Bovice Aug 06 08
Thats the best you can come up with? They didn't show an "it" factor?
tom Aug 06 08
Here's the best I can come up with. You suck. I was trying to be nice and objective, but I guess I'm going to throw that out the window. Josh Freeman is a terrible, over hyped whiny baby. If you hit him with a feather, he will fall over and cry. Except he thinks he's awesome. I hate to tell him (not really), but he's probably in the bottom four quarterbacks in the Big 12. In addition, Ron Prince it deliberately trying to lose his job and the fans of K State are too stupid to realize it. Lose to Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri two years in a row? And lose to Iowa State as well? He should be fired. I thought this was supposed to be a team that would compete but all they have become is irrelevant. And what's up with embarrassing players who don't pass the physicals? Motivation? Baloney. It's called hazing. What piece of news has dominated when thinking of the Wildcats this summer? Not how good the quarterback is, not that they lost key players, not that the coach is going to some scheme. No, everyone knows they're the team that picked up a gazillion JuCo transfers. When has picking up that many guys in one season led to a championship? NEVER. Thank you and good night. That should have been my real article.
POWERCAT Aug 06 08
Virginia Tech 21, Bugeaters 10
tom Aug 07 08
Touche. I have been vanquished.
Laner Aug 07 08
Tom, henceforth include lots of pretty pictures for KSU fans. It's only fair.
tom Aug 10 08
Ok, so I was a little over the top with my insults there. I'm always saying not to feed the trolls and I go and do it myself. Sorry about all that. Besides the name-calling, I stand by the validity of my argument. I heard on the radio this week many unhappy K State fans voicing their displeasure at the pay increase Ron Prince is getting. Heard a lot of the same things over and over from quite a number of guys looking for the end of Prince's tenure with the Wildcats. As many negative comments I heard about Prince, I heard lots of good things about Josh Freeman. One thing I've got to say about Freeman is that he probably has the best shot of any Big 12 quarterback of making it to the NFL. If he's going to make a splash, this is the year to do it.
ksuwild Aug 11 08
This is just Ron Princes 3rd year so you might want to relax a bit fellas. If we go to a bowl this year (I'm almost sure we will) that will be 2 bowls in three years. Not to shabby playing in a Big XII that had 4 teams who finished 2007 in the BCS top 10 teams (after all bowls were played). That's more than any conference... including the SEC.
Prince has recorded the second-most wins in school history for a head coach in his first two seasons on the job and has also led the Wildcats to wins in consecutive seasons over Texas, including last season’s 41-21 whooping in Austin that was Kansas States first-EVER win on the road against a Top 10 opponent.
EVER
Ron Prince is just the second Wildcat head coach in school history to win seven games during his inaugural season and the first to take his team to a postseason bowl. Prince also became only the sixth Big 12 head coach (out of 19 to be hired since the league’s initial season in 1996) in conference history to guide his program to a bowl berth in a debut campaign.
Only four of the six Big 12 head coaches to earn bowl bids in year one took over programs coming off losing seasons, including Texas’ Mack Brown in 1998, Colorado’s Gary Barnett in 1999, Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops in 1999 and now Prince.
He is currently the fourth-youngest NCAA Division I-A head coach in the country and one of just six African-American head coaches in all of Division I-A and has rare NFL exerience because he served NFL Minority Fellowships with the Jacksonville Jaguars (1996), Washington Redskins (1997), Atlanta Falcons(1999) and New York Giants (2000).
In 2007-08 the football program placed a total of 74 student-athletes on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll, including a record number 38 in the spring. K-State’s football program was also recently recognized by Diverse magazine as at it ranked 10th nationally among all Division I football programs, and was the lone Big 12 institution in the top 10, with a 77.2-percent graduation rate among African-American student-athletes.
He deserves a legitimate chance to prove himself and I'm sorry but 2 seasons doesn't cut it as a chance.
ksuwild Aug 11 08
KANSAS STATE School Records Set In 2007
TEAM
Most punt returns for touchdowns in a season (5)
Most passing attempts in a season (510)
Most pass completions in a season (322)
Most pass completions in a game (36) at Oklahoma State
Most passing yards a game (285.4 ypg average)
Most passing yards in a season (3,425)
Highest punting average in a season (44.5)
Highest 12-game punt return average (22.5)
INDIVIDUAL
James Johnson - Fastest player to rush for 1,000 yards (159 attempts)
Jordy Nelson – Most catches in a game (15)
Jordy Nelson - Most catches in a season (122)
Jordy Nelson – Most yards receiving in a game (214)
Jordy Nelson – Most receiving yards in a season (1,606)
Jordy Nelson – Most touchdown catches in a game (3) at Oklahoma State
Jordy Nelson – Most 100-yard receiving games in a season (7)
Jordy Nelson – Most 100-yard receiving games in a career (10)
Jordy Nelson – Most 200-yard receiving games in a season (2)
Jordy Nelson – Receptions per game average for a season (10.2)
Jordy Nelson – Receptions per game average for a career (5.7)
Jordy Nelson – Receiving yards a game average (133.8)
Jordy Nelson – Most consecutive 100-yard receiving games (4)
Josh Freeman - Consecutive games with a touchdown pass (11)
Josh Freeman – Most pass completions in a game (36) at Oklahoma State
Josh Freeman – Most pass attempts in a season (499)
Josh Freeman – Most pass completions in a season (316)
Josh Freeman – Most passing yards in a season (3,353)
Josh Freeman - Most passing yards a game (279.4)
Josh Freeman – Most 300-yard passing games in a season (4)
Brooks Rossman – Tied for most field goals in a season vs. Missouri (23)
Most NON-OFFENSIVE TOUCHDOWNS SINCE 1999
1. Virginia Tech...67
2. KANSAS STATE....60
3. Miami, Fla......60
4. Texas ..........58
ALL-TIME BIG 12 CONFERENCE VICTORIES (1996-07)
1. Texas..........73
2. Oklahoma........68
3. Nebraska........64
4. KANSAS STATE....60
5. Colorado........54
6. Texas Tech......54
7. Texas A&M.......53
8. Missouri........43
9. Oklahoma State..38
10. Kansas.........30
11. Iowa State.....28
12. Baylor.........11
ALL-TIME BIG 12 CONFERENCE ROAD VICTORIES
(1996-07)
1. Texas..........31
2. Oklahoma........28
3. KANSAS STATE....25
4. Nebraska........25
5. Texas A&M.......24
6. Colorado........23
7. Texas Tech......21
8. Missouri........14
9. Oklahoma State..14
10. Kansas.........10
11. Iowa State.....9
12. Baylor.........2
TOP SCHOLAR RANKINGS
1. Harvard
2. Yale
3. Stanford
4. Princeton
5. Duke
6. KANSAS STATE
7. Brown
8. Chicago
9. Cornell
10. MIT
Since 1986, Kansas State University ranks
as the No. 1 public institution in the nation,
sixth among private and public, in total number
of Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater and Udall scholarship winners.
All Statistics listed are current through 2007.
ksuwild Aug 11 08
Kansas State's defense will be MUCH improved in 2008. Many don't know about the injuries we sustained half way through the season last year that drastically affected our ability to create stops when we needed them.
If you really look at the way Kansas State played earlier in the season in 07'(holding Auburn to less than 300 total yards and blasting Texas and Colt McCoy all over the field in Austin in a 20 point romp) they were a much different defense. As long as we stay healthy our defense will more than hold their own this year. We will field a very mature team on both sides of the ball with improved depth at almost every position through depth chart. They will fair better than most of you think.
Especially you Tom. In reference to your original article you realize we have cleaned Colorado's clock 2 years in a row and I have seen absolutely NOTHING to justify them overtaking us in anything related to Football. Nebraska has come away from Manhattan with exactly 1 win in the last 5 tries by the way.
You may think I am full of it but trust me when I say the 2008 version of Kansas State is going to be bowl bound and will upset more than a couple teams. Mark my words.
See you in Manhattan on November 15th.