Why K-State coach Bill Snyder isn’t ready to announce a starting quarterback

Kansas State football coach Bill Snyder isn’t ready to announce his starting quarterback.

He might make the call on Tuesday at his first news conference of the season. But he also might wait until Saturday, when the Wildcats open against South Dakota.

“I’m not sure really. I haven’t given it that much thought,” Snyder said Monday during his turn on the Big 12 football teleconference. “I have a pretty good idea of which way we are going to go, but I’m not 100 percent certain yet.”

This is normally the time of year that clarity arrives for K-State position battles. Even during the most competitive of quarterback derbies over the years, Snyder has confidently selected a starter a week before the first game. He announced Jake Waters over Daniel Sams on a Monday and Jesse Ertz over Joe Hubener on a Tuesday.

But none of those quarterback competitions were apparently as close as Alex Delton vs. Skylar Thompson, both of whom have been “dead even” since the start of spring practices.

“It’s been unbelievably even,” Snyder said. “Both of them have done extremely well. Both of them are extremely competitive. Both of them desire to be the first guy on the field. Both of them are team-oriented guys. If you begin to think one of them is rising above the other, just wait a day and that will change. That has been the case.”

One thing Snyder is ready to commit to when it comes to quarterbacks: Delton and Thompson will both play.

“Both of them deserve the opportunity,” Snyder said. “Both of them will get on the field.”

Delton, a junior, enters the season with a slight edge in experience. He has appeared in 13 games for the Wildcats and made four starts. Last year, Delton threw for 637 yards and three touchdowns while adding 500 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. He was at his best during the Cactus Bowl, when he led K-State to a victory over UCLA by rushing for 158 yards and three touchdowns.

Some thought he had a leg up on Thompson when his teammates voted him captain during the offseason, but that might not be the case.

Thompson, a sophomore, has been every bit as good as Delton over the summer. He made his K-State debut as a redshirt freshman last season and led the Wildcats to dramatic victories over Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and Iowa State. He threw for 689 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 267 yards and three touchdowns while playing in eight games, making four starts.

It feels like Snyder would be comfortable with either player.

Still, he is eager to evaluate how they play in live games.

“The first ballgame will tell us an awful lot, perhaps,” Snyder said. “There are some circumstances that take place in a ballgame on Saturday afternoon that can’t occur in a practice routine. But we have seen them both under pressure before and both have done quite well.”

It’s also possible K-State will rotate both quarterbacks all season, adjusting starting roles and playing time based on the matchup like some coaches do with running backs or receivers.

For now, the quarterback race remains too close to call.

This story was originally published August 27, 2018 at 11:34 AM.