This player’s passionate halftime speech could inspire K-State to a turnaround
Dalton Risner had heard enough.
After listening to a parade of Kansas State football players approach the senior right tackle and his teammates on the offensive line with words of encouragement during halftime of their last game against Texas, he rose to his feet and unleashed the longest locker-room rant of his career.
“I blew up, because it (ticked) me off,” Risner said. “Everyone on the team is coming to the offensive line saying, ‘Keep your head up.’ I don’t need anyone on this team to come tell my offensive line to keep our heads up. But why are they doing that? They don’t think we are playing so well. We need a reason to keep our head up.
“That irritated me. It ticked me off. I let that feed within my guys and I think that that was really good for them, because they felt that and I let it be known in the locker room that I didn’t need anyone to let us know the offensive line needs to keep our heads up.”
Maybe he should have blown up sooner. Risner’s words, spoken loudly enough for the entire team to hear, had a positive impact.
The Wildcats (2-3, 0-2 Big 12) looked like a different team when they returned to the football field. K-State’s offensive line, in particular, elevated its play and paved the way for quarterback Skylar Thompson and running back Alex Barnes to mount a comeback attempt.
K-State engineered two long touchdown drives in the second and had an opportunity to take the lead in the fourth quarter after trailing 19-0 at halftime.
Texas held on 19-14, so no one was willing to describe those final two quarters as a moral victory for K-State. But it was undoubtedly a confidence booster.
“I really liked the energy and passion people were playing with,” K-State receiver Dalton Schoen said. “I think that is definitely something that we can carry over. It’s something we are emphasizing and trying to build on, just to go out there and play like we did in the second half. We played inspired, almost. It was good to see. If we can build on that and play a whole game like that, I think we will be successful.”
The Wildcats hope to keep those good vibes rolling when they face off against Baylor on Saturday McLane Stadium.
“Everything is not going to turn around in a heartbeat, but that was taking a step forward and a step in the right direction,” K-State coach Bill Snyder said. “It doesn’t show up in the win/loss column, but there were things that we got better at during the course of the ballgame, and it’s a matter of whether we have the perseverance to stick to those concepts and those values and continue to try to do it.”
Risner thinks this team has what it takes to go on a winning streak.
So much so, that he said the Wildcats aren’t thinking about the importance of the Baylor game and what it could mean for their bowl chances.
“We could end up 9-3, win our bowl game, be 10-3 and have the best season I’ve had at Kansas State,” Risner said. “It’s way too early to be worrying about bowl games. It’s way too early to be worried about where the season is going to go. If you start worrying about those things you are going to lose sight of what is important and start losing these games because of the little things.”
It’s been a frustrating season for K-State, but the Wildcats are hopeful they can change that over the final seven games.
In some ways, the journey begins with their next game against Baylor. But, as Risner will tell you, it started at halftime of last week’s game against the Longhorns.
“We could have walked out that second half against Texas and said, ‘Man I’m beat. These guys are better than us. We are not a good team. I’m done,’” Risner said. “We could have quit playing and lost 36-0. We have a lot more passion on our team than that. We have a lot more care. That we did that in the second half told me a lot about my teammates and my team.”