The five most noteworthy things K-State football coach Chris Klieman said this week
Kansas State football coach Chris Klieman held his second news conference of the preseason Tuesday.
He spoke for more than 20 minutes on a video call with reporters and touched on a wide range of topics as the Wildcats prepare for their first game of the upcoming season against Arkansas State on Sept. 12.
Here is a look at the five most noteworthy things he said:
1. ‘Everything has been unusual’
Even after several weeks of practice, the K-State football team is still struggling to adapt to the tidal wave of safety protocols that have been put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Klieman said half the team uses K-State’s visiting locker room before and after practice, which has never been done before the Wildcats. The entire team doesn’t use the weight room together anymore. Now players enter that facility in groups of four. When a team meeting is scheduled, players spread out inside Bramlage Coliseum instead of the usual film room inside the football facility.
“Everything has been unusual,” Klieman said. “... There has been nothing normal about this camp. The guys just have to overcome the adversity.”
Even meals are different. Instead of chowing together at the team’s training table, players now get their food at a drive-thru station and eat with their roommates. Klieman says some players are probably getting sick of each other after spending so much time together.
“The practices have been as normal as we have had,” Klieman said, “but other than the practices there is nothing that is normal.”
2. Impressive newcomers
The Wildcats aren’t expected to ask many freshmen to play big roles this season, but Klieman said there are a handful of newcomers on the roster that are ready to contribute if called upon.
On offense, Klieman singled out freshman running back Deuce Vaughn and freshman quarterback Will Howard. The potential surrounding Vaughn is unmistakable. A shifty runner from the Austin area, he could make an immediate impact as a complementary runner alongside Harry Trotter, Tyler Burns and Jacardia Wright.
Quarterbacks coach Collin Klein said last week that Howard has already emerged as K-State’s No. 3 quarterback behind Skylar Thompson and Nick Ast.
On defense, Klieman spoke highly of defensive ends Felix Anudike and Nate Matlack.
3. Extra eligibility
With so much uncertainty looming over the 2020 football season, NCAA leaders announced last week that all student-athletes competing in fall sports will be allowed to retain their current eligibility regardless of how much or little they play this season.
That could create some interesting decisions for football coaches, as seniors will be allowed to return for an extra season in 2021 and young players won’t have to worry about the four-game redshirt rule this year.
Klieman mentioned the new rule to his players last week and said he looks forward to navigating that new landscape. For now, though, he is focused on other things.
“It’s something that we know we’re going to have to handle here later in the fall,” Klieman said, “but it’s not something that (we have prioritized) with all the things we have going on with trying to finish up what we would still consider fall camp. We just haven’t spent a lot of time on it.”
4. More players looking to opt out
Only one K-State football player (senior defensive back Jonathan Alexander) has publicly announced that he has chosen to “opt out” of the upcoming season because of coronavirus concerns, but Klieman said a few more Wildcats have also privately decided to sit out until 2021.
How many? Klieman didn’t specify. Who are those players? Klieman wouldn’t say.
Sources have indicated that a total of four K-State players have informed coaches that they plan to opt out this season. The first was Alexander. The second, according to sources, was Walter Neil, a senior defensive back that entered the transfer portal last week. For now, the identity of the other two players remains private, as they could both change their minds and play after the NCAA decided to freeze eligibility for all fall athletes this season.
“We’ve had a few and like I said, we’re going to support those decisions,” Klieman said. “And then we got to move forward with the guys that are going to participate and play. But rest assured, we’ve supported those guys. And we’re going to continue to supply them with the stuff they need, from the academic side of things to the mental health, to athletic training, whatever it may be.”
“I would think (opt outs are) going slow down, even though you just don’t know, simply because the NCAA came out and said this year really doesn’t count. And so when you opt out within a year, that doesn’t count. We really got to make sure that we take care of those guys.”
5. Testing update
The Wildcats got off to a rocky start trying to prevent the spread of COVID-19 across their roster and had to briefly suspend all team activities earlier this summer, but they appear to have learned from that experience.
Klieman reported Tuesday that none of K-State’s players have tested positive for the coronavirus since preseason camp began.
Still, he said he reminds his team to be on high alert as the season approaches. He has urged them to avoid large crowds and to wear masks whenever they are in public areas. Approximately 70% of K-State’s roster is enrolled exclusively in online classes this semester, which makes those tasks a little easier.
He is hopeful this week’s round of COVID-19 testing won’t reveal any new issues.
“With all the students coming back, we’ll see how we’re going to be,” Klieman said. “I think every institution is worried about that over the next few weeks and months with all the students coming back.”