Kansas State pauses all football activities because of COVID, won’t pursue bowl game
The Kansas State football team won’t be playing in a bowl game this year, after all.
Despite both K-State football coach Chris Klieman and athletic director Gene Taylor publicly expressing their desires for the Wildcats to continue their season with an extra game after Christmas, the team announced that it will not pursue a postseason invitation because of mounting COVID-19 issues on its roster.
Following the team’s most recent round of testing and contact tracing procedures, K-State informed Big 12 officials that it will not be able to field enough players to prepare for and play in a bowl game.
K-State was in line to play in the First Responder Bowl or the Guaranteed Rate Bowl on Dec. 26 after finishing seventh in the Big 12 standings. But it will no longer be able to accept an invite to either game.
“This has been an unbelievably challenging year for everyone, but we were very excited to have the opportunity to end the season in a bowl game,” Taylor said in a statement. “But, with new positive cases and additional close contacts in our program, we would not have enough players to continue practices and field a team for the bowl game. I want to thank our student-athletes and coaches for their tireless effort this year and for being flexible during a time when every day presented new challenges.”
For K-State, the season will end with a 4-6 record and a 4-5 mark in Big 12 play.
It was a disappointing run for Klieman after his second season in Manhattan began with a 4-1 start.
“It certainly is a bittersweet ending to the season, but playing 10 regular-season games throughout all of this uncertainty was nothing short of a miracle,” Klieman said. “I want to thank our players, especially our seniors, for continuing to battle each and every day, no matter what circumstance was put before them. This season was difficult and frustrating, but I think it is also one that we will remember for the rest of our lives. I hope we will all learn from it and become better, both as coaches and players, as we head into the offseason.”
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 11:08 AM.