Jerome Tang blames NCAA for ‘changing the rules on me’ as K-State losses mount
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Tang blames shifting NCAA eligibility and transfer rules for roster shortfalls.
- K‑State sits last in Big 12 at 10‑11, hindered by injuries and missing players.
- Coach Tang urges consistent NCAA rules to restore program building and parity.
Kansas State continued its march toward a nightmare basketball season with a 59-54 loss at West Virginia on Tuesday.
The Wildcats (10-11, 1-7 Big 12) are in last place of the conference standings, and there isn’t much hope for a turnaround with games against No. 8 Iowa State, No. 10 Houston, No. 11 Texas Tech and No. 14 Kansas still looming on the schedule.
Jerome Tang hoped his team would consistently have a number next to its name when he entered his fourth year as head coach at K-State. But it hasn’t happened.
Why?
According to Tang, the rapidly changing landscape of college basketball has been holding back the Wildcats.
“As the head coach of this program and the CEO of it,” Tang said during his postgame news conference at Hope Coliseum, “to put together a team and build a program that will be on that level, year in, year out, I haven’t figured that out yet because they keep changing the rules on me. Once they get the rules set then I can have a consistent plan.”
Tang took things a step further and claimed that changing NCAA rules prevented him from retaining or signing three players ahead of the current season.
It’s unclear which three players he might have been referencing in that statement.
Memphis transfer Tyreek Smith was denied a waiver for an extra year of eligibility in August. For a brief time last year, there was hope that Max Jones would also be allowed to play another season, because he began his college career at the Division II level. But he also exhausted his eligibility.
K-State has no clear connection to any other player who was expected to suit up for this team.
Still, Tang said missing three players has held this squad back.
“There are three guys who should be on my roster that are not on my roster right now because rules change,” Tang said. “That’s not even the guys who are injured.”
K-State has been without Abdi Bashir (broken foot), Khamari McGriff (undisclosed injury), Elias Rapieque (undisclosed injury) and Mobi Ikegwuruka (undisclosed reasons) for much of conference play.
Tang went on to say it has been difficult for him to stick with a roster-building plan during his tenure in Manhattan.
Under his guidance, K-State won 26 games and reached the Elite Eight in 2023. But the program has declined since. K-State followed that terrific season with 19 wins in 2024 and 16 wins in 2025. The Wildcats are on their way to missing the NCAA Tournament for a third straight season.
“If they would give me consistent rules then I would know how to move forward and operate,” Tang said. “I will figure it out, because I have got a staff that is relentless. We don’t stop. If we can bring G League players in, I want to do it. I want to find a judge in Kansas that is a K-State judge that is going to give us that. That is what they are doing elsewhere.
“Whatever they are going to do, I want to do. Or stop everybody from doing it, and let’s all proceed the same way. Just give me some consistent rules and we will get it done. We are going to figure this thing out.”