K-State fans pack Wichita Catbacker event to hear Collin Klein, Casey Alexander
The purple started filling the room long before Collin Klein or Casey Alexander took the microphone.
By Monday afternoon, the event space at Chicken N Pickle in Wichita had turned into a purple gathering, packed with around 200 K-State fans who came to hear from two of the most important figures in the next chapter for the Wildcats.
There was Klein, the former Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback now leading the football program he once helped lift to a Big 12 championship. There was Alexander, the new men’s basketball coach charged with rebuilding momentum in Bramlage Coliseum.
For Klein, it was hard not to notice the symmetry.
Years ago, he was the player showing up at Catbacker events, shaking hands and seeing firsthand how far the K-State fan base stretched beyond Manhattan. On Monday, he was back in front of those same kinds of crowds, only this time as the head coach entrusted with carrying the program forward.
“It’s been a big part of what we’ve done well at Kansas State for a long time,” Klein said. “I’m very proud to do it.”
Klein said the afternoon in Wichita brought back memories of those previous Catbacker stops from his playing days, when he learned how deeply fans across the state invested in K-State football. He said the support has always been “tremendous” and Monday’s turnout was another reminder.
Even on a weekday afternoon, the room was full. Fans lined the walls, filled tables and stayed long after the formal program ended, eager to get a picture, autograph or quick word with the new coach.
Alexander noticed the same thing.
“People in Manhattan and all across Kansas everywhere I’ve been, it’s been a really warm welcome,” Alexander said. “I love meeting so many passionate K-State fans. I love the generational (fandom) that I’ve encountered every step along the way. It makes me excited to be a K-Stater.”
That was the common thread running through the afternoon: two new head coaches, both still in the early stages of building their programs, standing in front of a fan base eager to believe in what comes next.
Klein has spent his first months trying to build relationships, establish expectations and make sure the coaches and players are aligned before the Wildcats reach the first season of a new era. He said the process has been encouraging, especially as the team continues to adapt to his leadership style and the program identity he wants to emphasize.
Klein said he has not spent much time dwelling on what it feels like to be a first-time head coach. His mind has been on the practical demands of the job.
“It’s more about: What do we need to get accomplished?” Klein said. “What does our team need? What does my staff need? What do my players need? It’s all hands on deck, and I’m very proud of how everybody is working.”
One of the biggest pieces of that transition is quarterback Avery Johnson, the former Maize star who gives K-State one of the most dynamic players in the Big 12.
Klein and Johnson already had a foundation from their previous time together at K-State before Klein left for Texas A&M. Now that they have reunited, Klein said it has been fun to resume that relationship while watching Johnson continue to mature.
“It’s been a lot of fun being able to work together again,” Klein said of Johnson. “He works so hard at it. All of those extra hours he puts into the film room, how he takes care of his body, he’s been gifted with a lot of God-given ability, but he’s also a great competitor. I’m excited to continue that growth and development.”
Klein also praised the team’s work in the weight room under strength and conditioning coach Jeremy Jacobs. He said the Wildcats have made noticeable progress while trying to shape a team that reflects the program’s core values.
“A blue-collar work ethic, toughness, grit, physicality,” Klein rattled off. “All of those things are what we’re trying to build in the weight room. We’re excited to continue to see that take shape.”
That same philosophy has carried over to recruiting.
Klein said K-State will continue to prioritize Kansas and the surrounding region, emphasizing that the Wildcats want players who not only have enough talent to compete in the Big 12, but also fit what the program wants to be.
“We will continue to prioritize the state of Kansas and our seven-hour radius,” Klein said, “to be able to give young guys that earn the opportunity — and those opportunities are not easy, we understand that and they understand that. But trying to make sure we give those guys who do earn it an opportunity to come wear that Powercat.”
For Klein, recruiting cannot stop at measurables or star rankings. He said it is just as important to identify character, competitiveness and fit.
“We have very good talent, but I think it’s about getting guys into the right fit,” Klein said. “I think we’ve done that. They’re very, very talented, but I think they fit our culture and fit Kansas State very well.”
Alexander is dealing with a different kind of build.
While Klein inherited a familiar football program and a quarterback he already knew well, Alexander has been working through the early stages of assembling nearly everything around K-State men’s basketball — a staff, a schedule and a roster trying to learn about each other before roles can be defined.
Alexander said he has been pleased with the makeup of his coaching staff, pointing to a blend of experience and new voices. He also said K-State has put together a schedule that includes six “50-50” games, the kind of toss-up matchups that can shape a season and reveal plenty about a team still finding itself.
That includes a neutral-site game against in-state rival Wichita State in Kansas City, a matchup Alexander said made sense for both fan bases.
“I think that game in Kansas City needs to be important for K-State fans,” Alexander said. “If we can play regional teams, then it makes the most sense. I was glad that it was able to work itself out. I don’t know if we can do that consistently or not, but I’m glad we can do it this year.”
On the roster, Alexander did not single out anyone as a clear leader this early in the summer. He said K-State is still too far away from defining roles in June, especially with so many new pieces trying to fit together.
But Alexander did mention senior guards Brandon Rechsteiner and Jaden Schutt as two players whose experience could naturally put them in position to help lead the group.
The Wildcats are beginning their fourth week together this week. Alexander said court time has still been limited, but he has been encouraged by how quickly the group has started to absorb information and build chemistry.
“The good thing about starting with a blank slate is they’re coming for the message they heard in the recruiting process,” Alexander said. “They believe and they’re taking ownership in what we were selling. So now it’s how do we put all of those pieces together? We have a group that really likes each other, which is really hard to do when you’re talking about so many new faces.”
That idea — putting the pieces together — applied to both coaches Monday.
Klein is trying to build his version of K-State football around toughness, relationships and the same blue-collar edge he once brought to the Wildcats as a quarterback. Alexander is trying to establish a basketball culture from a blank slate, leaning on buy-in and connection before the depth chart starts to take shape.
Klein and Alexander offered different versions of the same message: The work has already started, the relationships are being built and the foundation for the next era of K-State athletics is beginning to take shape.
This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 4:34 PM.
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