Kansas State looks forward to return of injured players Dante Barnett, Jesse Ertz

Del Miller wishes he could take credit for seeing something special within Kody Cook that led him to use the receiver as a quarterback midway through his senior season.

Alas, he cannot.

The move was made purely out of necessity, almost like hitting the panic button. When Kansas State’s top four passers all went down with injuries before a game at Oklahoma State, Cook was the best remaining option. Any other explanation would be a lie.

“What I saw was an able body that could still get out on the field,” said Miller, K-State’s co-offensive coordinator and quarterback coach. “He is about all we had left. I am being very honest with you, we didn’t have many choices. Kody was one of the guys who could still do it.”

The move paid dividends, though not that day. Cook led K-State to a come-from-behind victory over West Virginia in the final game of the regular season and now is pushing to start in the Liberty Bowl. But the Wildcats would rather not use an emergency quarterback next season.

Odds are they won’t have to. K-State will have an epic quarterback derby on its hands beginning at spring practice, with as many as six passers vying for playing time.

Opening-day starter Jesse Ertz is ready to practice after recovering from a torn anterior-cruciate ligament. So is freshman Alex Delton, who also missed most of the season with a knee injury. Jonathan Banks has shown signs of progress during bowl practice, and will be ready to go as a redshirt sophomore.

Joe Hubener will return as a senior after taking most of the snaps this season. Northern Illinois transfer Landon Root, from Wichita Collegiate, will make his case for inclusion. And four-star recruit Skylar Thompson will enroll early and be on campus next month.

“It is going to be tremendous,” K-State co-offensive coordinator Dana Dimel said. “It is going to be an interesting thing for us to find a way to get all these guys the reps they need to bring them along. But it will be a good problem.”

Defensive coordinator Tom Hayes is also looking forward to the return of injured players on that side of the ball, senior safety Dante Barnett in particular.

Barnett, a preseason all-conference selection, suffered an injury in the opener and missed the remainder of the season. Defensive backs Kaleb Prewett, Danzel McDaniel, Morgan Burns and Nate Jackson also missed time.

“Coach (Bill) Snyder asked me one day in a staff meeting, ‘Tom, who do we have back there this week?’ ” Hayes said. “It was just a swinging door. There were guys going down right and left.

“It started right away with Dante Barnett getting hurt in the first game, a three-year returning starter and, to me, our most experienced and seasoned starter. That was a big blow. We have since then lost a few more.

“But it is the next man up business we live in. We all know that, and you can’t spend a lot of time talking about injuries. Nobody wants to listen to it, anyway. We don’t use it as an excuse.”

Still, the addition of Barnett could seriously bolster K-State’s defense next season. Hayes said they tried to get him back into the lineup this year, but as the season went on he showed a desire to redshirt and return for a fifth season.

He did everything he could to help the team without playing this season.

“He could have taken a lot of avenues. He took the best one, which we all knew he was going to do,” Hayes said. “He is out there every single day in the middle of the stretch lines at the beginning of practice and he is encouraging our team the entire two hour practice. I’m so proud of him. I would like to have him back next year.”

McCrane once again K-State’s kicker – K-State kicker Matthew McCrane spent most of the season backing up Jack Cantele after suffering an injury in the second game, but he will once again serve as the Wildcats’ top kicker in the Liberty Bowl.

Sean Snyder, K-State’s special teams coach, said Cantele is battling an injury.

“Matt jumped right back into it,” Snyder said. “He is fueled up and healthy.”

Liberty Bowl urges fans to arrive early – With a sellout crowd expected of more than 60,000 expected, game officials are encouraging fans to arrive and to take public transportation to the game, if possible, to ease parking congestion.

The bowl is offering a free shuttle service from three locations starting at 10 a.m. before the 2:20 p.m. kickoff. More information can be found at the Liberty Bowl website.

This story was originally published December 31, 2015 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Kansas State looks forward to return of injured players Dante Barnett, Jesse Ertz."