Austin Peay transfer Travis Bates commits to Kansas State
Kansas State has had a busy weekend of recruiting in the transfer portal. Former Austin Peay defensive end Travis Bates has committed to K-State.
It was a fast and furious recruitment for Bates and the Wildcats. After trying to sneak the Austin Peay transfer in on a visit, Kansas State offered the defensive end on December 14 just before arriving in Manhattan.
K-State beat out a handful of Power Four teams for the Texas native’s services. Boston College, Wisconsin, and Houston all offered Bates since entering the transfer portal. The Badgers and Cougars also offered December 14, so his recruitment was taking off.
Defensive line help has been a major need for K-State recently. The Wildcats hosted Malcolm Alcorn-Crowder on an official visit last weekend and Tonga Lolohea was also on an official visit in Manhattan this weekend. Kansas State will be losing Khalid Duke, Nate Matlack and Cody Stufflebean, so defensive end help was much needed. K-State did receive some good news with Brendan Mott announcing his return to Manhattan for his super senior season.
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This season for the Governors, Bates recorded 32 tackles, 5.5 tackles for a loss, and three sacks. In his one game against Power Four competition this season, the redshirt freshman tallied four tackles and 0.5 tackles for a loss against Tennessee. For his efforts this season, Bates was named Fourth Team Freshman-All-American by Phil Steele earlier in the week.
Overall, the defensive end is commitment No. 14 for K-State in the class of 2024 and the second transfer portal addition. He is also the first defensive line commitment for the Wildcats. He joins North Dakota offensive lineman Easton Kilty as the only current transfer portal additions for the Wildcats.
The Texas native will come to Kansas State with three years of eligibility remaining, following two seasons at Austin Peay.
