Rapid Recap: Kansas State spring ball notes

Kansas State needs depth

During a press conference just before the beginning of spring ball, Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman acknowledged the lack of experience and depth at quarterback but also at running back as well after key departures.

The Wildcats know what they have in Avery Johnson. They also know what they have in DJ Giddens. Part of spring ball will be figuring out the rest.

Klieman expressed excitement about seeing Jacob Knuth perform and develop. It’s up to him to take that next step and grab the No. 2 spot by the horns if he wants it. The same can be said of the backfield with unknown commodities like Joe Jackson and the true freshmen but also walk-on LaJames White.

Early June signing period

The K-State head coach couldn’t have sounded more supportive of the new proposal that has been floated on the recruiting front. He is a fan of the potential early signing period happening at the end of June.

It allows schools to know their classes a little better and have the knowledge to work around that at an early stage. They also feel that kids generally know where they want to go at that portion of the calendar because many take official visits in June.

Additionally, Klieman is in favor of lessening the load in the December, which is already home to the transfer portal period, conference championships and bowl games. Taking one item off the to-do list that month or at least lessening it is seen as a plus.

Positions of intrigue

When asked what positions he was curious to see the most in March and April, Klieman immediately referenced the offensive line and linebacker spots. Those answers would have been at the top of my list as well.

Remember, though the Wildcats return Carver Willis, Hadley Panzer and Taylor Poitier, they are rebuilding the offensive line after four multi-year starters have departed. They’ve added transfer Easton Kilty, and the Kansas State coach admitted that they’ll count on Andrew Leingang, Sam Hecht and John Pastore.

Linebacker is a mixed bag at this point. They have two veterans worth relying on in Desmond Purnell and Austin Moore. But that doesn’t consider that K-State has guys that have moved into the linebacker room from another spot and out of the room to another position.

Injuries to Asa Newsom and Jake Clifton also make it an unknown.

QB/WR game

A subtle detail during Klieman’s press conference was his description of Matt Wells and what he and new Kansas State offensive coordinator Conor Riley will be tasked with during the Spring. They will be inputting their own flavor to the offense.

The exciting part of that is that it will revolve around the passing game. They want to simplify some of the passing game to unlock it even further and make it more efficient and effective. They believe it will help the receiver room fulfill its potential instead of being overwhelmed and stuck in neutral.

Klieman even revealed that Wells will be sharing and implementing some of his own ideas when it comes to the K-State passing game. He was excellent at that phase and excelled in those areas while at both Utah State and Texas Tech.

Not only that, it was interesting to see how teammates described the new starting quarterback at Kansas State. Of course they were going to rave and be complimentary of Johnson. But it was the stuff not related to skill that stood out.

All of Klieman, Panzer and Jadon Jackson quickly alluded to how smart Johnson is and how he quickly can understand and comprehend complicated concepts, translate it to the field but also detect and diagnose defenses and frequently make the correct read and/or decision.

K-State reloading on edge

We know the Wildcats will be younger on the edges of the defensive line. Gone are Nate Matlack and Khalid Duke. K-State still has Brendan Mott and Cody Stufflebean and also a few guys that will play both inside and out such as Malcolm Alcorn-Crowder and Jevon Banks.

Everyone else they’ll depend on will be short on experience. However, Klieman wants everyone to know that they will not be short on talent. He’s very excited about Jordan Allen and Chiddi Obiazor. He thinks that Tobi Osunsanmi could take off as well and they added a younger transfer in Travis Bates.

Even Ryan Davis and Donovan Rieman got a mention.

Standout transfer addition

While I have already highlighted Bates and Kilty, a transfer that was singled out by Chris Klieman without being directly asked about was safety Jordan Riley. He arrives in Manhattan after a very, very good career at Ball State.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise. Not only was Riley an accomplished player at a lower level but K-State seems to always have productive transfers in the secondary each year. Last year it was Marques Sigle and he couldn’t have lit up more when asked about Riley.

Both Klieman and Sigle shared positive words for just how hard he works, how badly he wants to win, his competitive nature and the way he conducts himself on a daily basis. They don’t get more mature or driven than Riley.