MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Collin Klein nearly won a Heisman Trophy while playing quarterback at Kansas State a little more than a decade ago.
His formative years as a college football coach happened there, too.
So when Chris Klieman informed Gene Taylor — suddenly, and quite unexpectedly — that he was stepping down as the head coach of the Wildcats last December, it was Klein's name that immediately popped into the athletic director's head.
Klein had left
Kansas State a couple of years earlier to serve as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M, yet he remained a beloved figure in the Flint Hills. And his work helping the Aggies reach the College Football Playoffs last year only underscored a well-earned reputation as one of the bright, rising minds in the coaching profession.
“It was," Taylor said, “probably the easiest decision I've ever made. ”
Now it's time to see whether it has paid off.
The Wildcats, who qualified for a bowl game in each of Klieman's last five seasons, begin a season of high hopes and lofty expectations when they play Nicholls State on Saturday night. It will be the first time that Klein runs into Bill Snyder Family Stadium as the man in charge — the same run he once made as a player, then years later as an assistant coach.
“It's definitely a lot, for sure,” Klein said of the emotions involved. “I remember running out of that tunnel for the first time against North Texas as a true freshman, and that's what I want for every one of our players. This is not — any part of it — about me. It's about our players. And that's what gets me so excited about that moment for them.”
It won't be a new experience for many of Klein's players, and in an era of transfer portals and NIL payments in which rosters turn over annually, that stability is a good thing. Klein brings back veteran quarterback Avery Johnson, standout running back Joe Jackson and a number of other players who had formed the backbone of the Wildcats the past couple of seasons.
One of them is tight end Garrett Oakley, who was part of the team when Klein was still the offensive coordinator.
“It's really cool to see him come back,” Oakley said. “I knew what kind of person he was. I knew what kind of coach he was. I know the fans are super excited, but I think we're more excited to show what he's done for us, and put on a show for his first game.”
Many things will look familiar to Kansas State fans on Saturday night.
The offense will bear a resemblance to those run by longtime coach Bill Snyder, back when the Wildcats won the Big 12 title in 2012, and Klein finished behind Johnny Manziel in the Heisman Trophy voting. Johnson figures to tap into his speed as a true dual-threat QB, and Jackson will become the bell-cow running back after Dylan Edwards decided to transfer.
Meanwhile, the defense under new coordinator Jordan Peterson — who followed Klein from Texas A&M — plans to establish the kind of dominance that the Wildcats once displayed under assistants such as Jim Leavitt and Bob Stoops.
Even the mentality within the Kansas State football program bears a striking resemblance to yesteryear.
Snyder was famous for having 16 goals for success, such as consistency, leadership and responsibility. Klieman pared it back to four core values during his tenure in Manhattan. Now, Klein has put in place seven principles he plans to use as his north star: commitment, unselfishness, discipline, integrity, relentless effort, no self limitations and expect to win.
They are “the things that were most important to me,” Klein explained, and “have carried forward for a very, very long time.”
“Commitment being the first for a very specific reason, that you have to buy into whatever you’re doing and whatever you want to be a part of,” he continued. “Integrity being the center — in the middle — because that’s who we are and the core of what we are. Expect to win being the last one, (because) if these steps are followed and we work our process the right way, there is not a field we step on that we don’t expect to be successful.”
The first chance to step on the field comes against Nicholls State on Saturday night.
___
Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college football coverage here
