MANHATTAN — Kansas State’s football team went all the way through March before starting spring drills last Friday, and on Tuesday the Wildcats opened the first half hour or so of practice to media members.
In part because K-State coach Chris Klieman opted to get in an extra three weeks of conditioning with the strength staff, and because injuries have left them thin at certain position groups, the Wildcats are only using 10 of their 15 permitted practice dates. That means with Tuesday’s session they are roughly a third of the way through before finishing up at the end of the month.
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The opening half hour offered limited opportunity to see the offense and defense going head-to-head but provided some insight into which players are working with the first team. That could, of course, change when the Wildcats are presumably closer to full strength for the preseason.
Here are some observations from an abbreviated glance at Tuesday’s practice:
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Nov 2, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Kansas State Wildcats quarterback Avery Johnson (2) walks off the field to the locker room before a game against the Houston Cougars at TDECU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-Imagn Images
Quarterback Avery Johnson looking sharp
Avery Johnson started every game at quarterback last year as a sophomore and clearly has come back bigger and stronger without sacrificing any of the speed that made him a legitimate dual threat. Earlier this spring, he was one of four players on the roster to test out at 23 miles per hour.
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Johnson already possessed the arm strength to make most any throw, but his accuracy suffered at times, as evidenced by his 58.3% completion rate. He spent time during the offseason working on fundamentals, and it appears to have paid off, albeit most of the sample size Tuesday came without a defense on the field.
Johnson’s receivers with the first unit were returning starter Jayce Brown, Purdue transfer Jaron Tibbs and Boston College transfer Jerand Bradley.
Several key players sidelined by injuries
Klieman typically has not pushed veteran players returning from injury in spring practice, especially those recovering from offseason surgical procedures. While their ailments are not expected to keep them out during next season, about a dozen players were relegated to rehab work on the sidelines.
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The linebacker position is especially thin with returning starters Austin Romaine and Des Purnell, plus Asa Newsom all sitting out. Other nonparticipants on defense were starting defensive end Cody Stufflebean, veteran safety Colby McCalister, Arizona transfer safety Gunner Maldonado and freshman defensive end Brad Stanyer.
Junior lineman John Pastore, who is expected to challenge for a starting offensive tackle spot, was one of four offensive players missing from drills, along with redshirt freshman lineman Navarro Schunke, sophomore wide receiver Andre Davis and Nebraska transfer running back Gabe Ervin.
Three players — junior safety Daniel Cobbs, freshman safety Logan Bartley and freshman receiver Adonis Moise — wore red non-contact jerseys.
Who will line up in the trenches?
The five offensive lineman taking repetitions with the first team were returning starters Taylor Poitier at left guard and Sam Hecht at center, with veteran backup Andrew Leingang at right guard. Ohio State transfer George Fitzpatrick manned the left tackle spot and redshirt freshman Gus Hawkins right tackle.
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While the Wildcats have gone with a base three-man defensive front the past few years, they used four down linemen at times last season, and that’s how they lined up most of the time Tuesday, with ends Travis Bates and Tobi Osunsanmi on the outside flanking returning nose tackle Damian Ilalio and 275-pound sophomore end Chiddi Obiazor. Incumbent Stufflebean will be in the mix when he returns.
Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at [email protected] or on X (formerly Twitter) at @arnegreen.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Some obersvations from Kansas State football’s first open practice
