Guest Blog from Kansas State

Continuing a tradition that been ongoing for several years, today we have a guest blog from Kansas State Blogger "Jon". He runs the K-Sate Blog "Fathead Baby". I got to ask him five questions about Kansas State and Saturday's game.

1. Since football is a zero-sum game and teams like Oklahoma go 10-1 every year, some team necessarily has to be Iowa State. Do you think that K-State can consistently compete with the sharks of the Big Twelve?

I think they can, and they've done it before. From 1997-2000, the Wildcats won 11 games or more. The problem with replicating that success today is that the South teams have gotten a lot better. Bob Stoops and Mack Brown have turned Oklahoma and Texas into powerhouses. Oklahoma State is a threat now because of a big donations from T. Boone Pickens, and Texas Tech will always be tough with Mike Leach. Right now, the North really can't compete with the South. The last North champion was K-State in 2003. KU and Mizzou are both good examples of North teams that have been slowly building. However, neither can beat the top dogs in the South. Until they do, they really don't haven't built much of anything.

2. The Wildcat Athletic Dept sent me the DVD of Kansas State's break through win against North Texas to end the long losing streak (how long was it?). Tell us how it felt as a Wildcat fan to make the big turn around under Coach Snyder.

It was technically a 16-game losing streak, but they hadn't won in 30 games (They tied KU in 1987). I don't remember any of that game because I was only 4-years-old at the time. Since I was so young when Snyder took over, I obviously don't recall the futility of K-State. That's probably the greatest gift Snyder gave K-State: A generation of fans who didn't have to grow up knowing that they were the worst team in college football. Even though I don't remember the bad years, I do remember the slow growth of the program. They went from thinking up ticket schemes to fill the stadium for a conference game, to easily selling out against teams like Indiana State and Akron.

3. In New England, we like our college bands. Tell us about the Wildcat Marching band.

They're called "The Pride of Wildcat Land." One of K-State's best traditions, The Wabash, comes from its band. While the band plays "Wabash Cannonball," band members and the student section do this.

4. Tell us about the changes Coach Snyder has made with this year's team. Is this Coffman kid any good?

For starters, the 3-4 defense is gone. Instead they'll run a base defense with four linemen, two linebackers and five defensive backs to combat the spread offenses of the Big 12. Also, Snyder will probably look to drop several of the tough non-conference games former coach Ron Prince scheduled for the next few years. Snyder is a firm believer in building the team up before scheduling big-name opponents. As far as Carson Coffman goes, K-State fans have as much to learn about him as anyone else. He backed up future NFL quarterback Josh Freeman for three years and didn't take any meaningful snaps during that time. If nothing else, Coffman comes from a very good football family. His father Paul was an NFL tight end, his older brother Chase plays tight end for the Bengals and his younger brother Cameron might end up being a highly recruited quarterback for the class of 2011.

5. What can the Wildcats get out of Saturday's game? What's your prediction?

The two biggest failures of last year's team was unsound defense and poor play from the running back position. I just want to see the defense run to the ball carrier and make the tackle. No whiffs. As far as our running back, we've got a junior college recruit named Daniel Thomas who won the starting job after less than a month with the team, and I couldn't be happier. If he doesn't pan out, our running back situation could be as bad as last year. I'll be watching him closely as well. As far as UMASS goes, I'm interested to see how we stop your running back, Tony Nelson. If he's as good as you say, he might have a nice game against the Wildcats. K-State had one of the worst run defenses in the nation last year, despite playing in the pass-happy Big 12. Also, our defense is very small this year, making things easier on your offensive line.

Despite that interesting matchup, I think K-State should win uncomfortably, 48-17.

Thanks, and good luck with the rest of the season.

- Jon (Class of 2008)

Special Thanks to Jon for taking the time to visit with us!

UPDATE: Oops. One of Jon's words got changed somehow. He actually said "K-state should win uncomfortably". It's been corrected above.