When it comes to K-State spring football, it is way too early to make legitimate predictions for the upcoming season. Nonetheless I will make an attempt to show how stupid or smart (lucky) I am by doing it anyway.
Let's start with Daniel Thomas. Thomas led the Big 12 in rushing yards last season. Mind you, Thomas never played running back at the Division-I or junior college level.
I predict Thomas will not only eclipse last year's totals, but he will also win the Doak Walker award for the nation's top running back and be a first team All-American. Thomas looked stronger, faster, and more agile in this year's spring game. Thomas needs to show NFL general managers that he can catch the ball out the backfield, but besides that, Thomas is a first-round pick talent.
He is not fast by any stretch but bulls over defenders and always falls forward. The scary part is that he is making less cuts and moves even quicker up field. Oh yeah, the offensive line is also better.
Brodrick Smith, the native of Garden City, Kan., sat out a year after transferring from Minnesota. There did not seem to be much rust for Smith as he looked amazing in the spring game. I think Smith will continue the great lineage of K-State wide receivers and win the Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year award. As great as Brandon Banks was, his size was a huge question mark, and it is hard to design your offense around someone who is 5-foot-6 inches tall. Smith provides the quarterback with a big-bodied target with great hands, something K-State has lacked for quite a while. I predict Smith will catch 70 balls and gain 800 yards.
Carson Coffman will be the 2010 starter. Coffman looked great in the spring game. He looked comfortable in the pocket. This could be credited to a great offensive line who did not have to combat with blitzes. I did not see Collin Klein play because of an injury, but head coach Bill Snyder has always valued experience. It seems hard to believe Klein will win the job considering he could not beat out Grant Gregory last year whose shoulder was barely usable.
Lastly, K-State will win the Big 12 North title. Thomas is the best back in the nation. The Wildcat defense is better than advertised, and the offense will be better as a whole. K-State should have won the North a year early. Bo Pelini was completely out-schemed by Snyder last year, but the offense was unable to overcome a couple of early scores by Nebraska.
The Wildcats 2010 home schedule is favorable. Snyder is back, and this team is not outstanding by any stretch. There are plenty of questions, but if I trust one man to answer them, it is Snyder. The Big 12 is in a state of flux, and those players in the locker room have to feel comfortable after their near-North title. This team is going to be hungry to avenge its season-ending loss in Lincoln.
Circle your calendars; October 7 is going to be the showdown where K-State cements itself as the best team in the North.
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