Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly listed Sexton’s stats during his time at Kansas State, and has been fixed to accurately reflect those numbers. The Collegian apologizes for this error.
As a two-star athlete coming out of Abilene, Kansas, Curry Sexton was destined for an Ivy League school. Sexton then received a call from head coach Bill Snyder on New Year’s Eve, giving him a shot at his dream.
“I grew up a big K-State fan, obviously being from Abilene, it was pretty much a done deal when I got the call,” Sexton said. “I thought I wanted to be a football coach, and I thought that coming to Kansas State and being taught under coach Snyder was going to be my best option to make me a better coach. To think that I was a month away from moving out west to go to an Ivy League school until I got a call from Coach Snyder on New Year’s Eve, I’ll never forget it.”
Sexton played as a wide receiver on the Kansas State football team from 2011 to 2014. In his time at K-State, Sexton totaled 129 catches for 1,623 yards and six touchdowns.
On the playing field, Sexton was a part of some of the most memorable games in recent K-State football history.
“The 2011 season was just insane: every game was tight. But specifically that four-overtime game against [Texas A&M]. It was really the first game that I ever really made an impact on offense,” Sexton said. “My favorite memory though, by far, would have to be winning the Big 12 at home, in front of our fans. With the last game of the Dev Nelson press box being in existence and Willie getting up on top and doing the KSU chant. That has to be the best feeling in the world — it was just surreal.”
Bonding with his teammates and coaches is something Sexton never took for granted. Between coach Snyder and his teammates, Curry made many life-long memories.
“It’s a running joke with everyone who was ever coached by Snyder that we never saw coach eat. The only thing we ever saw was him drink coffee, and one practice in the morning, we saw coach eat like two saltine crackers, and we were all in awe,” Sexton said. “But after an away game, we always got Chick-Fil-A, and coach took a bite out of his sandwich and turned to Sean [Snyder] and said, ‘This is a really good sandwich.’ I don’t know why but we always found that hilarious.”
Related:
Where Are They Now?: Men's basketball's Martavious Irving
Picking fun at coach Snyder was a theme for the memories Sexton made with his teammates.
“I think the best coach memory that I have is one year [coach Snyder] tore his ACL or something in practice, and for a short period of time, he drove around in a golf cart,” Sexton said. “In fall camp, [former players] Ryan Mueller and Cody Whitehair got into a little tussle and coach came up on his golf cart and told Ryan to hop in, and coach drove him off to lecture him and eventually run more after practice, while Cody got to stay with the team.”
After college, Sexton tried to follow his lifelong dream of going pro, taking his talents to Minneapolis, Minnesota, to try out for the Minnesota Vikings. When that didn’t work out, Sexton went back home to Abilene to re-assess his future.
“I went through the whole pre-draft process and didn’t make it, so I decided that was the end of the road for me,” Sexton said. “So I moved home to my parent’s farm and actually coached with [former player] Ty Zimmerman there in Junction City for a while and realized that I was burnt out on football.”
Sexton used his time in Manhattan to excel in the classroom, graduating with business degrees in marketing and management. Now, Sexton works as an attorney in Kansas City.
“I actually decided to go to law school pretty abruptly starting in January of 2016 and graduated from Washburn Law School in 2018 and started at a law firm in December of 2019,” Sexton said.
Sexton has always been a big fan of K-State sports and still follows them to this day. There are some things that Sexton has experienced as a student-athlete that some people might not get to experience, and it gives him a unique perspective on certain things.
“Martavious [Irving] had a very good point: I think our fan base is incredible, and I know that in this day and age, social media is abrasive,” Sexton said. “Everyone has an opinion and thinks that they’re right. It is important to know that these coaches and athletes are doing everything in their power to give the fans what they deserve. At the same time, as a [student-athlete], it is important to know that even during the rough times, fans are only so hard on them because they truly do care about them and are very passionate about the team and the athletes.”
