The Kansas State Wildcats are the football team for Kansas State University. This team plays in the Big 12 Conference, which is part of division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAAF). The NCAAF odds for this team are constantly changing due to their turbulent playing history.
This team has an all -time high losing streak of 561-667-1 since the end of the 2022 season. Although, there have been some recent highs for this team as well, which shows signs that they are slowly improving. This is mainly thanks to their head coach, Chris Klieman.
Read on to learn everything you need to know about the Kansas State Wildcats.
Team History
The majority of sources claim that Kansas State’s football team debuted on Thanksgiving Day 1893. St. Mary’s College was defeated 18-10 by the Kansas State squad. Other accounts state that on November 3, 1894, Kansas State defeated a team from Abilene, Kansas, 24-0. However, the team’s 14-0 defeat to Fort Riley on November 28, 1896, is the first game in its history to be officially documented.
Every year during the program’s early years, a new coach, typically a previous college football player who had recently graduated from college, was hired.
In 1913, Kansas State agreed to join the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The school began to enjoy consistent success after a few years of conforming to the league’s entry requirements and a higher standard of competition.
Between the 1920s and 1930s, these were the best years for this team for its sustained success on the field. Due to losing various games in a row and the constant coach changes, the team struggled to retain their dominance.
It wasn’t until the 1960s, the team started to slowly turn things around. Yet, this wouldn’t be enough. The 2022 season was considered their first good playing season in many years, hence, now people think they may have a chance to start to win once again.
Past And Present Coaches
Kansas State Wildcats have had many coaches over the years. This includes Fay Moulyon, Wade Moore and Cyrus E. Dietz, who were some of the initial coaches for this team.
There man many noteworthy coaches of the Kansas State Wildcats, that you should be aware of:
- Vince Gibson – During 1967 to 1874, Gibson, under quarterback Lynn Dickey, earned the team their first victory in over a decade. The team was playing better than they had ever before under Gibson.
- Jim Dickey – While his time as coach, during 1978 to 1985, had its ups and down, Dickey helped the team reach the 1982 Independence Bowl. This was the team’s first ever appearance in the schools’ history.
- Bill Snyder – The team really started to make improvements with Bill Snyder, who was the head coach during 1989 to 2005. He then came out of retirement to coach the team once more from 2009 to 2018. Under Snyder, the team reached many finals and were seen as true contenders.
- Chris Klieman – Klieman is the current coach for the team. He has surpassed expectations from most NCAAF news outlets, since he has led the team to many finals so far.
Bowl Games
Kansas State has participated in 24 bowl games, going 10-14 overall. The squad’s latest bowl game performance came in the 2022 Sugar Bowl versus Alabama, when they lost 45–20.
The 1982 Independence Bowl served as the team’s inaugural bowl contest, which was coached by Jim Dickey. In that game, the Wildcats were defeated 14-3 by the Wisconsin Badgers.
The team’s subsequent bowl game occurred in 1993, the first of Kansas State’s 11 consecutive bowl games under coach Bill Snyder, which continued through the 2003 campaign. In the history of collegiate football, this is the 21st longest bowl streak.
Home Field
The squad has played its home games in the Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium, formerly known as KSU Stadium, since 1968. There were 35,000 seats in the stadium when it first opened.
Four thousand permanent seats on the east side and three thousand temporary seats on the west side were added during the summer of 1970. After the 1998 campaign, the east side of the stadium’s capacity was enlarged to over 50,000 with the installation of a balcony and sky suites.
At home games, you will see the official color of the Kansas State Wildcats, which is royal purple. In addition, the Kansas State marching band will perform at every bowl and home game.
Honor Players
The university retired the number 11 jersey in honor of renowned Kansas State Wildcats quarterbacks Steve Grogan and Lynn Dickey. The football program has only ever retired this one number.
Since 2002, the names and jersey numbers of the recognized athletes have been displayed on the east side of the stadium’s exterior. This includes, Jaime Mendez, Mark Simoneau, Clarence Scott, and Gary Spani.
Conclusion
There is a lot of promise with the Kansas State Wildcats, but they are known for their long losing streaks. However, under Klieman, there is a lot more hope for this team.
We hope this article has given you a clearer understanding of the Kansas State Wildcats.