Snyder Begins Building Football Staff

MANHATTAN, Kan. Shortly after being named the 34th head football coach at Kansas State, Bill Snyder began assembling his coaching staff with the announcement of Kansas native and former Wildcat Joe Bob Clements as an assistant coach responsible for directing the Wildcat defensive ends.

Clements, a 1999 Kansas State graduate who previously served on Snyder’s Wildcat coaching staff, has spent the past season at Kansas, where he coached the Jayhawks’ defensive line and tutored All-Big 12 selections Caleb Blakesley and Jake Laptad. Prior to his stint in Lawrence, Clements was an assistant coach (defensive line) at San Diego State in 2006 and 2007, which included a role as the Aztec’s recruiting coordinator in 2007.

But, Clements will now return to his alma mater where he was a part of 10 bowl games as both a player and coach and served a total of seven seasons on Snyder’s staff, the final three as an assistant coach in charge of the defensive ends from 2003-05. He also served as the Wildcats’ recruiting coordinator in 2004 and 2005.

In his first year mentoring Kansas State’s defensive ends in 2003, Clements’ unit helped the Wildcats lead the nation in sacks. The unit was also integral in helping K-State finish the year sixth in the nation in total defense, eighth in scoring defense, 12th in pass efficiency defense and 17th in rushing defense.

It marked the second straight season that the Wildcats finished in top 10 nationally in both total and scoring defense, and the seventh consecutive year that K-State ranked in the top six in total defense.

While at K-State, Clements coached one of the most prolific defensive ends in school history, Andrew Shull, who ranks among the top 10 in three sack categories in school history and was a second team All-Big 12 selection in 2003.

And Clements’ touch also continued in 2004 and 2005 as Scott Edmonds was named second team All-Big 12 by the Dallas Morning News in 2004 and Alphonso Moran garnered Freshman All-America and All-Big 12 honors in 2005.

Clements began his coaching career at K-State in 1999, spending the first of two seasons as a student assistant before moving up to a graduate assistant role working with the secondary from 2001-02.

A standout player in his own right, Clements came to Kansas State as a walk-on before earning a scholarship prior to the 1996 season. He went on to earn four letters and appear in 41 games during his career, finishing with 107 tackles, including 18 for loss and 7.5 quarterback sacks.

Clements twice recorded nine tackles in a game, both coming against Nebraska (10/4/97 and 11/14/98), and was a second team All-Big 12 pick by the Kansas City Star in 1998 as well as being an honorable-mention pick by the league’s coaches.

The son of former Emporia State football player Bob Clements and a native of Emporia, Kan., Clements earned his bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Kansas State in 1999.

He and his wife, Pelusa, have four children, Orianna, Chance, Emma and Kaden.

k-statesports.com

Kansas State University Athletics

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