Wildcats Open 2018 with Visit from South Dakota

K-State embarks on the 2018 season, the 27th under Hall of Fame head coach Bill Snyder, on Saturday night at 6:10 p.m., inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The contest will be shown on ESPN3 and also available on the WatchESPN app with Brian Smoller (play-by-play) and former Wildcat tight end Travis Tannahill (analyst) on the call.

The game can be heard across the 39-station K-State Sports Network with Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play), former K-State quarterback Stan Weber (analyst) and Matt Walters (sidelines) calling the action. The game will also be on Sirius channel 126, XM Channel 201 and in addition to the TuneIn app. Live stats are available at k-statesports.com, and Twitter updates (@KStateFB) will also be a part of the coverage.

A LOOK AT K-STATE
• K-State boasts 35 returning letterwinners – including 14 starters – from a team that went 8-5 in 2017.
• The Wildcats played their best football at the end of the year by winning five of their last six games, highlighted by a victory at No. 10 Oklahoma State and capped with a Cactus Bowl victory over UCLA.
• Although Bill Snyder is back for a 27th year, he is flanked by two new coordinators in Andre Coleman (offense) and Blake Seiler (defense), two of the seven assistants on staff that played and graduated from Kansas State.
• K-State returns two quarterbacks who started four games last season in Alex Delton and Skylar Thompson, who have been battling for starting duties since the spring.
• The running game is solidified by the Wildcats' leading rusher a year ago, Alex Barnes, as well as Justin Silmon and Dalvin Warmack. Barnes, who ran for 819 yards last year, has 1,261 yards in his career, while Silmon has 1,044 career yards as they are the first set of 1,000 career rushers in K-State history to enter a season together.
• The Wildcats have the benefit of having all five returning starters along the offensive line back for another year, one of just five FBS teams to return 65-of-65 starts along the offensive line from 2017.
• Defensively, All-Big 12 performers Trey Dishon (DT) and Reggie Walker (DE) are back, as are a trio of starters in the secondary in cornerback Duke Shelley (30 career starts) and safeties Kendall Adams (28 starts) and Denzel Goolsby (13 starts).
• For a second-straight year, the Wildcats must replace every regular starter at linebacker.
• Inexperience also shows up in special teams as the Wildcats are replacing their regular punter, kicker and long snapper in the same season for the first time since 1999.
• K-State also must find replacements for both of its regular return men from a year ago.

A LOOK AT SOUTH DAKOTA
• South Dakota, which is receiving votes in both the Preseason FCS Coaches Poll and STATS FCS Top 25, is coming off an 8-5 campaign in 2017, its second under head coach Bob Nielson.
• The Coyotes advanced to the 2017 FCS Playoffs, defeating No. 22 Nicholls State before falling to No. 5 Sam Houston State.

A LOOK AT THE SERIES
• K-State leads the all-time series, 4-0, as the Wildcats won in 1980, 1981 and 1982 before a 34-0 blanking of the Coyotes in 2015.
• The Wildcats' average margin of victory in the four games is 28.75 points.

SEASON/HOME OPENERS
• K-State owns an 83-34-5 (.701) record all-time in season openers, including a 23-3 (.885) mark under Bill Snyder.
• K-State holds a 90-27-5 (.758) record all-time in home openers.
• Under Snyder, the Wildcats are 24-2 (.923) in their home debut.

SEASON NO. 123
• Saturday's contest marks the beginning of the 123rd season of football at Kansas State.
• The Wildcats enter the year with an all-time record of 526-640-41 (.453).
• Of the 526 wins, nearly 40-percent have come under Bill Snyder (210 wins).

NON-CONFERENCE NOTABLES
• Since 1990, K-State has won 76 of its 87 (.874) regular-season non-conference games under Bill Snyder, including 66-of-70 (.943) at home.
• K-State has had perfect regular season non-conference ledgers in 15 of the last 25 years.

SNYDER IN SEPTEMBER
• Fast starts have propelled the Wildcats to winning seasons under Bill Snyder. Since 1992 under Snyder, K-State is a combined 67-9 (.882) in September.
• Of the losses, six came on the road, as the Cats are 54-3 (.947) in September home games during that stretch.
• K-State is riding an eight-game winning streak in September home games (Last loss: 20-14 loss to Auburn in 2014).
• Since Snyder's return to the sidelines in 2009, K-State is 25-6 (.806) in the month of September.

CATS NEED A QUICK START
• K-State will be looking to break a trend of slow starts it has developed the last three years. The 2015 Wildcats started out 3-6 before winning their final three to make a bowl. In 2016, K-State started 3-3 before winning six of its final seven, including a Texas Bowl win. Last year, the Cats started 3-4 but won five of their final six with a Cactus Bowl victory.
• It is especially important this year as the Wildcats will play five of their 12 games – and four of their seven homes games – prior to October 1 for the first time since the 2006 season.

ONE OF THE BIG 12'S BEST
• K-State is one of only three teams in the Big 12 to reach 100 league wins since the league's inception in 1996.
• The Wildcats also rank third in the conference in winning percentage since round-robin play began in 2011. They sit at .651 (41-22), trailing only Oklahoma (.810; 51-12) and Oklahoma State (.698; 44-19).
• During that stretch, the Wildcats are 22-10 (.688) at home in Big 12 play and 19-12 (.613) on the road.
• K-State, picked sixth by the league's media in the Big 12 preseason poll, has finished in the top four of the conference in five of the last seven years.

HOME SWEET HOME
• Since 1990, K-State holds a 148-38-1 (.792) record when playing at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, including a 72-5 (.935) mark in non-conference games.
• The Wildcats will be looking to bounce back from a 4-3 home record in 2017.
• Last year was just the third time since head coach Bill Snyder returned to the sidelines in 2009 that the Wildcats have won fewer than five home games.

THE HALL OF FAMER
• The architect of the "greatest turnaround in the history of college football," Bill Snyder enters his 27th season at K-State in 2018.
• Snyder is just the fourth person in the history of college football to be inducted into the Hall of Fame as an active coach when he was enshrined in 2015.
• Snyder, who has 210 wins, is one of just six coaches to reach the 200-win mark and coach at only one school.
• Holding 171 more victories than any other coach in K-State history, Snyder ranks first in the FBS in wins among coaches at their current schools and second in total wins among active coaches (FBS schools only).
• Snyder has 123 conference wins to stand as one of four coaches with 100 Big 8/12 victories (Tom Osborne [153], Bob Stoops [121], Barry Switzer [100]).

TWICE AS NICE
• Bill Snyder is one of two FBS coaches all time to have two different tenures at one school and record at least 70 wins each time after winning 136 games from 1989-2005 and 74 games since 2009.
• Snyder joins Vanderbilt's Dan McGugin, who had 95 wins from 1904-17 and 102 wins from 1919-34.
• There are only 11 teams in the FBS that have had the same head coach since 2009. Of those, only Nick Saban, Dabo Swinney, Mike Gundy and Snyder have won at least six games every year over the nine-year span.

CHANGE IS IN THE AIR
• Although consistency has been seen at the top in head coach Bill Snyder, this year marks the first time in quite a while that there was significant changes on the coaching staff.
• The Wildcats have two new coordinators as wide receivers coach Andre Coleman takes over the reins on offensive, while linebackers coach Blake Seiler will man the defensive coordinator position.
• It marks the first time in the middle of a Snyder tenure that the Wildcats will replace both coordinators in the same season since 1997 (1996 OC – Dana Dimel; 1997 OC – Ron Hudson; 1996 DC – Bob Cope; 1997 DC – Mike Stoops).
• Additionally, the Wildcats hired three new assistant coaches in Brian Norwood (Co-Defensive Coordinator/Secondary), Zach Hanson (Tight Ends) and Eric Hickson (Running Backs).

SUSTAINABLE SUCCESS
• Kansas State is in rare company in college football as the Wildcats rank in the top 20 in wins among FBS programs over the last 23 seasons.
• Since 1995, K-State has picked up 191 victories, which ranks 19th in the nation.
• Among current Big 12 teams, only Oklahoma (3rd; 219), Texas (13th; 203) and TCU (t14th; 196) rank higher.

BOWL STREAK CONTINUES
• In an era of college football where nearly 80 teams play in bowl games each year, K-State is one of just 16 FBS schools nationally to ride of streak of at least eight-consecutive bowl berths.
• The eight-year bowl streak is tied for 13th nationally with only Oklahoma (4th; 19) and Oklahoma State (10th; 12) ranking higher in the Big 12.

DRAWING FIRST BLOOD
• Since 1990, K-State is 165-34 (.829) when scoring first.
• K-State is 19-5 in that department over the last four seasons, including a 5-3 mark in 2017.
• Under Bill Snyder, K-State is 152-27 (.849) when scoring first.

QUICK OUT OF THE GATE
• Kansas State has started out games strong over the last two seasons with an average halftime advantage of 18.5 to 11.5
• The biggest disparity in that has been the second quarter with the Wildcats totaling 301 second-quarter points over the last two years (11.6 ppg) to opponents' 171 (6.6 ppg).

LEADING AT THE HALF
• Under Bill Snyder, the Wildcats are 179-11 (.942) when leading at halftime, including a 60-4 (.938) mark in Snyder's second tenure, which began in 2009.
• The Wildcats finished the 2017 campaign with a 7-1 record when leading at the half.
• The lone blemish last season was against No. 9 Oklahoma when the Wildcats led, 21-10, at halftime before the Sooners scored a touchdown with seven seconds left in the game to win, 42-35.

FILLING THE BILL
• Attendance at K-State games has been at an all-time high over the last five years as K-State is one of just three teams – joining Oklahoma and Nebraska – to rank in the top seven in percentage of capacity filled each of the last five seasons.
• Each of the last seven home openers since Bill Snyder's return – dubbed the "K-State Family Reunion" – have been sellouts with an average of 51,500 fans in attendance.

CARDIAC CATS
• The 2017 Wildcats notched wins in three games in which they trailed by at least 10 points. It was the most comeback wins in a season when overcoming a double-digit deficit.
• Additionally, it was just the third time a Big 12 team won three games in a season in which they were trailing by 10-plus points in the round-robin era (2012). The other teams were Baylor (2012) and Oklahoma State (2015).
• At Texas Tech, K-State trailed, 35-24, with less than 10 minutes left but scored the game's final 18 points – a field goal, touchdown and two-point conversion in regulation and a touchdown in the first overtime – for a 42-35 win.
• In the regular-season finale against Iowa State, K-State trailed, 19-7, with less than seven minutes remaining but scored a pair of touchdowns – including one on the final play – to earn a 20-19 victory.
• Lastly, K-State trailed UCLA, 17-7, at halftime of the Cactus Bowl but outscored the Bruins, 28-0, in the second half for a 35-17 win.
• K-State's victories against Texas Tech and Iowa State marked the first time in school history the Wildcats had two wins in a season when trailing by double digits in the fourth quarter.
• The 11-point comeback at Texas Tech was the largest road deficit overcome for a win in school history.

CATS TOPS IN NON-OFFENSIVE TDs
• K-State is the nation's best in non-offensive touchdowns over the last 19 seasons as it has 111 since 1999, eight more than the next closest team and one of only two to top 100.
• The Wildcats are averaging 5.8 non-offensive touchdowns per year since 1999, while the yearly average for the other 105 teams to play FBS football since 1999 is 3.3.
• Kansas State has at least five non-offensive touchdowns in six of the last seven years, which includes three last year by 2018 returners. Two of them came from Kendall Adams, who had both a pick-six and a fumble-return touchdown against Charlotte, while Duke Shelley returned an interception for a score at Texas Tech.
• Since 1990, the Wildcats are 62-17 when scoring on special teams and 20-1 when scoring on special teams and defense, including an 18-0 mark under Bill Snyder.
• Conversely, K-State has not allowed a non-offensive touchdown since the 2015 Oklahoma game, a Big 12-leading streak of 33-straight games. The next closest team is Oklahoma with a 24-game streak.

NON-OFFENSIVE TD RECORDS
• Under head coach Bill Snyder, K-State is 75-21 (.781) when scoring a non-offensive touchdown, while the Cats are 56-14 (.800) since 1999 in that department.
• Since Snyder returned to the sideline in 2009, K-State is 31-7 (.816) in this same category.

THESE CATS ARE SMART
• Not only does K-State have a reputation of being one of the best in the Big 12 on the field under Bill Snyder, but the same mentality applies in the clasroom.
• K-State leads the conference with 111 Academic All-Big 12 selections over the last four years, which is 31 more than the team in second place (Oklahoma State: 80).
• The Wildcats tallied a school record 29 selections in both 2014 and 2016, while they had 25 in 2015 and 28 a year ago.

OFFENSIVE NOTES
GROUND ATTACK
• K-State has leaned on its rushing game the past two years, including the 2017 season when the Wildcats tied for third in school history in rushing yards per carry (4.98) and finished seventh with 2,584 total rushing yards.
• The Wildcats were especially tough to stop the final three games of the year – all wins – as K-State averaged 223.3 rushing yards per game.
• The stretch was capped by a 344-yard rushing output in the Cactus Bowl victory over UCLA, the most rushing yards ever by K-State in a bowl game.
• Dating back to the 2016, K-State has hit the 200-yard mark on the ground in 15 of its last 22 games.

PROTECTING THE FOOTBALL
• Kansas State has been one of the nation's best in limiting turnovers during the last two years as the Wildcats are the only team to rank in the top 10 nationally in fewest turnovers lost in both 2016 and 2017.
• The Wildcats tied for fifth in 2016 with 12 turnovers lost (7 INT, 5 FUM), while they tied for eighth a year ago with 13 (5 INT, 8 FUM).
• K-State's 25 total turnovers in 2016 and 2017 is its fewest in a two-year stretch since at least 1955-56. The closest the Wildcats have come since then was the 2011-12 seasons when they totaled 27.

LONG DRIVES
• In the era of quick-strike offenses in college football, K-State was a team that liked to possess the ball as, in 2016, 39 of the Wildcats' 64 scoring drives were seven plays or longer.
• That figure included 19 scoring drives of 10 or more plays, and 19 scoring drives that lasted at least five minutes.
• The Wildcats became more of a quick-strike offense in 2017 as 21 of their 45 touchdown drives were four plays or less (46.7-percent), while 36 drives (80.0-percent) were four minutes or shorter.

GOIN' DEEP
• The Wildcats ranked 13th in the nation last year in passing yards per completion (14.48), their highest ranking in that department since the 2013 squad ranked eighth (14.83).
• Last year's figure was impressive considering K-State started three quarterbacks and had multiple QBs take snaps in seven of its 13 games.
• Among the returning signal callers, Skylar Thompson averaged 13.5 yards per completion, while Alex Delton averaged 13.0.

QUARTERBACK BATTLE
• One of the biggest storylines for Kansas State this offseason has been the quarterback battle between Alex Delton and Skylar Thompson, both of whom started four games last year.
• It is one of the fiercest QB battles K-State has had since Jake Waters and Daniel Sams were competing for the No. 1 spot in 2013.
• If Delton were to take the first snap this season at quarterback, he would become just the second Kansas native to start a season opener at quarterback under Bill Snyder, joining Dylan Meier (2004).
• If Thompson takes the first snap, it would mark the fifth time under Snyder a sophomore started the season opener (Jesse Ertz in 2015; Dylan Meier in 2004; Ell Roberson in 2001; Paul Watson in 1989).

FAST TO 1,000
• Running back Alex Barnes became the 29th player in school history with 1,000 career rushing yards, a mark he eclipsed during the Texas Tech game last season.
• In doing so, he was just the fourth player in school history to reach the 1,000-yard barrier prior to the end of his sophomore season, while he was the second fastest player to reach 1,000 career yards in terms of carries (152), just five behind Darren Sproles (147).

DOUBLE 1,000-YARD RUSHERS
• Alex Barnes and Justin Silmon each joined the career 1,000-yard club during the 2017 season as Barnes enters his junior year with 1,261 yards and Silmon begins his final campaign with 1,044 yards.
• Last year marked the fifth time in school history that two running backs with 1,000 career rushing yards were on the same team.
• However, the duo of Barnes and Silmon will be the first set of Wildcat running backs ever to enter a season with 1,000 rushing yards in a career.

RETURN OF THE O-LINE
• K-State returns all 65 total starts along the offensive line from 2017 to 2018, the first time under Bill Snyder all available starts from the previous year return for the next.
• The Wildcats are one of just five FBS teams – joining Northern Illinois, Utah State, Wake Forest and Wisconsin – to return 65-of-65 starts along the offensive line from 2017.
• Additionally, K-State is the only Power 5 team with five returners on the offensive line all grading out better than 80.0 by Pro Football Focus heading into 2018.
• Four of the positions bring back 13-game starters in tackle Scott Frantz, guards Abdul Beecham and Tyler Mitchell, and center Adam Holtorf.
• Right tackle Dalton Risner, a senior in 2018, started all 12 regular-season games but did not play in the Cactus Bowl due to injury. Nick Kaltmayer started in his place en route to All-Bowl honors from ESPN, and he is back for his junior campaign.

RISNER LEADS THE CHARGE
• The top returning offensive lineman is senior right tackle Dalton Risner, a Preseason All-American by multiple outlets entering this season.
• A product of Wiggins, Colorado, Risner was one of the Wildcats' top-graded offensive linemen in recent history as he ended the regular season grading out at a 90.7 mark according to Pro Football Focus (PFF), the highest-graded returning offensive tackle in 2018.
• His ranking includes a 98.9 mark on pass blocking efficiency to tie for the fourth-highest among FBS tackles in 2017.
• Risner, who is ranked as the 10th-best overall player player – and the top offensive lineman – entering 2018 by PFF, has given up only 24 quarterback pressures over his 1,116 career pass blocking snaps (2.15-percent) entering his senior year. According to PFF, 69 FBS offensive tackles gave up more than that figure last year alone.

LEADER ON THE FIELD, IN THE COMMUNITY
• Dalton Risner has been a leader on the field for the Wildcats, being named a captain each of the last three years.
• Risner is just the fifth player in program history to be named a captain three times, joined by Brooks Barta (1990-92), Mark Simoneau (1997-99), Collin Klein (2010-12) and B.J. Finney (2012-14).
• The leadership by Risner does end on the field as he two-time candidate for the Wuerffel Trophy and AFCA Good Works team, both of which honor players for their community service.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
UNDER AVERAGE
• Although it plays in a high-powered offensive league, K-State was outstanding in terms of keeping opposing teams well below their season scoring average in 2017.
• The Wildcats held eight of their final 10 opponents to score less than their season averages entering the game.
• The only two foes to not score less were Oklahoma – which scored 42 points when averaging exactly 42.0 – and Texas – which was averaging 34.5 points and needed two overtimes to top that mark.
• Additionally, the Wildcats began the year by holding each of their first four opponents under 21 points, doing so for the first time since 2002 and just the sixth time since 1990.

TOUGH AGAINST THE RUN
• The Wildcats, who ranked 13th nationally in 2017 by allowing only 117.7 yards per game on the ground, are one of only four teams to rank in the top 15 nationally in run defense each of the last two years, joining Alabama, Wisconsin and Ohio.
• K-State was able to accomplish the feat by surrendering less than 100 rushing yards six times, including two against ranked foes (No. 6 TCU – 98 yards; No. 10 Oklahoma State – 85 yards).
• The Wildcats topped the season by surrendering only 69 yards on 25 carries (2.8 yds/rush) in the Cactus Bowl win over UCLA.

PICKING THEM APART
• The Wildcats have notched at least one interception in 37 of the last 50 games, with a majority of those coming from returners in 2018.
• K-State returns 12 interceptions from a year ago, its most returning picks since the 2012 squad brought back 16. Seniors Kendall Adams and Duke Shelley each have five picks, while Denzel Goolsby recorded a pair in his first season as a starting safety last year.
• Adams (Charlotte) and Shelley (Texas Tech) had both of K-State's interception-return touchdowns a year ago.

FEW STARTS IN THE SECOND LEVEL
• For the second-straight year, K-State returns limited career starts at linebacker as Elijah Sullivan is the only one with starts under his belt after starting just two games last year.
• Last season, the Wildcats were the only Power 5 school to not bring back a single start at the second level of the defense from 2016.
• The Wildcats are not void of game experience, however, as senior Sam Sizelove (33 career games played) and junior Justin Hughes (six games) each have game action at K-State, while Eric Gallon II played in 15 games with one start at Virginia before transferring to K-State prior to the 2017 season.
• K-State is also looking forward to seeing the contributions from Da'Quan Patton, a community-college All-American two years ago at Trinity Valley CC.

SHELLEY LOOKS FOR BIG SENIOR YEAR
• Senior Duke Shelley is back for his final campaign as he leads an experienced defensive backfield.
• Shelley, who burned his redshirt five games into his true freshman season, enters 2018 with 27 career passes defended, which includes five interceptions.
• His 27 passes defended are tied for the sixth most among active players entering 2018 and tied for 18th in school history.
• Of Shelley's five career picks, two have been returned for touchdowns to tie for fourth in K-State history.

WALK THIS WAY
• Junior Reggie Walker already has multiple accolades through the first part of his career, but he is looking to take his game to another level.
• A 2017 Honorable Mention All-Big 12 pick, Walker recorded 6.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks last year, which was a dip in production from his freshman season.
• As a freshman in 2016, Walker was named the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year after totaling 11.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks.
• Walker has still built up enough cache, however, as he was named the watch list for the Ted Hendricks Award for a second-consecutive year.

DISHON DIGS IN
• Junior defensive tackle Trey Dishon will be taking on a bigger role this year with the loss of fellow interior lineman and three-time First Team All-Big 12 performer Will Geary.
• Dishon does have the benefit of experience, however, starting all 25 of his career games played, including all 13 a year ago en route to Honorable Mention All-Big 12 accolades.
• The Wildcats also have returning options for the spot beside Dishon in junior Joe Davies, who played in 12 games last year after transferring from community college, and Drew Wiley, a true freshman last year who played in every game.
• K-State also added Jordan Mittie, a graduate transfer from Texas State who has two years of eligibility remaining. Mittie, who was an All-Sun Belt player a year ago, is the son of K-State women's basketball head coach Jeff Mittie.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
SOLID SPECIAL TEAMS
• Kansas State has annually had one of the best special teams units in the nation, and 2017 was no different.
• K-State ranked in the top 25 nationally in kickoff-return defense (2nd), punt returns (10th) and kickoff returns (14th).
• For the collective special teams efforts, coordinator Sean Snyder was named the 2017 Special Teams Coach of the Year by Phil Steele.
• The Wildcats boasted four All-Big 12 players on special teams in place kicker Matthew McCrane (first team), returner D.J. Reed (first team), punter Nick Walsh (second team) and Byron Pringle (honorable mention) picking up honors.
• Additionally, Reed was a Second Team All-American as he became Snyder's fifth All-American in just seven years coordinating the special teams.

SCORING IN THE THIRD PHASE
• Kansas State has been far and away the best team among FBS programs over the last decade when it comes to scoring via a kickoff or punt return.
• The Wildcats have a combined 47 kickoff- and punt-return touchdowns since 2005, 19 more than any other FBS school over the last 13 seasons.
• K-State averages 3.6 return touchdowns per year. The yearly average for the other 116 teams to play FBS football since 2005 is 1.1.

DEFENSE IN THE THIRD PHASE
• On the flip side, K-State has been just as consistent in terms of kickoff and punt coverage.
• The Cats have not allowed a kickoff-return touchdown in the last 63 games as the last was against Louisiana on Sept. 7, 2013. During that stretch, K-State has defended against 244 kickoff returns.
• K-State surrendered only 16.6 yards on kickoff returns in 2017, its best mark since 2000.
• The Wildcats have also not allowed a punt-return score in the last 50 games, the last being at Iowa State on Sept. 6, 2014. The Wildcats have successfully defended against 67 punt returns during that stretch.

KICKOFF-RETURN STREAKS
• Kansas State is currently riding a pair of streaks in terms of kickoff returns as the Wildcats have returned a kick for a touchdown in each of the last 13 seasons – the longest streak in the nation by five years.
• Since head coach Bill Snyder's return in 2009, K-State has returned 19 kickoffs for touchdowns as opposed to only four in his first tenure, which lasted 17 years.
• Kansas State also is the only Power 5 team in the country to finish in the top 15 in kickoff-return average each of the last three seasons.
• Additionally, D.J. Reed earned First Team All-Big 12 honors, marking the 12th-straight year a Wildcat received all-conference honors for the discipline.
• Of the 29 First Team All-Big 12 returners in conference history, 12 (41.3-percent) have come from K-State to lead the league. The next closest team is Colorado, which had four.
• The Wildcats are currently riding a streak of five-straight First Team All-Big 12 returners, which is the longest streak in conference history.|

REPLACING SPECIALISTS
• Kansas State will be searching for a new place kicker, punter and long snapper as all three from last year – Matthew McCrane, Nick Walsh and Drew Scott – graduated.
• This will be the first time since 1999 that K-State will not return its primary player at all three positions. The 1998 squad featured a trio of seniors in place kicker Martin Gramatica, punter James Garcia and long snapper Brandon Knowles.
• However, this won't be the first time K-State will replace both the place kicker and punter in the same year in recent history under Bill Snyder as the Wildcats did so in 2013 (lost Anthony Cantele [pk] and Ryan Doerr [p] from 2012) and 2004 (lost Joe Rheem [pk] and Jared Brite [p] from 2003).
• McCrane and Walsh each earned All-Big 12 honors throughout their careers, while McCrane was a semifinalist for the 2017 Lou Groza Award and Walsh was a two-time Ray Guy Award candidate.
• Scott served as the primary long snapper over the final two years of his career as he was successful on 260 snaps during that stretch.

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Players Mentioned

Kendall Adams

Alex Barnes

Abdul Beecham

Joe Davies

Alex Delton

Trey Dishon

Jesse Ertz

Scott Frantz

Eric Gallon II

Will Geary

Denzel Goolsby

Adam Holtorf

Justin Hughes

Nick Kaltmayer

Matthew McCrane

Tyler Mitchell

Jordan Mittie

Da'Quan Patton

Byron Pringle

D.J. Reed

Dalton Risner

Drew Scott

Duke Shelley

Justin Silmon

Sam Sizelove

Elijah Sullivan

Skylar Thompson

Reggie Walker

Nick Walsh

Dalvin Warmack

Drew Wiley

Kansas State University Athletics