Kansas State University Athletics
SE: Stick to the Plan – Five Takeaways from Early Signing Day
Dec 21, 2020 | Football, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
An offseason in college football never follows a straight path.
Signing day and the transfer portal, the spring game and summer workouts, each fills the calendar with all the twists and turns of a football game played out over almost nine months.
If that's the case, Early Signing Day in Manhattan was a perfectly scripted opening drive, free of drama and full of promise.
"That's the sign of the right kind of guys that are going to impact your program," Chris Klieman said. "We talked about that, were we worried about anybody, and we really weren't. We were very confident that these guys were going to sign, and they've been with us all along."
On Wednesday, Klieman and his staff welcomed 14 student-athletes to K-State, the first day high football school players could sign National Letters of Intent for the 2021 season.
On social media, the team's motto was "Stick to the Plan."
It makes sense, as most of these players committed to K-State months ago - Wednesday was a chance to make it official and the first opportunity for Klieman and his staff to discuss the 2021 class.
Here are five takeaways from the first big date of the offseason:
1. Putting the State in K-State
You've seen the sign on Saturdays at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Director of Football Recruiting Taylor Braet was walking around the team offices with it on Wednesday morning: We Own This State.
It's more than a motto. According to 247Sports, the Wildcats will have four of the top seven players from the Sunflower State on their roster when the 2021 season kicks off.
DaVonte Pritchard, the No. 2 player in the state (247Sports), is a player Klieman mentioned who has made a serious jump from his junior to senior season.
"I thought right away there's a kid that is a Big 12 football player," Klieman said. "[He] will come in and will strike you and was a really good athlete on offense as well, but on defense is where we will play him. DaVonte was a kid that jumped out at me really quickly who is going to be a phenomenal Big 12 defensive player."
2. Rubley Raises Eyebrows
Signing four-star quarterback Jake Rubley on Wednesday wasn't a surprise.
"He actually committed to Coach (Collin) Klein and I the day of the Liberty Bowl last year," Klieman said. "When you land someone of Jake's caliber, people take notice, and it definitely helped us."
But as the highest-rated freshman to arrive at K-State since 2007 (247Sports), Rubley has gone through a recruitment that's been years or decades in the making, depending on who you ask.
Klieman said on Wednesday that he hosted Rubley's father on his official visit to Northern Iowa back in the 1980's – T.J. Rubley went on to play four years at quarterback in the NFL.
Some things, it seems, might be genetic.
"Jake loves the game of football, and that's what you are looking for at the quarterback position," Klieman said. "Someone that's a sponge and wants to learn from Coach Klein and Coach (Courtney) Messingham and get in our system quickly. He has a really strong arm and is a really accurate player, and we are excited to add another piece to our quarterback room."
3. Building Blocks at Wide Receiver
K-State knows who their engine will be on offense in 2021 - the Wildcats can say that in December because they return the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in Deuce Vaughn.
But a proven motor hasn't stopped Klieman from working on the rest of the car.
K-State added a pair of wide receivers on Early Signing Day in RJ Garcia II out of Florida and Texas native Brenen Hawkins.
"RJ is a really talented player from Berkeley Prep," Klieman said. "Brenen Hawkins, who is a big body, 6-foot-4 wide receiver, will be here this summer as well. So, we feel good about adding two wide receivers."
After the Wildcats didn't feature a wideout who hauled in more than 20 receptions this season, K-State grabbed two receivers from some of the most competitive recruiting states in the country.
Wednesday felt like a statement of intent: K-State isn't about to become one-dimensional on offense in 2021.
Klieman spoke at length about Garcia, who trained in the offseason with former Wildcat and Tampa native Byron Pringle of the Kansas City Chiefs.
"His dad is a basketball coach, so he's grown up in the coaching world and understands it. He's a really mature player and has put on some added weight already," Klieman said. "He had a good season for them his senior year, he will be here in the summer and we're excited about him."
4. Number One in North Dakota
Klieman's coaching legacy in North Dakota was secure long before Early Signing Day.
Landing the top-ranked high school player in the state where he won four FCS national championships is a pretty impressive encore.
Andrew Leingang will shore up the offensive line for K-State in 2020, after a high school career that mirrored his new head coach's five-year run in Fargo.
"Andrew came down for our Iowa State game last year and got to see the cold, windy day and said that was a typical day in North Dakota and is really used to it," Klieman said. "Andrew knows how to win. All they do at Bismarck Century is win state championships."
Klieman would know. It's the same high school where he recruited Carson Wentz back at North Dakota State.
"People are going to enjoy getting to know Andrew," Klieman said. "Coach (Ron) Wingenbach helped us out to get another guy from Bismarck Century, and we are just thrilled to have Andrew and his family join our family."
5. The 15th Signee
Klieman spent more time talking about Gunar Reed on Wednesday than any other K-State recruit, because there isn't a high school senior in America who better embodies his program.
"We call him G-Man," Klieman said. "G-Man's been through 36 surgeries and three open heart surgeries. We had a Make-a-Wish foundation day with G-Man on our Zoom with some players a few weeks ago, and he had an impact on all of us."
The fight, the resolve, the smile on his face – Klieman said meeting G-Man put everything in perspective for him as a college football coach. He's also been a frequent Zoom call for the Wildcats this season, including as a virtual pre-game guest before K-State faced Baylor.
Simply put, G-Man is a Wildcat for life.
"To persevere and to go through what he has gone through his whole life and to do it with the pride he has," Klieman said. "Nobody is as tough as G-Man."
An offseason in college football never follows a straight path.
Signing day and the transfer portal, the spring game and summer workouts, each fills the calendar with all the twists and turns of a football game played out over almost nine months.
If that's the case, Early Signing Day in Manhattan was a perfectly scripted opening drive, free of drama and full of promise.
"That's the sign of the right kind of guys that are going to impact your program," Chris Klieman said. "We talked about that, were we worried about anybody, and we really weren't. We were very confident that these guys were going to sign, and they've been with us all along."
On Wednesday, Klieman and his staff welcomed 14 student-athletes to K-State, the first day high football school players could sign National Letters of Intent for the 2021 season.
On social media, the team's motto was "Stick to the Plan."
Stick to the Plan
— K-State Football (@KStateFB) December 16, 2020
📄 https://t.co/gdjDnNsbx9#KStateFB ⚒ #NSD21 pic.twitter.com/s3mJpeOdQc
It makes sense, as most of these players committed to K-State months ago - Wednesday was a chance to make it official and the first opportunity for Klieman and his staff to discuss the 2021 class.
Here are five takeaways from the first big date of the offseason:
1. Putting the State in K-State
You've seen the sign on Saturdays at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Director of Football Recruiting Taylor Braet was walking around the team offices with it on Wednesday morning: We Own This State.
It's more than a motto. According to 247Sports, the Wildcats will have four of the top seven players from the Sunflower State on their roster when the 2021 season kicks off.
DaVonte Pritchard, the No. 2 player in the state (247Sports), is a player Klieman mentioned who has made a serious jump from his junior to senior season.
"I thought right away there's a kid that is a Big 12 football player," Klieman said. "[He] will come in and will strike you and was a really good athlete on offense as well, but on defense is where we will play him. DaVonte was a kid that jumped out at me really quickly who is going to be a phenomenal Big 12 defensive player."
2. Rubley Raises Eyebrows
Signing four-star quarterback Jake Rubley on Wednesday wasn't a surprise.
"He actually committed to Coach (Collin) Klein and I the day of the Liberty Bowl last year," Klieman said. "When you land someone of Jake's caliber, people take notice, and it definitely helped us."
But as the highest-rated freshman to arrive at K-State since 2007 (247Sports), Rubley has gone through a recruitment that's been years or decades in the making, depending on who you ask.
Klieman said on Wednesday that he hosted Rubley's father on his official visit to Northern Iowa back in the 1980's – T.J. Rubley went on to play four years at quarterback in the NFL.
Some things, it seems, might be genetic.
"Jake loves the game of football, and that's what you are looking for at the quarterback position," Klieman said. "Someone that's a sponge and wants to learn from Coach Klein and Coach (Courtney) Messingham and get in our system quickly. He has a really strong arm and is a really accurate player, and we are excited to add another piece to our quarterback room."
3. Building Blocks at Wide Receiver
K-State knows who their engine will be on offense in 2021 - the Wildcats can say that in December because they return the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in Deuce Vaughn.
But a proven motor hasn't stopped Klieman from working on the rest of the car.
K-State added a pair of wide receivers on Early Signing Day in RJ Garcia II out of Florida and Texas native Brenen Hawkins.
"RJ is a really talented player from Berkeley Prep," Klieman said. "Brenen Hawkins, who is a big body, 6-foot-4 wide receiver, will be here this summer as well. So, we feel good about adding two wide receivers."
After the Wildcats didn't feature a wideout who hauled in more than 20 receptions this season, K-State grabbed two receivers from some of the most competitive recruiting states in the country.
Wednesday felt like a statement of intent: K-State isn't about to become one-dimensional on offense in 2021.
Klieman spoke at length about Garcia, who trained in the offseason with former Wildcat and Tampa native Byron Pringle of the Kansas City Chiefs.
"His dad is a basketball coach, so he's grown up in the coaching world and understands it. He's a really mature player and has put on some added weight already," Klieman said. "He had a good season for them his senior year, he will be here in the summer and we're excited about him."
4. Number One in North Dakota
Klieman's coaching legacy in North Dakota was secure long before Early Signing Day.
Landing the top-ranked high school player in the state where he won four FCS national championships is a pretty impressive encore.
Andrew Leingang will shore up the offensive line for K-State in 2020, after a high school career that mirrored his new head coach's five-year run in Fargo.
"Andrew came down for our Iowa State game last year and got to see the cold, windy day and said that was a typical day in North Dakota and is really used to it," Klieman said. "Andrew knows how to win. All they do at Bismarck Century is win state championships."
Klieman would know. It's the same high school where he recruited Carson Wentz back at North Dakota State.
"People are going to enjoy getting to know Andrew," Klieman said. "Coach (Ron) Wingenbach helped us out to get another guy from Bismarck Century, and we are just thrilled to have Andrew and his family join our family."
5. The 15th Signee
Klieman spent more time talking about Gunar Reed on Wednesday than any other K-State recruit, because there isn't a high school senior in America who better embodies his program.
"We call him G-Man," Klieman said. "G-Man's been through 36 surgeries and three open heart surgeries. We had a Make-a-Wish foundation day with G-Man on our Zoom with some players a few weeks ago, and he had an impact on all of us."
We signed a very special Cat today
— K-State Football (@KStateFB) December 17, 2020
Welcome home, G-Man 💜#KStateFB pic.twitter.com/uz4vBXC2t1
The fight, the resolve, the smile on his face – Klieman said meeting G-Man put everything in perspective for him as a college football coach. He's also been a frequent Zoom call for the Wildcats this season, including as a virtual pre-game guest before K-State faced Baylor.
Simply put, G-Man is a Wildcat for life.
"To persevere and to go through what he has gone through his whole life and to do it with the pride he has," Klieman said. "Nobody is as tough as G-Man."
Players Mentioned
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
OL
/ Football
LB
/ Football
QB
/ Football
RB
/ FootballK-State Football | Chris Klieman press conference - Nov. 10, 2025
Monday, November 10
K-State Men's Basketball | Head Coach Jerome Tang Press Conference - November 8, 2025
Monday, November 10
K-State Men's Basketball | Players Press Conference - November 8, 2025
Monday, November 10
K-State Women's Basketball | Game Highlights at SMU
Sunday, November 09