SE: K-State Football Notebook – As Camp Continues, Playmakers Emerge
Aug 28, 2020 | Football, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
My favorite K-State football quote this month came from freshman DE Felix Anudike on a tour of K-State's campus during his first day of college classes.
"It's just kind of amazing that the theme is castles," Anudike said. "So like, every building looks like a castle. Even the football stadium looks like a castle."
This isn't meant to be dramatic, but I have thought to myself "the theme is castles" every time I've stepped on campus at Kansas State since that video was shot.
It might the best soundbite of fall camp and it has absolutely nothing to do with the reason why the K-State coaching staff is so fired up about Anudike.
After three weeks of practice in Manhattan, playmakers are starting to emerge on both sides of the ball. Here are a few scribbles on who's stepped up near the halfway point of fall camp.
Underclassmen to Watch
It's not just that K-State has seen freshmen raise the bar in their first fall camp this year, but that those contributions have come at defensive end, where added depth could be massive for the Wildcats.
Start with Anudike, who defensive ends coach Buddy Wyatt singled out this month as one of the team's emerging freshmen on the defensive line.
"Felix has really been impressive," Wyatt said. "He's shown some natural instincts for playing the position and rushing the quarterback that I haven't seen from a lot of true freshmen."
When you only return one starter on the front four, it doesn't hurt that it's a guy like junior Wyatt Hubert. However, the cupboard is hardly bare behind the All-Big 12 defensive end.
For an idea of what Anudike could become for K-State, look no further than sophomore DE Khalid Duke. The Georgia native was a third-down pass rushing specialist for the Wildcats as a true freshman last season and he's been a revelation in camp.
Wyatt Hubert called him "a baller" and Coach Wyatt said he "could be one of the best defensive ends in the conference if he continues to improve."
"He's definitely a God gifted defensive end. He's about 6-foot-4, 240, great quickness, great size, and great football instinct," Hubert said. "Obviously he's a young guy with not much playing experience but that will come over time."
It could be the ultimate trick question for Big 12 offensive lines this year: How do you spend the week game-planning to stop Hubert, when you've also got to worry about a position group full of young players with something to prove?
Transfer Talent
The Wildcats added D1 talent through the transfer portal on both sides of the ball this summer, starting with TE Briley Moore.
The graduate transfer from Northern Iowa has unique ties to the program, competing against his new head coach when the Panthers faced Chris Klieman at North Dakota State. Moore has also known his new quarterback since he and Skylar Thompson were elementary schoolers in Missouri.
It all made sense for Moore in Manhattan.
"That's one of the biggest reasons going into transferring, my fingers were crossed, 'I hope K-State calls. I hope K-State calls,' because of the things that I've seen them do with their tight ends while I was at Northern Iowa," Moore said. "I texted [Skylar] later that day after I had talked to K-State a couple of times. It was almost a no-brainer from there."
Moore missed most of his senior season at Northern Iowa with a shoulder injury, but was the best receiver on the field for the Panthers in 2018 with 536 yards and four touchdowns.
On the other side of the football, the Wildcats added Minnesota graduate transfer Kiondre Thomas at defensive back. Thomas started four games for the No. 10 team in the country a season ago and will give the Wildcats another experienced weapon in the secondary.
"Throughout the recruiting process, this was the staff that I felt most comfortable with," Thomas said. "Coach Klieman had a pretty good winning culture at North Dakota State, and I knew that would translate well here in the Big 12. That's just something I wanted to be a part of for my last year."
Thomas will also have the chance to reunite with assistant coach Brian Anderson, who coached the wide receivers during his freshman season at Minnesota.
Safe to say, his new head coach has already been impressed.
"He's done a great job. He's a really competitive young man. I'm excited for him that he's taken the challenge to come to K-State to help our team, to help himself," Klieman said. "He's going to play an awful lot for us…We're really excited about Kiondre (Thomas) joining our program, and he's going to have an impact this year."
My favorite K-State football quote this month came from freshman DE Felix Anudike on a tour of K-State's campus during his first day of college classes.
"It's just kind of amazing that the theme is castles," Anudike said. "So like, every building looks like a castle. Even the football stadium looks like a castle."
Best place to be 😸
— K-State Football (@KStateFB) August 19, 2020
First day on campus with @C_Vaughn22 and @fanudike#KStateFB pic.twitter.com/qaE3lERznU
This isn't meant to be dramatic, but I have thought to myself "the theme is castles" every time I've stepped on campus at Kansas State since that video was shot.
It might the best soundbite of fall camp and it has absolutely nothing to do with the reason why the K-State coaching staff is so fired up about Anudike.
After three weeks of practice in Manhattan, playmakers are starting to emerge on both sides of the ball. Here are a few scribbles on who's stepped up near the halfway point of fall camp.
Underclassmen to Watch
It's not just that K-State has seen freshmen raise the bar in their first fall camp this year, but that those contributions have come at defensive end, where added depth could be massive for the Wildcats.
Start with Anudike, who defensive ends coach Buddy Wyatt singled out this month as one of the team's emerging freshmen on the defensive line.
"Felix has really been impressive," Wyatt said. "He's shown some natural instincts for playing the position and rushing the quarterback that I haven't seen from a lot of true freshmen."
When you only return one starter on the front four, it doesn't hurt that it's a guy like junior Wyatt Hubert. However, the cupboard is hardly bare behind the All-Big 12 defensive end.
For an idea of what Anudike could become for K-State, look no further than sophomore DE Khalid Duke. The Georgia native was a third-down pass rushing specialist for the Wildcats as a true freshman last season and he's been a revelation in camp.
Wyatt Hubert called him "a baller" and Coach Wyatt said he "could be one of the best defensive ends in the conference if he continues to improve."
"He's definitely a God gifted defensive end. He's about 6-foot-4, 240, great quickness, great size, and great football instinct," Hubert said. "Obviously he's a young guy with not much playing experience but that will come over time."
It could be the ultimate trick question for Big 12 offensive lines this year: How do you spend the week game-planning to stop Hubert, when you've also got to worry about a position group full of young players with something to prove?
Transfer Talent
The Wildcats added D1 talent through the transfer portal on both sides of the ball this summer, starting with TE Briley Moore.
The graduate transfer from Northern Iowa has unique ties to the program, competing against his new head coach when the Panthers faced Chris Klieman at North Dakota State. Moore has also known his new quarterback since he and Skylar Thompson were elementary schoolers in Missouri.
It all made sense for Moore in Manhattan.
"That's one of the biggest reasons going into transferring, my fingers were crossed, 'I hope K-State calls. I hope K-State calls,' because of the things that I've seen them do with their tight ends while I was at Northern Iowa," Moore said. "I texted [Skylar] later that day after I had talked to K-State a couple of times. It was almost a no-brainer from there."
Moore missed most of his senior season at Northern Iowa with a shoulder injury, but was the best receiver on the field for the Panthers in 2018 with 536 yards and four touchdowns.
On the other side of the football, the Wildcats added Minnesota graduate transfer Kiondre Thomas at defensive back. Thomas started four games for the No. 10 team in the country a season ago and will give the Wildcats another experienced weapon in the secondary.
"Throughout the recruiting process, this was the staff that I felt most comfortable with," Thomas said. "Coach Klieman had a pretty good winning culture at North Dakota State, and I knew that would translate well here in the Big 12. That's just something I wanted to be a part of for my last year."
Thomas will also have the chance to reunite with assistant coach Brian Anderson, who coached the wide receivers during his freshman season at Minnesota.
Safe to say, his new head coach has already been impressed.
"He's done a great job. He's a really competitive young man. I'm excited for him that he's taken the challenge to come to K-State to help our team, to help himself," Klieman said. "He's going to play an awful lot for us…We're really excited about Kiondre (Thomas) joining our program, and he's going to have an impact this year."
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