K-State Coordinators Discuss Iowa State
Oct 06, 2022 | Football
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State offensive coordinator Collin Klein and defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman met with members of the media on Thursday at the Vanier Family Football Complex prior to the Wildcats traveling to face Iowa State in Ames, Iowa this Saturday. Links to video and audio of both press conferences are above, and a transcript of select quotes are below.
COLLIN KLEIN, OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
On the Iowa State defense…
"Yeah, they're a really good defensive club now for sure. I mean, every level they've got playmakers. They've got good length. They're extremely fundamentally sound. They tackle well in space. You don't see very many bleeding yards, like you don't see a three-yard play turn into an eight-yard play, right? I mean, they get them sawed down. So again, fundamentally sound, they understand their scheme. They know where they're weak and what you're going to try to do and are very well coached and prepared."
On Iowa State defensive end Will McDonald…
"We have played a lot of good pass rushers and will in the future. He is definitely up there. So, it's going to be a great challenge, and I'm excited for K.T. (Leveston) and Duff (Christian Duffie) and all those guys up front to play their butts off."
On the offensive low during the second quarter of the Texas Tech game…
"It's not just one thing, like I've said before. We knew they were going to come after us. We knew they were going to be an aggressive defense. We're kind of going back and forth and couldn't pop a few things that we were trying to get done, and credit to them – they made some plays. We knew we were going to have to score touchdowns in the red zone, and ultimately did down the stretch to make sure that we needed to. We've got to do in the first quarter, we know that, but credit to our guys for hanging in there and fighting through a lull and then being able to settle back down. That's a real thing, whether it's a possession or turns into three possessions or whatever. Everybody we play is going to be good. Fighting through those highs and lows is something you've got to practice and get a feel for too."
On what he has learned most through five games as offensive coordinator…
"There's so many little things. and playcalling is probably such a small percentage of that, quite honestly, because there is so many. When you're in that week of prep the decisions that need to be made, the projections that need to be made as far as how they are going to play us out of this formation because we're a little bit different than other people. That's going to change those decisions that you make. Learning how to get ahead of the game and continuing to make sure that we're in good positions and sound things to allow our players to play fast and do their thing. I think we're doing some really good things and some different things that we haven't done for a long time, at least since I've been here. I think trying to learn how to handle that. You look at those few drives at the end of that first quarter, we came out aggressive. We were trying to be aggressive. Learning how to and when to keep your foot on the gas and when to go for the jugular, and when to just settle in and kind of weather the storm a little bit. That's a gut feel thing that all of us, from a players' standpoint and from a coaches' standpoint, we're getting a feel for it and becoming more of who we are through these different experiences, positive and negative."
On Adrian Martinez the past two weeks…
"He's been fantastic, but again, it's not all that surprising, quite honestly. I think it's just the culmination of a lot of little things. Getting on the same page and being more comfortable in the flow at every level. That's myself, each position room and then ultimately finishing on the field. But I thought his preparation is fantastic, his mindset. I think his leadership is, he's stepped up and obviously his play on the field helps that. He's taken a commanding leadership presence and role in the locker room which is great."
JOE KLANDERMAN, DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
On the Iowa State offensive playing at a different pace than recent weeks...
"Same challenge, different form because as Oklahoma and Texas Tech would do it with, as you said, just speed, getting off the line and snapping the thing really fast. Iowa State doesn't do that a ton. They do it a little bit, but they do it with the trade, shifts, and motions. So, it's not like they're going to just line up and give you 15 seconds to diagnose what they're in and every little nuance of it. They're going to move people, shift people around, and although the tempo might not be super fast, the pictures are going to change, and you're going to have to adapt to them really quickly. So, it's very similar in that way."
On Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers…
"I think he is obviously somebody I think they feel very comfortable with. Brock Purdy was such a such tremendous football player and had such good command of everything. It's hard to make a comparison to him, but I think he's certainly a guy that understands everything that they're doing. I don't see that they've changed a whole lot philosophically because they've had a change at that position. So, he's a really good football player."
On what made Khalid Duke so effective against Texas Tech…
"We've had injuries and lineup things that have been kind of in flux for a long time. So, in fairness to him, he wasn't doing what he was best suited to do. He can do that stuff just fine, but to get the most out of him he needs to be closer to the ball. There's going to be times where he's going to do that and there's going to be times where he does what he has been doing out in space. I think he plays his fastest the closer he gets to the ball. So the more we can get him in there, the better we're going to be."
On what makes Iowa State wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson dangerous…
"The fact that he catches everything and gets targeted all time. He's got good speed. He's got really good body control. I think he creates separation even if you connect on him. I think he's got tremendous range in his catch radius. I think they do a creative job of finding ways to target him. It's not always downfield stuff. We obviously have to be on top of him in his downfield stuff, but then in the same respect, when he catches balls that are in the under coverage, we've got to knock him down right away. We can't allow YAC (yards after catch) yards to beat us."
On rushing Khalid Duke and Felix Anudike-Uzomah together…
"The game is about matchups, right? You talk about Xavier Hutchinson, it's the same in the interior. If you can match up Khalid Duke with somebody, you can get a Felix in a one-on-one, you can get a Nate Matlack in a one-on-one, if you can get some of these guys opportunities, they're going to win more than they lose. That's the game, it's just trying to find creative ways to try and do that. The same way their offensive coordinator is trying to find ways to get Xavier Hutchinson the ball in space or Charlie Kolar a year ago, or whatever it was, that's what we do."
COLLIN KLEIN, OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
On the Iowa State defense…
"Yeah, they're a really good defensive club now for sure. I mean, every level they've got playmakers. They've got good length. They're extremely fundamentally sound. They tackle well in space. You don't see very many bleeding yards, like you don't see a three-yard play turn into an eight-yard play, right? I mean, they get them sawed down. So again, fundamentally sound, they understand their scheme. They know where they're weak and what you're going to try to do and are very well coached and prepared."
On Iowa State defensive end Will McDonald…
"We have played a lot of good pass rushers and will in the future. He is definitely up there. So, it's going to be a great challenge, and I'm excited for K.T. (Leveston) and Duff (Christian Duffie) and all those guys up front to play their butts off."
On the offensive low during the second quarter of the Texas Tech game…
"It's not just one thing, like I've said before. We knew they were going to come after us. We knew they were going to be an aggressive defense. We're kind of going back and forth and couldn't pop a few things that we were trying to get done, and credit to them – they made some plays. We knew we were going to have to score touchdowns in the red zone, and ultimately did down the stretch to make sure that we needed to. We've got to do in the first quarter, we know that, but credit to our guys for hanging in there and fighting through a lull and then being able to settle back down. That's a real thing, whether it's a possession or turns into three possessions or whatever. Everybody we play is going to be good. Fighting through those highs and lows is something you've got to practice and get a feel for too."
On what he has learned most through five games as offensive coordinator…
"There's so many little things. and playcalling is probably such a small percentage of that, quite honestly, because there is so many. When you're in that week of prep the decisions that need to be made, the projections that need to be made as far as how they are going to play us out of this formation because we're a little bit different than other people. That's going to change those decisions that you make. Learning how to get ahead of the game and continuing to make sure that we're in good positions and sound things to allow our players to play fast and do their thing. I think we're doing some really good things and some different things that we haven't done for a long time, at least since I've been here. I think trying to learn how to handle that. You look at those few drives at the end of that first quarter, we came out aggressive. We were trying to be aggressive. Learning how to and when to keep your foot on the gas and when to go for the jugular, and when to just settle in and kind of weather the storm a little bit. That's a gut feel thing that all of us, from a players' standpoint and from a coaches' standpoint, we're getting a feel for it and becoming more of who we are through these different experiences, positive and negative."
On Adrian Martinez the past two weeks…
"He's been fantastic, but again, it's not all that surprising, quite honestly. I think it's just the culmination of a lot of little things. Getting on the same page and being more comfortable in the flow at every level. That's myself, each position room and then ultimately finishing on the field. But I thought his preparation is fantastic, his mindset. I think his leadership is, he's stepped up and obviously his play on the field helps that. He's taken a commanding leadership presence and role in the locker room which is great."
JOE KLANDERMAN, DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
On the Iowa State offensive playing at a different pace than recent weeks...
"Same challenge, different form because as Oklahoma and Texas Tech would do it with, as you said, just speed, getting off the line and snapping the thing really fast. Iowa State doesn't do that a ton. They do it a little bit, but they do it with the trade, shifts, and motions. So, it's not like they're going to just line up and give you 15 seconds to diagnose what they're in and every little nuance of it. They're going to move people, shift people around, and although the tempo might not be super fast, the pictures are going to change, and you're going to have to adapt to them really quickly. So, it's very similar in that way."
On Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers…
"I think he is obviously somebody I think they feel very comfortable with. Brock Purdy was such a such tremendous football player and had such good command of everything. It's hard to make a comparison to him, but I think he's certainly a guy that understands everything that they're doing. I don't see that they've changed a whole lot philosophically because they've had a change at that position. So, he's a really good football player."
On what made Khalid Duke so effective against Texas Tech…
"We've had injuries and lineup things that have been kind of in flux for a long time. So, in fairness to him, he wasn't doing what he was best suited to do. He can do that stuff just fine, but to get the most out of him he needs to be closer to the ball. There's going to be times where he's going to do that and there's going to be times where he does what he has been doing out in space. I think he plays his fastest the closer he gets to the ball. So the more we can get him in there, the better we're going to be."
On what makes Iowa State wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson dangerous…
"The fact that he catches everything and gets targeted all time. He's got good speed. He's got really good body control. I think he creates separation even if you connect on him. I think he's got tremendous range in his catch radius. I think they do a creative job of finding ways to target him. It's not always downfield stuff. We obviously have to be on top of him in his downfield stuff, but then in the same respect, when he catches balls that are in the under coverage, we've got to knock him down right away. We can't allow YAC (yards after catch) yards to beat us."
On rushing Khalid Duke and Felix Anudike-Uzomah together…
"The game is about matchups, right? You talk about Xavier Hutchinson, it's the same in the interior. If you can match up Khalid Duke with somebody, you can get a Felix in a one-on-one, you can get a Nate Matlack in a one-on-one, if you can get some of these guys opportunities, they're going to win more than they lose. That's the game, it's just trying to find creative ways to try and do that. The same way their offensive coordinator is trying to find ways to get Xavier Hutchinson the ball in space or Charlie Kolar a year ago, or whatever it was, that's what we do."
Players Mentioned
DE
/ Football
OL
/ Football
DE
/ Football
QB
/ Football
DE
/ FootballK-State FB | Welcome back Collin Klein
Monday, December 08
K-State FB | Head Coach Collin Klein Radio Interview
Friday, December 05
K-State FB | Head Coach Collin Klein Official Introductory Event
Friday, December 05
K-State FB | Thank You Coach Klieman
Wednesday, December 03
