Klieman, Players Discuss Final Week of Spring Practice

Apr 13, 2022 | Football

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman and select players met with members of the media on Wednesday to discuss the final week of spring practice. A complete transcript of Klieman's press conference (also streamed live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and archived here) are posted below, in addition to comments from select players.

CHRIS KLIEMAN, HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
"Alright, good afternoon. Great to see everyone. Practice 13 tomorrow. We'll have a full padded practice on 13, then we have 14 where we are back into just helmets and jerseys, clean some stuff up, get ready for the offseason or summertime for those guys, and then 15 on Saturday. Once again, due to our situation we have at the defensive line, we're just going to practice (on Saturday_. Probably the least amount of scrimmage that I have done in my time as a head coach from a spring ball session, simply because I think the other day, we were down to three defensive linemen and then we lost (Trevor) Stange, who was helping us out and Nelson Pipes was one of the three, and he's a long snapper. Pipes is doing a heck of a job. So, it's just been hard. Every time we have a drill offense versus defense, we have to supplement that with a special teams for five or six minutes to get those three kids a breath and they go hang out on the side. So, we probably will get one guy back tomorrow and Saturday to maybe get us up to four or five, but the max we've had is five. You can't function as a normal practice. So, I hope we're getting a lot better at special teams, and that was the emphasis during team period. Myself and another coach are down there doing special teams drills with everybody from old guys to young guys. Emphasizing an awful lot of things. Doing a lot of full group punt versus punt return, kick versus kick return, not to the ground but just full speed. That's an area that we know we need to improve upon. Even though we've been good, we want to be great. So, we feel good that we're getting better there. Then we'll finish up here and have those three days, and then coaches will be on the road and guys will finish up the semester."

On the fear of losing stuff that they would do during a normal spring…
"No. You always are conscious that you are getting that, but with the amount of skill kids that we have returning, we're getting all of our 7-on-7 work. For the most part all but two guys, wide receiver, running back, quarterback, defensive back, linebacker are doing some things. The only area that really isn't is the defensive line. I know that Coach (Conor) Riley's a little bit concerned that we're not blocking Eli (Huggins) and we're not blocking Felix (Anudike-Uzomah) and Nate (Matlack) and (Jaylen) Pickle and Dee Hentz (Robert Hentz II) and all these guys. So, that's the area that's not getting it, but all those kids have played enough on defense. I know Cooper Beebe and I know Duff (Christian Duffie) and those guys are wishing those guys were out there just from a competition standpoint, but I think we'll be able to get that back in August."

On figuring out the interior of the offensive line…
"We won't know till the fall. I mean, you can say a young man is getting better at being assignment sound and getting better with technique and those things, but we want to make sure we get through the fall where they're blocking a Pick (Jaylen Pickle) and Eli (Huggins) and Dee (Robert Hentz II). We've played Beebe more inside. We've been impressed with Andrew Leingang outside. He's been nicked up a little bit, but Taylor Poitier is not taking any of those snaps at all. So, it's still a work in progress. We know the guys that we're working with, but we have a long ways to go once we get to fall camp."

On the backfield behind Deuce Vaughn…
"Getting better, but constant competition. Everybody will have a day here and there. Whether it's Jordan Schippers or whether it's DJ (Giddens) and Jax (Dineen), and we've even put Seth Porter back there a little bit. We were really excited about Devin Weathers, and he's missed all of spring with an injury that happened during bowl prep. So, it 'll be a work in progress throughout fall camp."

On how much more they will go into the transfer portal after spring…
"We'll know more by the end of April after all of our meetings go, because once we get done with spring ball, the coaches will meet with the players individually and then I'll meet with players throughout the rest of the month of April to see where we're at, but we have a few (scholarships) available. There's some position things that we're still looking at to see where we can maybe move a guy around internally on our roster, but we have a few that we're probably going to use, yes."

On practicing some areas that might have been ignored…
"Oh, absolutely. Just getting better at technique things on special teams, which we always work on special teams, but we're sustained 15-20 minutes on drills rather than five minutes go to the next thing, five minutes go to the next thing. We would be a group doing team stuff and everybody else down with myself and Coach (Buddy) Wyatt for this 15-20 minutes and working the details of all these drills, and then we go when we go full group punt and punt return, kickoff and kickoff return, we're seeing some of the drill work carry over into the 11-on-11 setting. So, I'm really hopeful that the reps these guys are getting is going to pay off."

On programs moving away from spring games…
"I think they are. It was always neat back in the day having a big spring game to finish it off. I was a part of 20 practices. So, you're really glad when it was done, and you'd have a spring game. I don't think people's roster sizes are big enough right now to do it. Some kids are mid-year enrollees. So, you get a few of those guys, but you know, with the revolving door of roster management, I think we have 98 guys on our roster right now. I would think 30 of those aren't practicing because of some kind of condition or surgery or something. So, you can't do much with 60 guys. It's great we've got a bunch of wide outs, but we don't have a bunch of defensive linemen so you can't scrimmage. We've got to be smart. We're trying to get everybody to the summer and everybody to the fall. You're going to win and lose the spring game no matter what. You're going to be on the winning side and losing side. Want to make sure that we get everybody to August, as healthy as we can get."

On NIL in recruiting…
"Yeah, control what you can control there, and I don't know what's going on. I'm learning more and more about things. You read about things, I don't know how accurate they are. You guys don't know how accurate they are. I know it is more prevalent right now than it was last year at this time, and how that impacts the kids that are in the portal, how that impacts the classes over the next few years that are coming in and how that impacts your current team. We're all trying to get our arms around that, but until we can get some legislation and try to corral it – which I don't think it's going to happen – I think it's going to continue to be what it is and nobody knows. All of the sudden, when will people know? Your guess is as good as mine."

On who stood out in the wide receiver room…
"RJ Garcia II is the one that stood out the most to me. I always thought he was a really talented player but was young learning the offense last year as a true freshman. Coach (Thad) Ward has him playing fast and understanding what he's doing and really attacking footballs in the air. So, you can look at the guys like Phillip (Brooks), Malik (Knowles), Kade (Warner) that have played a ton of snaps for us playing really, really well. You look at RJ continuing to improve and a guy that's getting into the mix for sure. I think Chabastin (Taylor) is healthier and doing some things that can help us. Xavier Loyd is doing some really nice things, Ty Bowman is doing some really nice things. There's Shane Porter, Seth Porter, all those guys. We're getting a lot of guys involved, but RJ would be the one that has been the most impressive to me."

On when Adrian Martinez will start throwing with the wide receivers…
"I would say in May it would be my guess. When I'm talking in May, their own 7-om-7s, their own things that they're doing. I've seen him throw, and his progression of throwing on a daily basis, weekly basis has continued to amp up. I walked by my office, and he was out there thrown with the athletic trainers throwing 40- and 50-yard balls. So, I think we're really progressing there, but I don't know how quickly that's going to be people surrounding me, let's go. It will be for sure in August. I'm hopeful that it is for him throughout their summer stuff with the guys. He does a lot of the run-game stuff, that's when you guys see him out there in pads, it's a run play. He's on an end with Will (Howard), and he's going through everything as if it's a play except for if it's a pass. So, he's running a lot of the quarterback run stuff to just under center turning and giving back on power and some of our other gaps scheme stuff. So, he's learning a bunch on the run. We've had a lot of walkthroughs, and we're going to have a few more these next few days. Not just for him, but for Taylor Poitier, for Cincere Mason, for Will Honas, for Devin Weathers, for all the guys that can't practice, so that we can simulate as best we can."

On if he would like to do some spring event in the future…
"It would be great, even if that is cut down to, we're going to practice for 45 minutes and have the younger guys scrimmage for 30 minutes. That would be neat. We just can't even do that right now."

On Cooper Beebe moving inside to guard…
"I think it's good for him. I think it's going to help him in the long term learn more about our offense and be able to help more guys, especially the younger guys. We'd like to have him at the point of attack. You're much more at the point of attack inside than sometimes you are outside unless you're just going right at that left side. So, I think he's done a nice job of challenging himself to get out of his comfort zone to learn more and more about what we do, and he's a really good communicator on the offensive line. You get an interior guy, obviously Noah (Johnson) everybody knows was such a great communicator inside out. Now you get a guy like him. I think Gilly (Hayden Gillum) has done a really good job of being a really good communicator. Hadley Panzer the same way."

On the defensive depth this spring…
"Not real deep right now. I mean, that's something, we know Khalid (Duke) is going to play. We all know that Khalid is a good enough football player. Is he going to help us more at defensive end, or is he going to help us more at Sam backer? Shawn Robinson – is he going to help us as an outside backer or as a safety? We're playing him in both spots. Kobe Savage, another new kid, is he going to help us at the strong side safety, or at the weak side safety? So, the depth is a work in progress simply because we're moving some guys around to try to make sure we either get the best 11 or the best 15 or 16 guys out there."

On the depth at linebacker…
"I think Krew Jackson's had a really good spring. We've just got to keep weight on Krew. He gets taller every day. He's all of 6-foot-6. It's just trying to keep weight on him as he continues to grow. He's got tremendous length. He's a physical kid. He's a smart player, and he's going to help us next year. He's playing some Sam backer. He's playing a ton of special teams. He's one that has stood out to me. You can tell when Daniel Green is on the field because, whether he's got older defensive linemen or younger defensive linemen, he's making plays all over the place. Austin Moore, who's been nicked up most of the spring, has been healthy the last five or six practices. He's playing really well. I'm excited about what Austin's going to be able to do. Then we don't have Nick (Allen) right now. Nick Allen would be a guy. Will Honas, we don't have Will, we think Will is in the mix there too. So, it'll be a big summer for those guys that have been injured to do some stuff on their own."

On the gap between Will Howard and Jake Rubley…
"Experience wise, Will is ahead of Jake as far as figuring things out, I think, cerebrally and what he checks at the line of scrimmage and how he sees things. He's just played more football. Jake is doing so much better of having those tough situations of we're looking like we're blitzing this way and all sudden we're coming this way, or the covers look like it's rotating weak and it's rotating strong. It just takes a while to do that. When we don't have double reps, because we're doing special teams at another end now, all those quarterbacks are taking reps. So, you're not getting quite as many as we would like. So, in fall camp, we've got to make sure and continue to push Jake so that he feels more and more comfortable. But he's improved so much from fall to spring."

On the possibility of a black uniform…
"Not that I know of, honestly, not that I know of, and part of that is us getting out to Nike sometime. It's been tough to get out there with pandemic things. That stuff takes time. My brother is in the uniform business and talking to him on a daily basis about trying to get product out with supply chain stuff. I would be nervous about purchasing something and thinking that's going to get to where it's supposed to be in time. But something that we will continue to talk about, but probably not in the near future."

On the Will backer spot…
"It's been Austin Moore, who is really the guy that's taken most of the reps. We do some 7-on-7 and Will Honas can do that, which is good. Khalid (Duke) can play a little bit of that during 7-on-7. But it's like every other position until we get a lot of these guys back from injuries, we're still trying to build depth, and so it is what it is."

On the value of Malik Knowles as an all-purpose player…
"Well, we need to continue to find ways to get him the football, and I think you guys saw that in the bowl game. Whether it's on a jet sweep to a quick little bubble or smoke screen, to crossing routes, to vertical routes as well as in the return game. He's really valuable, and we've got to continue to find ways to get him involved. What I'm excited about Malik is I think he'll be a guy that will use on punt and kickoff. He and I have had some good conversations. I've got him in some drill work, on some tackling stuff and coverage things. It's going to help him for what his true aspirations are beyond college, and I'm excited because he's bright eyed to say, 'Hey, let me help on these things.' And we need that. We need the Dalton Schoens that we're on everything, and Malik can be one of those guys."

On Sammy Wheeler…
"Leadership and taking ownership after we lost (Mason) Barta and Nick Lenners this past year. He's the old guy in the room, and I love what he's done not only on the field, but in the locker room, in the weight room around the younger guys helping those guys. He's had tough times, he's had injuries, and he's had success on the field. Sammy is a terrific football player. Now it's his time to share his knowledge with an awful lot of young guys because we have some young tight ends in that room that I think going to be really good. They need to hear that it's not always going to be easy, and Sammy would be the first one to tell you it's not easy. We're excited, and I think Sammy will be a big part of the offense."

On Malik Knowles in the Collin Klein offense…
"Well, it's going to cater toward a lot of guys' talents in the fact of if they're going to take away Malik with two guys, we're going to be able to spread the ball around to a lot of different people. If they want to pack everybody in and try to defend Deuce (Vaughn), then we have multiple receivers outside. So, just the fact that it's a little bit more up tempo and it's a little bit faster and the fact that we're getting the ball downfield as well as spreading it horizontally as well, I think that's going to fit his game."

On Will Howard's improvement…
"Confidence, accuracy and arm strength are the three things. Will has always been very, very sharp and understands what we're doing and is a really coachable guy and has a ton of pride. I'm so pleased with the progress that Will has made and excited to see where that progress can go once we get into competitive environments. He has done some things mechanically to help accuracy and arm strength as long as he continues to work on those things, which I know he will because very few people will outwork Will Howard on our football team. The kid's going to be a really, really good player. He knows he's in a position now where we've got competition for him, and he thrives on that. He's not, 'Why are you bringing somebody in?' 'I'm thriving on it. It's just going to make me better.' So, I've just seen him grow so much as a person as well as a player, but the confidence that he's playing with and those kids in that locker room believe in him. Right now, he's running a deal over at the Union for us right now, a Be The Match campaign, and he got the team involved with that. That shows you he can galvanize a football team."

On Branden Jennings transferring…
"Yeah, it just didn't work out. We wish him well. That's kind of where I'll leave it at in the fact of we're going to focus on the guys that are here. It just didn't work out, and we wish him nothing but the best."

On the decision by him and Collin Klein to increase the pace of the offense…
"Well, he and I had the conversation about it prior to the bowl game. It's something that I wanted to do as well and still you're going to win collectively as a team. Collin knows that, understands that, believes that as well that just because you don't huddle doesn't mean you're going to snap it within 12 seconds and you're going to run off 95 plays because on the other side of the ball, you're going to probably defend 93 plays, and you're not going to last. So, it's just trying to give some people a little bit different look, trying to utilize the matchups. We wanted to utilize that against LSU, the matchups that we have. It's difficult to defend Phillip (Brooks), it's difficult to defend Malik (Knowles), it's difficult to defend Deuce (Vaughn). You get all three out there, and you're going a little bit quicker, guys like Kade (Warner) make plays, guys like (Ben) Sinnott can make plays, guys like Sammy (Wheeler) can make plays. All of a sudden, everybody gets involved and there's more opportunities. Maybe it's 70 plays rather than 57. Maybe one game 75 plays rather than 59. I mean, those are more opportunities for guys to have success, but Collin and I are on the same page. If you're up 14 points, why are you going as fast as you can, trying to see how quickly you get the ball back to the other offense? Maybe you've got to slow it down, but maybe you don't allow that defense to dial up every blitz in America because you come out of a huddle. So, those are things. Yeah, we've huddled an awful lot this spring, and we'll continue to huddle some, but there's other times we're not going to huddle. I think the guys have been really excited about some of the things that we can do once we get everybody here in the summer."

On Skylar Thompson's NFL potential…
"I haven't heard enough things other than the places that he has gone as far as having really good success at a couple of visits he went to and people coming in working him out. How high people are on him, I don't know where he's at as far as where other quarterbacks are. Skylar will be on a roster and have a great opportunity to stick on a roster. I couldn't tell you where he's at as far as is he going to be a mid-round guy, a free agent guy? I just know this – the kid is a winner. He is just a flat-out winner, and he's going to make everybody around him better. Even if he's not the guy, I know his experience of being hurt and helping Will Howard game plan and help and Coach (Collin) Klein and Coach Mess (Courtney Messingham) game plan and get things ready, he'll make a great addition to a quarterback room. That doesn't mean you're going to take a ton of snaps. Easton Stick is going to hold clipboard for maybe the fourth year in a row behind a kid like Justin Herbert. It's not a bad living."

On the progress Ben Sinnott has made…
"Ben has as much ability as a tight end/fullback as anybody that we've coached in this system. His ability to be physical, to run, his ability to catch the ball in space and get open is a tough matchup for people. It's now just continuing to slow the game down for Ben, and he's got to work at it. I think Coach (Brian) Lepak has done a really good job with him as far as teaching him more of the details rather than nothing but big-picture things. Ben's got to break down the details, and if he breaks down the details of the proper footwork, the proper leverage to use, how to set people up, physically he's as gifted as anybody. I think he can be better as far as those details."

On other players embracing competition like Will Howard…
"I hope that the way Will carries himself that other guys see it, rather than having to explain, 'Hey, look what he's doing,' because other guys potentially are in that same boat. But just the way he carries himself on and off the field, what he does in the community, what he does in the locker room, I think it sets the example that we want all of our guys to be able to emulate."

On the progress from Darrel Jones and Omar Daniels…
"Darrel is really, really fast, a really good cover guy. We have to get him continuing to understand the whys of the zones and the leverage of different zones. But he's made a lot of really good plays just because he's a really good man-coverage guy. Omar's interesting because he missed most of last season with a wrist injury, came back for the bowl game as an emergency guy only, and then as we've come through spring ball – as far as defensive guys alone – he would be as a top or the top two or three of the most improved players. We're going to need him to be because right now, he's the third corner with us moving Josh Hayes to safety."

ADRIAN MARTINEZ, SENIOR QUARTERBACK
On if it is frustrating not being able to fully participate in all of practice…
"It was something I knew coming into the process. So frustration is a part of it, but I understand it and I've been patient. I know it will pay off in the long run."

On if he feels held back due to his limitations so far…
"No, I don't think I've been held back. Coach (Collin) Klein, the other quarterbacks and myself have all put a lot of work into it. Coach Klein has done a good job of trying to find ways to get me reps and getting in the film room. I don't think I've been held back in any way."

On what impressed him right away with Coach Klein…
"I would say his commitment to being a great coach and a great leader. He finds time each day to talk about something that's not related to football, and that is something that I really appreciate. I have already taken some life lessons from him."

On how it feels to be able to throw the ball again…
"I mean, it's what I love to do. So, it was great when that moment finally came, and continuing to progress and seeing that in myself is motivating. It is what keeps me going."

On what day he was cleared to throw again and how far he can throw it…
"I know it was 16 weeks post-surgery, so not too far removed. My current progression is 50-55 yards, so that is what I am working on now."

On his timeline to start doing more full 7-on-7 reps…
"I mean, as soon as possible. But again, it's important for me to stay patient, and I trust Coach Kleinman, Coach Klein, and Mindy (Hoffman), our trainer, to have the right timing for me."

On how the cohesion of the locker room has developed this spring…
"Really good. I really like this group of guys, and I am thankful that they have been so welcoming to me. Part of that is earned, and I think that they've gotten to know me, and they'll continue to get to know me and I will continue to get to know them. I feel good about it, and I feel good about our progression as a team and as a unit."

On if this summer is more important than others to connect with the receivers…
"I wouldn't say that more important is the right phrase, but every summer is important. For me, I'm going to make sure that I make the time and I'm going to make sure that those guys make the time. We'll all be there getting better."

WILL HONAS, SENIOR LINEBACKER
On how he is liking playing for Kansas State…
"It's going really well. I'm getting adjusted. It took a little bit of time when I first got here, moving in and stuff, but now that I have been here a couple of months, I really feel settled down and am excited to be here. I am working hard and trying to get back to 100% right now."

On how far along he is physically…
"Movement wise, I'm pretty close to 100%. I have been doing 7-on-7 and individual drills. Right now, I am non-contact guy. So, once I hit 12 months out, I should be good and able to do everything."

On how his own game fits in this defense…
"I think it fits well. I haven't been able to show a lot as far as taking on blocks and tackling so far, but I think my ability to make plays, tackle and take on blocks will do well in this defense."

On what K-State fans can expect from a healthy Adrian Martinez…
"He's a really exciting player to watch. He's a special athlete, and he can throw the ball really well along with run the ball really well. You can already see in practice that his movement is different from other players. He moves at a different speed. Then once he is able to throw again, the ball comes off of his hand really well, and I think that that will stand out."

On what has been the biggest difference between Nebraska and K-State so far…
"I think the four core values here really stand out to me as far as just the culture of the team. Everybody really buys into it and comes in ready to work."

MALIK KNOWLES, SENIOR WIDE RECEIVER
On how he would describe himself as an all-purpose player…
"The ability to do whatever my coach asks of me, whether it's catching the ball, running the ball, blocking, or even special teams."

On how it feels coming off of the LSU bowl game…
"It is always good to get a win. To have momentum coming from the last game and coming into the season and coming into spring ball is just something that you can build on."

On the excitement coming into the season with the new offense…
"It's really exciting to see what our offense can really be capable of doing. With Coach (Collin) Klein being the OC, he's dialing up new plays every day and giving us different looks offensively. Hopefully changing the way that we're playing."

On playing for wide receivers coach Thad Ward…
"I actually like it a lot. Coach Ward is a perfectionist, so he doesn't really let you slack or cut ways. Everything has to be perfectly his way, and he is really good on the details. It ultimately makes us better players."

On what he likes most about the new offense so far..
"Just the change. Being more diverse and the way that we have been practicing. We can hit defenses in all areas."

On the play of RJ Garcia II…
"RJ is a talented young guy. He's a true receiver and a great route runner. He has consistent hands, and we are going to use him a lot. He can play in the slot or on the outside."