‘It’s One of the Most Fun Years I’ve Had’
Nov 16, 2023 | Football, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
The pride of Piper High School and native of Kansas City, Kansas, All-American left guard Cooper Beebe was typically planted in front of the TV each year when Kansas State played Kansas on the football field.
"Absolutely," he says. "As someone from the state of Kansas that was the game you had to watch every year."
He doesn't remember his first K-State/Kansas experience growing up, "but I know we won," he says.
He'd like to maintain those winning ways as No. 21 K-State, 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the Big 12 Conference, visits No. 25 Kansas, 7-3 and 4-3, in Saturday's 6 p.m. kickoff at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas.
The Wildcats look to make it 15 straight wins over their in-state rivals.
"It's a game we talk about all year," he says. "(Kansas) believes this is their year. It's going to be a fun game for sure."
This will mark the fourth Sunflower Showdown that the 6-foot-4, 335-pound Beebe will play in for the Wildcats.
There was a time when the second-rated offensive guard in the Power 5 this season by Pro Football Focus briefly contemplated forgoing his senior season and entering the 2023 NFL Draft.
But the draw to someday potentially have his name enshrined in the K-State Football Ring of Honor, the chance to be a willing mentor to his brother (Camden Beebe is a K-State freshman offensive lineman), and the opportunity to spend another year with his fellow returning offensive linemen for the defending Big 12 Champions made it an easy decision to return to Manhattan.
He carries no regrets.
"It's one of the most fun years I've had," he says. "Even though we won the Big 12 last year, being around this group of guys is special. That's one of the reasons I came back was the dudes in the locker room. They make it fun."
A mid-season All-American by the Associated Press, CBS Sports, ESPN, Sporting News and The Athletic, Beebe is a Campbell Trophy finalist and Lombardi Award semifinalist, while he is also the first K-State player ever to be named a semifinalist for the Outland Trophy.
Last Thursday, he accepted an invitation to play in the 2024 Reese's Senior Bowl, one of the most important steps on the way to the 2024 NFL Draft.
"I'm very blessed to be in this position," Beebe says. "I want to go out and prove to the world that I can compete with the best, and that's what you're going to get at the Senior Bowl. I think a lot of people talk about 'Big 12 this' and 'Big 12 that,' but I want to prove that I can compete with the SEC and the Big Ten and all those schools."
Beebe, originally recruited as a defensive tackle, has started 45 career games along the Wildcat offensive front, including each of the last 42 contests. He saw a streak of 1,042 pass blocking plays without a sack allowed end against Houston, according to PFF — a streak that lasted 36 full games.
He played all over the line during the first six games of 2023, starting each game at left guard (320 snaps), while also seeing time at right tackle (106 snaps) and left tackle (20 snaps) before resuming his role at left guard.
He has even played three snaps at defensive tackle over the last two games at No. 7 Texas and against Baylor.
"I joked with Coach Klieman that you look at the hierarchy of two-way players, and you've got Terence Newman and right below you have Cooper Beebe," Beebe says. "It was fun. They asked me to (play defensive tackle) and I said, 'Of course.'"
K-State's season has been no laughing matter. The Wildcats remain in the hunt for back-to-back berths in the Big 12 Championship Game and have a chance of reaching double-digit wins for a second straight year — something that the Wildcats last accomplished in 2011 and 2012.
It was after a 29-21 loss at Oklahoma State in Game 5 that the Wildcats reached a turning point. They sat with a 3-2 record and in need of momentum. They discovered it from within.
"After the Oklahoma State loss is when dudes really started to take ownership of the team and get that edge back," Beebe says. "We thought (the Cowboys) weren't better than us, but they played better than us and got the win. We felt that we had a way better team than we showed.
"After that game, we regrouped and got it back on track, and that's when we found our edge."
After facing Kansas, the Wildcats return home to close out their regular season against Iowa State.
"As a younger guy in the program, every senior says it flies by, and here we are two games left in the regular season," Beebe says. "It's flown by."
He hopes that his career might inspire Kansas kids in upcoming years.
"Man, just don't let anybody tell you that you can't," he says. "I never thought I'd be in this position ever. I just put my head down and kept working and it all worked out for me. When in doubt, just keep working hard and things are going to work out for you."
The pride of Piper High School and native of Kansas City, Kansas, All-American left guard Cooper Beebe was typically planted in front of the TV each year when Kansas State played Kansas on the football field.
"Absolutely," he says. "As someone from the state of Kansas that was the game you had to watch every year."
He doesn't remember his first K-State/Kansas experience growing up, "but I know we won," he says.
He'd like to maintain those winning ways as No. 21 K-State, 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the Big 12 Conference, visits No. 25 Kansas, 7-3 and 4-3, in Saturday's 6 p.m. kickoff at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas.
The Wildcats look to make it 15 straight wins over their in-state rivals.
"It's a game we talk about all year," he says. "(Kansas) believes this is their year. It's going to be a fun game for sure."
This will mark the fourth Sunflower Showdown that the 6-foot-4, 335-pound Beebe will play in for the Wildcats.
There was a time when the second-rated offensive guard in the Power 5 this season by Pro Football Focus briefly contemplated forgoing his senior season and entering the 2023 NFL Draft.
But the draw to someday potentially have his name enshrined in the K-State Football Ring of Honor, the chance to be a willing mentor to his brother (Camden Beebe is a K-State freshman offensive lineman), and the opportunity to spend another year with his fellow returning offensive linemen for the defending Big 12 Champions made it an easy decision to return to Manhattan.
He carries no regrets.
"It's one of the most fun years I've had," he says. "Even though we won the Big 12 last year, being around this group of guys is special. That's one of the reasons I came back was the dudes in the locker room. They make it fun."
A mid-season All-American by the Associated Press, CBS Sports, ESPN, Sporting News and The Athletic, Beebe is a Campbell Trophy finalist and Lombardi Award semifinalist, while he is also the first K-State player ever to be named a semifinalist for the Outland Trophy.
Last Thursday, he accepted an invitation to play in the 2024 Reese's Senior Bowl, one of the most important steps on the way to the 2024 NFL Draft.
"I'm very blessed to be in this position," Beebe says. "I want to go out and prove to the world that I can compete with the best, and that's what you're going to get at the Senior Bowl. I think a lot of people talk about 'Big 12 this' and 'Big 12 that,' but I want to prove that I can compete with the SEC and the Big Ten and all those schools."
Beebe, originally recruited as a defensive tackle, has started 45 career games along the Wildcat offensive front, including each of the last 42 contests. He saw a streak of 1,042 pass blocking plays without a sack allowed end against Houston, according to PFF — a streak that lasted 36 full games.
He played all over the line during the first six games of 2023, starting each game at left guard (320 snaps), while also seeing time at right tackle (106 snaps) and left tackle (20 snaps) before resuming his role at left guard.
He has even played three snaps at defensive tackle over the last two games at No. 7 Texas and against Baylor.
"I joked with Coach Klieman that you look at the hierarchy of two-way players, and you've got Terence Newman and right below you have Cooper Beebe," Beebe says. "It was fun. They asked me to (play defensive tackle) and I said, 'Of course.'"
K-State's season has been no laughing matter. The Wildcats remain in the hunt for back-to-back berths in the Big 12 Championship Game and have a chance of reaching double-digit wins for a second straight year — something that the Wildcats last accomplished in 2011 and 2012.
It was after a 29-21 loss at Oklahoma State in Game 5 that the Wildcats reached a turning point. They sat with a 3-2 record and in need of momentum. They discovered it from within.
"After the Oklahoma State loss is when dudes really started to take ownership of the team and get that edge back," Beebe says. "We thought (the Cowboys) weren't better than us, but they played better than us and got the win. We felt that we had a way better team than we showed.
"After that game, we regrouped and got it back on track, and that's when we found our edge."
After facing Kansas, the Wildcats return home to close out their regular season against Iowa State.
"As a younger guy in the program, every senior says it flies by, and here we are two games left in the regular season," Beebe says. "It's flown by."
He hopes that his career might inspire Kansas kids in upcoming years.
"Man, just don't let anybody tell you that you can't," he says. "I never thought I'd be in this position ever. I just put my head down and kept working and it all worked out for me. When in doubt, just keep working hard and things are going to work out for you."
Players Mentioned
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