Kansas State University Athletics
‘Playing Fast and Being Confident’
Aug 04, 2025 | Football, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Jaron Tibbs, a 20-year-old transfer from Purdue who signed with K-State on December 18, called himself a "late bloomer" at the wide receiver position, always fancying himself as a basketball player after a standout career at Catedral (Ind.) High School.
The 6-foot-2, 212-pound junior, as evidenced by video of his dramatic highlight-making high-point catch during K-State training camp, seems to be blooming into one of the most consistent pass catchers for a wide receiver group that largely lacks returning production but appears equipped with talented fresh faces eager to produce.
"He's a really savvy, confident football player," K-State wide receivers coach Matthew Middleton said after practice late last week. "These guys are hungry for development. Some have come from different places and have had different experiences. The young guys — this is what they've dreamed of."
Tibbs had five catches for 42 yards as a freshman at Purdue and ranked third among the Boilermakers with 25 catches for 305 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore. This came after the three-star recruit was tabbed as the No. 16 prospect in Indiana by 247Sports. He broke out with 61 catches for 910 yards and 13 touchdowns his senior season and was named to the 2022 Indiana Football Coaches Association All-State Top-50 team.
On his 36-hour visit to K-State, Tibbs, whose favorite route is the deep post, had a film session with Middleton and then met with the offensive staff and answered questions breaking down the intricacies of what he watched on tape.
Less than three weeks into live practice, Middleton appears impressed.
"He's a threat not only down the field but when it's thrown underneath, he's able to put a foot in the ground and get vertical and get that hidden yardage," Middleton said. "He makes contested catches as well."
Tibbs could fit nicely with defensive backs also having to chase the likes of 6-foot, 179-pound junior Jayce Brown, and potentially 6-foot-5, 223-pound senior Jerand Bradley, among others, around the football field.
Brown, who has 18 starts over a span of two seasons to his credit, owns a career 17.0-yard average per reception, which ranks eighth in K-State history and fifth in the FBS among active players, and he was the seventh-fastest player to reach 1,000 career receiving yards.
Last season, Brown tied for fourth in the FBS with seven catches of at least 40 yards and eighth with four receptions of at least 50 yards. He also posted 25 receptions of at least 20 yards, which equated to 53.2% of his total catches.
He and roommate Avery Johnson have maintained a special connection that might only further flourish in the fall.
"Jayce is more confident in himself," Middleton said. "He's taken the next step seeing defenses and knowing what's going on and asking questions. He's done a great job elevating his mental part of the game because physically he knows what to do. Jayce and Avery work really hard together."
Meanwhile, Johnson will operate with the tallest wide receiver of his K-State career this fall. Although Bradley is 6-foot-5 and 223 pounds, he runs a 4.5 40 and brings a pair of sticky hands that made some amazing catches at Texas Tech. Among his achievements? He had 51 catches for a team-high 744 yards and six touchdowns for the Red Raiders in 2022. He ranked third among FBS freshmen in receiving yards, and his 180 receiving yards against Oklahoma marked the most by an FBS freshman on the season, while it also marked the most by a Red Raider since Michael Crabtree had 195 at Texas on November 10, 2007. Bradley earned second team Freshman All-American by The Athletic.
"He's a big target that bends and moves well and is a confident player," Middleton said. "He's a dangerous threat because you can see him wherever. He has the ability to sink in transition and win competitive catches, too. He's been competing."
Oh, there's more.
Caleb Medford is a 6-foot, 211-pound senior who spent the last two seasons at the University of New Mexico after transferring from TCU. After posting 30 catches for 551 yards and two touchdowns in eight starts in 2023, Medford had 18 catches for 336 yards and three touchdowns last season.
Medford is the third Division I wide receiver who transferred to K-State during the offseason.
"He's in the mix," Middleton said. "He's competing. He's just learning what we're doing. He's a guy who's played in multiple systems and he's making sure he's right. He's coming right along."
Middleton is quick to mention a few other experienced or inexperienced pass-catchers and younger pass-catchers — "under-the-radar" prospective producers.
"Jemyri Davis has done a good job," Middleton said. "Sterling Lockett, Isaac Koch, Adonis Moise and Larry Porter IV have been doing a good job coming out and competing. Sterling has been working his butt off. He's gotten better throughout the summer and in this camp. He's another one of those veteran guys who's been around and understands me and competes and does a really good job.
"We're really impressed with how he's competed day in day out."
Hard work appears to be paying off at wide receiver. Middleton is hardly content.
"It's really playing fast and being confident in yourself and playing with really good effort," he said. "It doesn't matter your 40 times, it just matters how fast you play, how you identify things, and how you are decisive in what you're doing, and playing with effort to be in the right place. It's about continuing to promote confidence. It's making sure they learn in the classroom and are fast on the field."
In a way, it all starts with Johnson, who is regarded as one of the finest returning quarterbacks in the FBS after throwing for 2,712 yards and a school-record 25 touchdowns last season. Coupled with 605 rushing yards and seven touchdowns — many coming because of solid blocking by wide receivers — Johnson enjoyed one of the best overall seasons by a signal-caller in K-State history.
He could put up even better numbers in 2025.
Seems wherever wide receivers are on the field in training camp Johnson is also somewhere in the vicinity.
"He does a great job leading and making sure guys understand what's expected, what the standard is, and those guys respond to it and they talk to him," Middleton said. "They spend time together watching film. Avery has done a good job making sure guys are on the same page so he can feel confident and the guys can feel confident out there."
Jaron Tibbs, a 20-year-old transfer from Purdue who signed with K-State on December 18, called himself a "late bloomer" at the wide receiver position, always fancying himself as a basketball player after a standout career at Catedral (Ind.) High School.
The 6-foot-2, 212-pound junior, as evidenced by video of his dramatic highlight-making high-point catch during K-State training camp, seems to be blooming into one of the most consistent pass catchers for a wide receiver group that largely lacks returning production but appears equipped with talented fresh faces eager to produce.
"He's a really savvy, confident football player," K-State wide receivers coach Matthew Middleton said after practice late last week. "These guys are hungry for development. Some have come from different places and have had different experiences. The young guys — this is what they've dreamed of."
Tibbs had five catches for 42 yards as a freshman at Purdue and ranked third among the Boilermakers with 25 catches for 305 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore. This came after the three-star recruit was tabbed as the No. 16 prospect in Indiana by 247Sports. He broke out with 61 catches for 910 yards and 13 touchdowns his senior season and was named to the 2022 Indiana Football Coaches Association All-State Top-50 team.
On his 36-hour visit to K-State, Tibbs, whose favorite route is the deep post, had a film session with Middleton and then met with the offensive staff and answered questions breaking down the intricacies of what he watched on tape.
Less than three weeks into live practice, Middleton appears impressed.
"He's a threat not only down the field but when it's thrown underneath, he's able to put a foot in the ground and get vertical and get that hidden yardage," Middleton said. "He makes contested catches as well."
Tibbs could fit nicely with defensive backs also having to chase the likes of 6-foot, 179-pound junior Jayce Brown, and potentially 6-foot-5, 223-pound senior Jerand Bradley, among others, around the football field.
Brown, who has 18 starts over a span of two seasons to his credit, owns a career 17.0-yard average per reception, which ranks eighth in K-State history and fifth in the FBS among active players, and he was the seventh-fastest player to reach 1,000 career receiving yards.
Last season, Brown tied for fourth in the FBS with seven catches of at least 40 yards and eighth with four receptions of at least 50 yards. He also posted 25 receptions of at least 20 yards, which equated to 53.2% of his total catches.
He and roommate Avery Johnson have maintained a special connection that might only further flourish in the fall.
"Jayce is more confident in himself," Middleton said. "He's taken the next step seeing defenses and knowing what's going on and asking questions. He's done a great job elevating his mental part of the game because physically he knows what to do. Jayce and Avery work really hard together."
Meanwhile, Johnson will operate with the tallest wide receiver of his K-State career this fall. Although Bradley is 6-foot-5 and 223 pounds, he runs a 4.5 40 and brings a pair of sticky hands that made some amazing catches at Texas Tech. Among his achievements? He had 51 catches for a team-high 744 yards and six touchdowns for the Red Raiders in 2022. He ranked third among FBS freshmen in receiving yards, and his 180 receiving yards against Oklahoma marked the most by an FBS freshman on the season, while it also marked the most by a Red Raider since Michael Crabtree had 195 at Texas on November 10, 2007. Bradley earned second team Freshman All-American by The Athletic.
"He's a big target that bends and moves well and is a confident player," Middleton said. "He's a dangerous threat because you can see him wherever. He has the ability to sink in transition and win competitive catches, too. He's been competing."
Oh, there's more.
Caleb Medford is a 6-foot, 211-pound senior who spent the last two seasons at the University of New Mexico after transferring from TCU. After posting 30 catches for 551 yards and two touchdowns in eight starts in 2023, Medford had 18 catches for 336 yards and three touchdowns last season.
Medford is the third Division I wide receiver who transferred to K-State during the offseason.
"He's in the mix," Middleton said. "He's competing. He's just learning what we're doing. He's a guy who's played in multiple systems and he's making sure he's right. He's coming right along."
Middleton is quick to mention a few other experienced or inexperienced pass-catchers and younger pass-catchers — "under-the-radar" prospective producers.
"Jemyri Davis has done a good job," Middleton said. "Sterling Lockett, Isaac Koch, Adonis Moise and Larry Porter IV have been doing a good job coming out and competing. Sterling has been working his butt off. He's gotten better throughout the summer and in this camp. He's another one of those veteran guys who's been around and understands me and competes and does a really good job.
"We're really impressed with how he's competed day in day out."
Hard work appears to be paying off at wide receiver. Middleton is hardly content.
"It's really playing fast and being confident in yourself and playing with really good effort," he said. "It doesn't matter your 40 times, it just matters how fast you play, how you identify things, and how you are decisive in what you're doing, and playing with effort to be in the right place. It's about continuing to promote confidence. It's making sure they learn in the classroom and are fast on the field."
In a way, it all starts with Johnson, who is regarded as one of the finest returning quarterbacks in the FBS after throwing for 2,712 yards and a school-record 25 touchdowns last season. Coupled with 605 rushing yards and seven touchdowns — many coming because of solid blocking by wide receivers — Johnson enjoyed one of the best overall seasons by a signal-caller in K-State history.
He could put up even better numbers in 2025.
Seems wherever wide receivers are on the field in training camp Johnson is also somewhere in the vicinity.
"He does a great job leading and making sure guys understand what's expected, what the standard is, and those guys respond to it and they talk to him," Middleton said. "They spend time together watching film. Avery has done a good job making sure guys are on the same page so he can feel confident and the guys can feel confident out there."
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