Shortly after 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, January 31, inside the Cliff Rovelto Indoor Track, junior Vienna Lahner, over the final 50 meters of her fateful run, saw the yellow numerals upon the screen slowly turn, as if almost creeping, as if the universe, pulling for her in this golden moment and cheering her on, slowed down time. Then, in a flash, Lahner crossed the finish line at the DeLoss Dodds Invitational, her heart racing, the sweat pouring, as she stood in her Kansas State uniform, and awaited the final result.
They applauded him. When they heard the news, the Toledo football players lined the hallway inside the football facility and patiently waited to enter the office of special teams coordinator Stanton Weber, who had served the Rockets well for three strong years, and who was named a finalist for the 2024 Special Teams Coordinator of the Year by FootballScoop in addition to the American Football Coaches Association 35 Under 35 Leadership Institute.
As he reached the center of the team theater room at the Vanier Family Football Complex for the first time as Kansas State associate head coach and wide receivers coach, a grinning Thad Ward late last week issued a question.
He brings five years of defensive coordinator experience and has spent six years with Big 12 Conference teams, and now first-year Kansas State defensive coordinator Jordan Peterson, upon assembling talented players from the transfer portal and evaluating current players, knows what he wants the identity of the Wildcats' defense to be in the fall — and beyond.
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