MANHATTAN — Amidst a changing college football landscape in which bowl games are less valued than ever before, Kansas State football finds itself needing a win to be eligible for one for the fifth consecutive year.
A bowl appearance could be seen as a nice consolation prize for a disappointing year that got off to a poor start, while others may see it as a nuisance. It’s unclear who might opt out and who might announce their departures from the program beforehand, either.
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But Kansas State, sitting at 5-6, sees importance in finishing the regular season with a win and playing a postseason game in the following weeks.
“It’s for the seniors; that’s the number one thing,” K-State coach Chris Klieman said. “We also want to make sure we get an opportunity to spend more time with our football team. If we can get another 10 practices with these guys, it would be a great opportunity to kickstart some guys for next year.”
Klieman noted that Kansas State has started more young players in recent weeks. Some of the Wildcats who the team will depend on more next year have begun to make an impact across all three phases, having developed throughout the year and been pushed into action by injuries.
Freshman linebacker Weston Polk made two tackles on special teams for the Wildcats at Utah. Jace Adler, who started out as a walk-on, has been added to the punt team in recent weeks, recording a tackle at Oklahoma State. The continued development of Linkon Cure and Adonis Moise has been a storyline as the Wildcats traveled to Salt Lake City with just five receivers last week. Others have started to make an impact.
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“I have four rings, and I’m trying to complete the hand,” senior Damian Ilalio said. “For these younger guys, it’s really important for them to go through that because you get so much development during bowl prep. It’s definitely in the back of our minds, and we will be working towards that.”
Bowl projections are all over the place for Kansas State, ranging from playing in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas, to playing in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee, to playing in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana. A win over Utah would have helped create a better destination, but this is the bed the Wildcats made with their frustrating losses to Army, Arizona, and Baylor earlier in the season.
Kansas State swears that playing for a bowl game still means something, and it will have the chance to clinch eligibility when it hosts Colorado on Saturday, Nov. 29, as a 17 1/2 point favorite.
If nothing else, it will be for the seniors, hoping to give them one more game.
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“Some of our goals are no longer within reach, but to be able to get to a bowl game and celebrate a season that we’ve had together is always a goal of ours,” senior tackle Andrew Leingang said. “It just adds extra motivation for us this coming week.”
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State football still motivated to reach bowl game vs Colorado
