Recruiting Notebook: Realignment impact for Kansas State efforts
Realignment impact on Kansas State
Conference alignment once again dominated the news cycle over the past few weeks. Drip by drip, it became apparent that the shelf life of the Pac-12 was crumbling before our very eyes. Colorado wasn’t the only school with wandering eyes for the Big 12. Arizona, Arizona State and Utah also joined Kansas State as league members.
But that wasn’t the only carnage for the conference on the west coast. Big Ten conjured up an appetite for more expansion as well and added Oregon and Washington. The college sports landscape will look much different in 2024.
Does it impact the recruiting trail much for K-State? Not substantially. But it does open up the regions of Arizona and Colorado even more for the Wildcats, who have regularly landed players from both states under head coach Chris Klieman.
The uptick in pursuing prospects from Arizona has specifically been a hallmark under the current Kansas State coaching staff. They should benefit even more by being able to deliver a message to prospects that they will have even more games closer to home if they are to choose the purple Wildcats.
And with Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes in the league but not necessarily looking inward as much when chasing recruits, the state of Colorado (which has seen high school football improve in the last decade) should be wide open for K-State.
Just generally, I expect the newfound increased stability and ensured survival to help Kansas State as well. It is no longer a question whatsoever that they will have to answer for prospects. That negative recruiting tactic will no longer exist.
Portal options
Speaking of recruiting, Jerome Tang and K-State are still on the hunt for two more scholarship players for this season. The head coach shared at a recent press conference that the Wildcats can be a very, very, very good team if they find the right pieces but are already an NCAA Tournament team with the current 11.
Sources have indicated that Kansas State has been confident that at least one more target will surface that is worth pursuing and landing. It wouldn’t shock them if they still signed a full roster of 13 scholarship players that they love.
Time will tell. Will the new round of realignment cause any movement?
K-State QB strategy
For those that missed it, one-time 2025 K-State quarterback target Jamison Kitna is no longer on the board. He already committed to Houston over the likes of Baylor, Texas Tech, Duke and Pittsburgh, in addition to the Wildcats.
Was Kansas State truly beat for the Ohio native that had already been to Manhattan.
According to sources, they had not necessarily slowed down their pursuit of the Lakota East signal-caller that is the son of former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna, but they had certainly devoted much more focus on a separate quarterback target.
K-State has set their sights onto Alex Manske of Iowa after seeing him at camp. It motivated them to offer the rising junior on the spot. In addition to that, the relationships and ties between the two sides is already immensely strong.
The Algona product has visited all three of Kansas State, Nebraska and Iowa several times already. Those will likely be the three prime contenders for his services.
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