Question of the Week: Will Linkon Cure play early for Kansas State?

Now that five-star tight end Linkon Cure of Goodland, Kansas has committed to Kansas State, the questions are re-directed from whether or not the Wildcats are getting him to how soon will he see the field, how productive will he be, when will he have a large impact and how will he be utilized?

Technically, those are all questions for the K-State coaching staff and particularly Chris Klieman, Brian Lepak, Conor Riley and Matt Wells. But as always, KSO will give it a go too and try to project how it will unfold in Manhattan.

There was a time where I thought Cure would be lucky to play at all as a true freshman, to be honest. It seemed like an uphill climb for a Sunflower State recruit that played poor competition and was still grasping the important elements of the spot.

The future Kansas State tight end, in the early stages of his recruitment and development, was a lot more overwhelming and dominating athlete than he was a detailed, technically sound and smart football player. But it changed rapidly.

Klieman and K-State are getting a kid that is much further along in his growth within the game than he was a year ago. His improvement has been fascinating to watch and is mostly why the newest Wildcat pledge is a five-star.

He’s no longer just a project. He’s no longer just a raw athlete learning how to play the game and the position and happens to have unbelievable tools. He’s no longer someone that has to be spoken in terms of long-term potential.

Cure can have success early in Manhattan and in a Kansas State uniform. He transformed his trajectory overnight and can help the Wildcats in year one. He may not start. He doesn’t have to start. He doesn’t have to be an immediate three-down player and probably won’t be.

But he is too good of a weapon and athlete in the passing game to keep off the field for 12 regular season games. I suspect K-State will play him and find ways that can showcase his best abilities as a pass-catcher.

Why did he go from a raw project with long-term potential to someone that is a combination of a great football player and athlete that can play quickly? He has natural hands, he’s explosive, he’s fast, he understands space and has a knack for finding the open, soft area in a defense and understands routes and defenses beyond his years.

While having a long way to go, he has traits and tools that can be used right away at Kansas State, and it will be a good recruiting story to tell if they have in-state guys like Avery Johnson, Dylan Edwards, Linkon Cure and potentially even Will Anciaux and Andre Davis on the field at the same time and thriving and excelling.

The post Question of the Week: Will Linkon Cure play early for Kansas State? appeared first on On3.