Five things: Questions for Kansas State to answer in Arlington

1.) How to manage expectations and handle success is going to be an important item for Kansas State this season. Oklahoma and Baylor are the only teams to repeat as Big 12 Champions. K-State was given a lot of respect in the offseason and were picked to finish second in the preseason poll. The second place ranking is the highest for the Wildcats since 2004. Being the hunted instead of the hunter will be a new experience.

2.) Running it back on the offensive line? Despite returning all five starters on the offensive line, it is no guarantee that all five start. Christian Duffie is likely to miss the first few weeks of the season with an injury. However, it is not just Duffie’s injury that could play a part in a new Kansas State starting offensive line. There are loads of younger players that seemed poise to play this season. Andrew Leingang is a player that seems to be poised for a breakout season and perhaps John Pastore.

3.) Speaking of the offense, I’m intrigued to hear about how the offense looks like from a stylistic standpoint. Remember, it was this time last year that we heard K-State was looking to go faster when it comes to pace. It will be interesting to hear if 40 points per game this season remains the goal. Cooper Beebe shared on Sports Radio 810 Wednesday that he would describe last year’s edition as vanilla.

4.) It is always asked at an event like this, but Chris Klieman and the players will be asked about young players who are performing well. It has been shared with KSO that Kansas State true freshmen Kanijal Thomas and Tre Spivey are impressing so far in Manhattan. While they played a lot as newcomers last season, it would not be surprising to hear more praise for Jake Clifton and VJ Payne. Those two, along with Desmond Purnell, received the most praise during the Spring.

5.) The final question for K-State to answer in Arlington deals with the defensive line. After losing Felix Anudike-Uzomah to the NFL Draft, they’ll need some extra contributors. Brendan Mott broke out a year ago and is prepared to have another solid season. Khalid Duke is back at his natural position where he played well as a true freshman in 2019 and was solid in 2020. Can he take the next jump to be an NFL prospect? Nate Matlack is probably the biggest the most important player for the position group. Many expected his stock to skyrocket last year before the injury bug hit.

The post Five things: Questions for Kansas State to answer in Arlington appeared first on On3.