Kansas State Spring Preview: Special Teams

Kansas State special teams overview

Did you think we weren’t going to talk about the Kansas State special teams unit? Of course not. That has been the bread and butter for the Wildcats for decades. It began with Bill Snyder. It continued with Bill Snyder.

It was still present for Chris Klieman and the Wildcats until last year when they struggled in that capacity. But gone is Chili Davis, who ran the group. In steps a former NFL special teams coach in Nate Kaczor who had spent time with the Washington Commanders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans.

We anticipate Chris Tennant remaining the kicker and Simon McClannan replacing Jack Blumer as the punter. K-State will have a change at returner but perhaps that isn’t a terrible thing. That was not a phase that was dangerous last year.

One exciting item

It’s nothing against Phillip Brooks but something different to watch will be exciting. And Brooks was good, don’t get me wrong. But sometimes some novelty and a bit of a fresh change can be aesthetic to the eye.

He was an All-Big 12 returner. And multiple times. But it will be interesting watching new faces try to do the same. I’d imagine Keagan Johnson and Sterling Lockett will be near the top of the list. They received the nod in the bowl game when Kansas State faced NC State.

One concern

Last year was an absolute mess for the K-State special teams.

They weren’t explosive. They didn’t tackle well. There were shanked punts. There were kicks out of bounds. Kansas State allowed the other team to be too explosive. Field goals were missed again. Extra points didn’t go through. Just about anything that could go wrong did go wrong.

Can they redeem themselves?

One question

I did that thing where I asked a question in the prior item before the one that tells me to ask a question. That is okay. We can come up with more K-State content with no issue. We know who the kicker is and probably the punter. We think we know the returner but it is more of an unknown.

I’m not asking who the Kansas State kick and punt returners would be, but I am asking if they will return to the dangerous unit that they used to be and live up to that reputation. They were far from explosive last season and even typically fair caught kickoffs.

That just isn’t K-State football.

Bold K-State prediction

Though he wasn’t perfect last year, Tennant did take steps forward. He was better on extra points. He was better on field goals. The Kansas State kicker was not in the bottom of kickers in the Big 12 in his second season as a starter.

I believe that continues in 2024 for Tennant and he’s one of the best kickers in the league.

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