It’s time for another K-State (Shop K-State) Q&A, so let’s get straight to your questions. Thanks as always for sending them in.
How much longer will K-Staters have Gene Taylor as athletic director? – @cpeitsch1 via X
When Chris Klieman unexpectedly retired as head football coach in December, some wondered if Gene Taylor might retire alongside him. The two are longtime friends who worked together at K-State and previously at North Dakota State. Nobody would have blamed them for riding off into the sunset together. But Taylor has other plans. In an exclusive interview last week, he told me there’s no set timeline for his retirement. “I’m driven to keep pushing as long as I can,” he said. Taylor is 68 and has been at K-State since 2017. It’s natural to assume retirement could come sooner rather than later. He even admitted he sometimes envies his retired friends living stress-free lives.
Yet he dislikes the direction of college athletics in the era of revenue sharing and NIL deals. That’s why he remains “hungry” to lead K-State athletics and support the Big 12. “My hunger is to use my voice and my years of experience to try to improve the situation,” Taylor said. “I’ll serve on any committee. I’m glad to be on a couple national committees. I’m trying to do as much as I can. Until the day I finally walk out that door, I want to look back and say, ‘At least Kansas State is in a strong position for whatever comes next.’ I want them to be in the conversation. That’s what drives me.”
It also likely bothers Taylor that the Wildcats aren’t winning as much as they did earlier in his tenure. He’s overseen a Big 12 championship in football (2022) and men’s basketball (2019), plus six bowl games and two Elite Eights. Baseball, women’s basketball, and volleyball have also had postseason success under his watch. But this year was different: K-State missed the postseason in baseball, football, men’s basketball, and women’s basketball for the first time in 20 years. Jerome Tang was fired “for cause,” and Klieman retired. It’s been a rough academic year for the Wildcats. A few years ago, Taylor could do no wrong. Now some fans might be glad to see him leave. But he doesn’t want to go out that way. I expect him to keep working until K-State is on a better path—or until he’s politely asked to step down if he can’t spark a turnaround. Either way, it seems he has a few more years left.
What are the chances we see new uniforms for football or men’s basketball next year? – @ksucats32 via X
The Wildcats usually tweak their men’s basketball uniforms every season. Changes aren’t always major, but they’re rarely identical year to year. So I expect K-State will have a fresh look under Casey Alexander, even if it’s not a flashy alternate design with new colors. Football is different. Collin Klein has said he’s open to wearing alternate uniforms occasionally and has mentioned K-State is exploring design options. That doesn’t guarantee anything new next season, but it’s possible which is more than fans could hope for under Bill Snyder or Klieman, unless you count white pants and white helmets as radical. I think the Wildcats will wear alternate football uniforms at some point. Texas A&M tried different looks when Klein was offensive coordinator; he seemed to like them and realized there’s no curse attached. Still, K-State might not wear anything special in Klein’s first season. There’s maybe a 50% chance we see alternate football uniforms in 2026.
If K-State is spending 19milliononitsfootballrosternextseason,asyoureportedearlierthismonth,doesthatputtheWildcatsoverorunderthecapintermsofpayingplayers?SteveB.viaemail∗∗Thisiscomplicated,butI’lltrytoexplainhowK−State’srosterspendingrelatestorevenuesharingandNILdeals.The“cap”referstotheamountK−Stateallocatestoeachteamthroughrevenuesharing.Nextseason,schoolscanpaystudent−athletes21.3 million however they choose. A school could give everything to football or most to men’s basketball. But most schools give roughly 70% to football, 20% to men’s basketball, and 10% to all other sports. K-State is one of the few that gives something to all 16 sports, even if only 25,000.Nextyear,theWildcatswillallocateabout4.5 million of revenue sharing to men’s basketball, plus an extra 1.5millionin“above−the cap”NILdollars.Forfootball,it’scloserto15 million in revenue sharing plus $4 million in NIL. By my view, the Wildcats are technically over the cap in both sports.
Reasonable people may disagree, but I think K-State has built a very competitive football budget. Collin Klein can win with a 19millionroster,evenifothersspendmore.It’llbeinterestingtoseehowCaseyAlexanderdoeswithjust6 million likely near the bottom of all Big 12 teams.
Who has the best name on the K-State football team? @garrettb_1983 via X
I can’t pick just one! Sadly, the current roster lacks truly amazing names like Cody Stufflebean and Jake Stonebraker. But there are some all-name candidates: Serious Stinyard, Mikey Bergeron, Monterrio Elston, Navarro Schunke, and Holden Bass.
What’s your take on Wendall Gregory? Will he be a three-down end? Will he have an even better sophomore season with a new setting, or could we see a sophomore slump? And who will be the defensive end on the other side? @Houcat via X
My take: he’s a good player. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound sophomore defensive end had an encouraging season at Oklahoma State, earning Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year honors with 27 tackles, four sacks, a pass breakup, and a fumble. He should see plenty of playing time for the Wildcats next season. Probably not every single down K-State has other talented defensive linemen, and rotating keeps everyone fresh—but he’ll have every chance to post big numbers. It’s too early to project starters, but Jordan Allen, Travis Bates, and Elijah Hill all look like contributors to me.
My weekly recommendations
Streaming: Scrubs. The new season on Hulu has been better than I expected. Most of the original cast is back for the reboot, and Zach Braff blends new humor with old nostalgia. Sadly, I’m not a fan of the Malcolm in the Middle reboot it’s strange seeing Bryan Cranston play a goofy dad after watching him in Breaking Bad.
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