Chris Klieman explains why K-State didn’t lose any recruits leading up to signing day
A few weeks ago, there was understandable concern that the Kansas State football team might lose some of its committed recruits to other schools. Starting quarterback Will Howard announced that he intended to transfer, which made some wonder if his younger brother would honor his pledge to the Wildcats. Then offensive coordinator Collin Klein left to take the same job at Texas A&M, which gave every incoming recruit on that side of the ball an excuse to explore other options. Many feared that Blake Barnett, a dual-threat quarterback from Colorado, might have a wandering eye. But the Wildcats made it to signing day with their 2024 recruiting class intact. Head football coach Chris Klieman signed 13 high school prospects and two junior college transfers. It’s not the most impressive group he has ever assembled, as K-State ranks 54th nationally and 10th in the Big 12 for this cycle, according to On3. But the Wildcats held on to all the recruits they landed months ago and flipped a few away from other teams. How did Klieman and his coaching staff pull that off? He has a theory. “I hope nobody ever chooses a school for Chris Klieman, Taylor Braet or for Van Malone,” he said, “because when they come in here and come on a visit, the first thing we talk about is the amount of people that are going to impact you, and it starts out on first floor with with the strength and conditioning staff and comes all the way up to the fourth floor with the coaches and everybody in between. “Not every day is going to be a good day. There’s going to be some hard days and you can’t have one person to lean on. You need to have a village to lean on. That’s something that I think we’ve done a great job of showing, selling and then following through on with the village of people that are going to help you.” Believe it or not, Klieman said he was never worried about Ryan Howard.
Even though he is related to former starting quarterback Will Howard, the Wildcats never recruited him because of his last name. They liked him because he is a 6-foot-7 and 315-pound offensive lineman who appears to have a bright future in the Big 12. Losing his brother to the transfer portal after four memorable years with the Wildcats might have even strengthened their case for keeping him. “Ryan is on his own journey,” Klieman said, “and that’s what I have appreciated about Ryan through this entire process. Even coming here in the summer when he came on his official visit, we said, ‘This is your story and you’ve got to write your own story. We’re not recruiting you because of your brother. We are recruiting you because of Ryan.’ I think that was the most important thing from the start with him, and he loves K-State.”
When it comes to Barnett, there were probably some nervous moments after Klein left for Texas A&M. He was his lead recruiter and they shared a strong connection because Klein also grew up in Colorado. No one would have blamed Barnett for having second thoughts. But he stayed committed to the Wildcats and will actually be on campus in time to witness some bowl practices. K-State losing three quarterbacks to the transfer portal likely helped keep Barnett on board. He could be the backup behind Avery Johnson next season.
Some crazy things happened in the weeks leading up to signing day, but they didn’t have a negative impact on K-State’s recruiting efforts. “He’s going to get a ton of reps this spring and learn how to play college football,” Klieman said. “He was a state champion. He’s a winner. He knows how to win and lead his team and so I’m excited for Blake to have the opportunity to come in and get those reps.”
