TOPEKA | Bill Snyder stood alone for the moment, his thin body slightly rocking, his purple tie matching the colors worn by the hundreds of people surrounding him, his expression blank.</p><p>It was impossible not to stare.</p><p>In the midst of turmoil and embarrassment for an athletic department that had last addressed an overwhelming sense of failure 20 years ago when it hired Snyder, it was a strange scene indeed: As Kansas State attempts to address the fallout from a secret agreement struck by the former athletic director, a slew of costly buyouts and a scathing audit of the university&rsquo;s finances, it was to the past &mdash; to Bill Snyder &mdash; that everyone was now turning in the hopes of moving forward.</p><p>But this isn&rsquo;t 1989, when the relatively unknown coach was tasked with the challenge of turning around the worst football program in America. Snyder, who came out of retirement seven months ago after the team he so famously built began to sputter, now finds himself called on to help repair the school&rsquo;s image as well.</p><p>One by one, officials and coaches stood before fans at the Kansas Expocentre and praised the man standing by himself &mdash; the only man still working in the Kansas State athletic department whose name appears in the audit.</p><p>&ldquo;Look toward the future,&rdquo; said new university president Kirk Schulz, as more than a few eyes looked at Snyder instead. &ldquo;The future is bright.&rdquo;</p><p>In most places, to be associated with controversy &mdash; fairly or not &mdash; is to be a part of it. Just not in Kansas, not if your name is Bill Snyder.</p><p>&ldquo;I saw his name in (the audit), but until I see more, I can&rsquo;t put a judgment on it,&rdquo; said 46-year-old fan Scott Bickel. &ldquo;I can put a judgment on a few others. I&rsquo;m inclined to give Snyder the benefit of the doubt.&rdquo;</p><p>That&rsquo;s the universal theme emerging from K-State nation: As the controversy around what happened with the athletic department under former A.D. Bob Krause and former president Jon Wefald spreads, there&rsquo;s a concerted effort to ensure that Snyder&rsquo;s legacy, image and honor remain unsoiled.</p><p>&ldquo;As I leave, let me just say one last thing,&rdquo; new athletic director John Currie told the crowd a short time later. &ldquo;On Sept. 5, how many of you will be in Bill Snyder Family Stadium?&rdquo;</p><p>Nearly everyone raised their hand.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great opportunity for all of us in the Kansas State family to be back in the stadium,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And despite what everyone&rsquo;s read, for us all collectively to send a message to the state, to the Big 12, the country: We&rsquo;re going to be 50,000 screaming, purple-clad fans. And with Bill Snyder back on the sidelines, all is right at Kansas State.&rdquo;</p><p>The crowd roared its approval.</p><p>&bull; &bull; &bull;</p><p>MANHATTAN, Kan. | It is nearly impossible to overstate Snyder&rsquo;s place in K-State lore.</p><p>To get here, you turn off Interstate 70 and are greeted with a sign that reads: &ldquo;Bill Snyder Highway.&rdquo; His name is on the football stadium. It&rsquo;s on the tips of the tongues of a lot of the folks going about their lives on a hot and humid weekday. It&rsquo;s a touchstone for better days, both past and &mdash; they hope &mdash; future.</p><p>&ldquo;The entire town is excited to have him back,&rdquo; said Matthew Mondero, a 24-year-old student. &ldquo;He inspires his teams, and we&rsquo;re hoping to get some of that inspiration in the coming season. The <em>whole</em> town supports him completely.&rdquo;