ARLINGTON, Texas | As Chris Cosh spoke Monday during a news conference leading up to the Cotton Bowl, a computer projected his picture and a list of his accomplishments on a giant screen behind him.
It was essentially a billboard, and it was impossible to miss.Cosh, who is in his third season as Kansas State’s defensive coordinator, tried his best to avoid the display. But he had to look at some point. When he finally did, he tilted his head and laughed. There he was on the big screen, awkwardly throwing a football.“Boy,” Cosh said with a chuckle, “I need to lose some weight.”For now, Cosh’s problems are no different from the rest of us. That’s quite a relief. Coming into this season, his life was anything but normal.His son, Billy, decided to transfer from K-State for a shot at the starting quarterback job at James Madison. Then his mother died, and his wife hurt her knee. Coming off a dreadful year of defensive football, in which K-State allowed 231 rushing yards per game and ranked 11th in the Big 12 in total defense, those mounting disappointments were even tougher to handle.Wildcats fans viewed the defense he oversaw as the team’s weak link. Some of them clamored for a change.Cosh tried to stay positive, predicting big things out of his defense before this season.“I could feel these guys could be a good team,” Cosh said, thinking back to that moment. “Their togetherness, their unselfishness, their pride in wanting to be good. … They wanted to be coached. They like practice. You don’t hear that much nowadays. ‘Hey, can we run that again there, coach?’ OK.“These guys like ball like a coach likes ball. I feel like we’re learning leadership both vocally and by example, a combination of the two. That was special to me. I knew we had it. I knew we were going to grow.”Ten wins later, he has been proved right.“People were doubting him last year pretty bad,” senior defensive end Jordan Voelker said. “I’m just glad we could help establish him as a coach and maybe help him get some recognition.”If K-State handed out a most-improved award to members of its coaching staff, Cosh would most certainly win. Under his guidance, the Wildcats went from a team that struggled to defend a simple draw play to a defense few teams try to run against. After ranking 119th out of 120 Division I-A teams against the run last season, K-State now allows 131.4 rushing yards per game and ranks 39th nationally, third in the Big 12.K-State ranks fifth in the Big 12 in total defense, allowing 398.8 yards and 27.8 points per game.K-State’s passing defense could still use work, but it finds ways to get by. Though it allowed 30 or more points five times, it also regularly closed out games with defensive stops and key turnovers.Who could forget Tre Walker tackling Miami quarterback Jacory Harris at the goal line with the game on the line, or Arthur Brown intercepting a pass, and later running down Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III late in a win over Baylor?“We have a tremendous amount of respect for them,” Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino said. “They know how to win games. … Look at all their wins and everything they have done to win games. They have had stops on fourth and 1, they have had stops on fourth and 4, they have had stops on two-point plays. We have to be really on the money.”When Cosh talks about K-State’s progress on defense, he gives all the credit to his players. He likes to say this is the best group he has ever coached.“It makes my day to come out and see those guys,” Cosh said. “… We’ve been through some tough times. Those guys rally, but they don’t flinch. They keep competing, and they keep fighting. That’s why they’re here.”
COTTON BOWL
KANSAS STATE VS. ARKANSAS•WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m. Friday in Arlington, Texas •TV/RADIO: Fox (Ch. 4); WHB (810 AM)•Go to KansasCity.com for Campus Corner, The Star’s college sports blog.
KANSAS STATE VS. ARKANSAS•WHEN/WHERE: 7 p.m. Friday in Arlington, Texas •TV/RADIO: Fox (Ch. 4); WHB (810 AM)•Go to KansasCity.com for Campus Corner, The Star’s college sports blog.
