No word on Bill Snyder’s future, but a bitter loss if this was the end

With the season over, Bill Snyder’s answer to the question — will he return as Kansas State’s coach? — was unrevealing.

“That’s the last thing in my mind right now,” Snyder said.

Understandable, given the circumstance. Only minutes earlier, Snyder walked off the turf at Jack Trice Stadium at Iowa State on Saturday night dazed by the type of loss he said he had never experienced.

Kansas State owned a three-score lead with about 12 1/2 minutes remaining. The Wildcats had lost every bit of that in less than eight minutes and somehow dropped the game (42-38) they seemed destined to win.

“I can’t tell you what my feelings are right now, because I’m not sure I know,” Snyder said. “I’ve never been in that situation before.”

How rare was this? Kansas State led Saturday’s game at halftime. Snyder’s teams fell to 181-13 when ahead at the break, 62-6 in his second go-around. Outcomes like this just don’t happen to the Wildcats.

Not only that, the opponent was Iowa State, which had always seemed to find ways to lose in this series.

The Cyclones have come up with huge victories in coach Matt Campbell’s three seasons and before. They’ve defeated teams ranked in the top five and one headed to the College Football Playoff. They once derailed the path of a BCS Championship Game hopeful.

Over the previous decade, Iowa State had beaten every Big 12 team and all but Oklahoma at least twice. But the Cyclones were winless in that time against Kansas State.

Maybe there’s a signal here. Before he retired the first time, Snyder had built a 10-game winning streak against the Cyclones. He lost two straight in the series and stepped down. We’ll see if history repeats itself.

We know Kansas State should not have lost this one. As the Wildcats turned turnovers into points and got the usual hard-nosed running from Alex Barnes, the formula was in place for the victory that would have resulted in bowl eligibility. Also a recent trend of strong finishes after mid-season swoons would have continued.

Since winning the conference in 2012, the Wildcats’ best Big 12 finish has been third but they had posted winning records after Nov. 1 in each of those years. This time it’s a 2-2 conclusion and no bowl game for the first time since 2009, the first year of Snyder’s return.

“That doesn’t happen very often around here,” Snyder said. “So it’s dramatically disappointing. Maybe not as disappointing as just how we lost this game. That has captured my emotions.”

It’s an emotional time for the program. For those who believe Kansas State can do better than the 79-year-old Snyder, that’s fine. Wanting better for your team should be a constant consideration.

New ideas and voices can be a good thing as Iowa State attests. Campbell is headed to his second straight bowl game and the Cyclones were in the Big 12 race until falling to Texas last week.

Recruiting has improved, players respond well to him, and Campbell’s name is turning up on just about every coaching prospect list, including at least one in the NFL.

But as the arguments for change at Kansas State have grown, consider the resume of a coach who wins more than he loses, has won conference championships at the highest level, dominates his top rival and rarely misses bowl games. Toss in the fact that he’s thought of well enough to have a stadium named for him, the one with the statue that greets visitors at the entrance.

Snyder, who signed a contract extension before this season, said in so many words he’ll know when the time to leave is right. It could get messy if he and the university don’t agree on the timetable.

If there is to be change, if school president Richard Myers and athletic director Gene Taylor believe that’s the best path for the program, here’s hoping it occurs with Snyder announcing his retirement this week.

The Wildcats can get the jump on a search and perhaps quickly finalize plans for different leadership.

If that’s the case, it would have been ideal for Snyder to go out on a more positive note and not with the type of loss he found impossible to explain.

Blair Kerkhoff

Blair Kerkhoff covers the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals and college sports for The Star.

This story was originally published November 24, 2018 at 11:36 PM.