Game-day atmosphere much different than usual for K-State’s loss to Arkansas State
The parking lots surrounding Bill Snyder Family Stadium were eerily quiet before the start of Kansas State’s first football game of the season, against Arkansas State.
Purple-clad fans usually show up hours in advance and turn the entire area into a gigantic party filled with food, drinks, games, friends and a whole lot of Wildcat pride. Nothing can typically keep them away. Not even bad weather or expensive tickets. If it’s a Saturday in early September and K-State is playing, this is normally the place to be.
But it was a much different atmosphere amid the coronavirus pandemic. The parking lots were less than a quarter full, and there was little fan interaction. There was also no tailgating. Some children could be seen playing a game of catch and a few older fans sipped adult beverages while they sat inside parked cars. That’s as rowdy as it got before kickoff.
Inside the stadium, things were also different. The marching band was in attendance, but not on the field for a pregame performance or halftime marching display. K-State showed video of a previous performance in an attempt to make things feel like normal. Fans wore masks everywhere and distanced in most parts of the stadium, though some groups of students stood shoulder to shoulder in their sections.
The setting lacked some pageantry, but there were enough cheers and songs and pregame hype videos to keep things from feeling bizarre. Perhaps the strangest sight of all was nearly two dozen K-State players watching the game in matching sweats, because they were inactive for various reasons. The Wildcats were nowhere near full strength.
Neither was the announced attendance of 11,041, less than a quarter of the usual capacity of 50,000. That led one K-State fan to say “it felt like a spring game.” Another fan, named Colby Werks, likened it to “the end of a fourth-quarter blowout.”
In some ways that’s true. Head coach Chris Klieman said the Wildcats would have benefited from additional crowd noise on defense, especially as Arkansas State pulled off a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter and K-State lost 35-31, dropping its first home opener since 2013.
In other ways, it still felt like a normal game. There was loud applause after big plays.
One fan said the only thing different about this game was that his father wasn’t sitting by his side. Another, named Lynda Shepherd, said it was “way better than I thought it would be,” adding that she was grateful simply to “have football.”
After his first touchdown pass, senior quarterback Skylar Thompson was so excited that he turned to the student section and flexed his muscles for several seconds. In that moment, he wasn’t complaining about limited fan capacity. Neither were those in attendance.
“I thought our fans were phenomenal,” Klieman said.
After a while, football took over. Had K-State covered the 13-point spread and rolled to a blowout victory, the unique atmosphere that accompanied Saturday’s game would be a major talking point right now. Instead, Arkansas State erased a 21-7 deficit and made game-winning plays in crunch time. As the game unfolded, the only thing people were focused on was the final result.
Now, K-State fans are left analyzing a leaky offensive line, which paved the way for just 91 rushing yards, and a defense that could do nothing to stop Arkansas State receiver Jonathan Adams from catching eight passes for 98 yards and three touchdowns, including the go-ahead score in the final moments.
“We will be better,” Klieman said. “I know we will be a better football team as the season goes on. I’m not happy with the performance today. None of us are, but I am smart enough to know it was going to be sloppy. We missed so much time and missed so many practices. That being said, you have to be ready to perform.”
Thompson took the loss personally. Even though he completed 17 of 29 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns, he misfired open receivers on several deep balls. The Wildcats were “inches away” from several big plays. That was a big difference in this game, regardless of the atmosphere.
He will be looking for redemption when K-State returns to the field in two weeks at Oklahoma.
“You better believe I am going to buckle down and bring it harder than ever after this,” Thompson said. “I’m not going to let this game define me. The team isn’t either. The captains on this team aren’t going to let it happen. It fires me up. I hate losing.”
One of the craziest things about this game is that Arkansas State wasn’t originally on K-State’s schedule. The Wildcats were originally going to open against Buffalo on Sept. 5, but that game was cancelled along North Dakota and Vanderbilt.
Here’s guessing K-State wishes it found a different replacement opponent.
Still, it was telling to hear K-State players say there was a silver-lining from this loss. At least they played. That’s more than anyone in the Big Ten or Pac-12 can say today.
Klieman said he wasn’t positive the Wildcats were going to play until 5 p.m. on Friday. The stress leading up to this game was difficult for him to quantify. After six months of uncertainty, it was a relief to take the field again.
Nobody likes to lose, and everyone would prefer a packed stadium. But this was way better than not playing at all.
“It felt good being back out there, specifically for me,” K-State linebacker Justin Hughes said, “just being able to be out there on the field with my brothers. I’m just blessed to be out here, win or lose, I’m blessed to be out here and play the game that I love.”
This story was originally published September 12, 2020 at 5:56 PM with the headline "Game-day atmosphere much different than usual for K-State’s loss to Arkansas State."