Three observations from Kansas State’s first open football practice of the spring
The Kansas State football team allowed reporters to watch the first 30 minutes of practice on Tuesday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Here are three key observations on the Wildcats as they approach the midway point of spring practice:
Adrian Martinez getting healthy
Ever since he announced his plans to play for the Wildcats, everyone has expected Nebraska transfer Adrian Martinez to take over as Kansas State’s starting quarterback next season.
But no one has known what to expect from him during spring practices.
Martinez underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder in November and he has not been able to do much work on the field with his new teammates in Manhattan. K-State coaches wisely want his body to completely recover before he starts running QB keepers in practice, or even throwing much on his own.
Chris Klieman has said Martinez won’t be ready to “cut it loose” and throw deep balls to K-State receivers until May. That will give him plenty of time to get acclimated over the summer and be ready for preseason camp.
But what about now?
Well, his rehab process seems ahead of schedule. Martinez was in full uniform on Tuesday and participated as much as he could with his fellow quarterbacks. Martinez practiced handing the ball off to running backs during warm-up drills and also pitched the ball to running backs when the Wildcats were practicing option plays.
He did not throw a pass, though.
K-State left that work to returning quarterbacks Will Howard, Jake Rubley and Jaren Lewis. For now, Martinez is simply interacting with his teammates, getting used to the offense and taking mental reps.
Look who is playing running back
Developing depth behind starting running back Deuce Vaughn is a major priority for the Wildcats this spring.
It appears that Klieman is getting creative to do exactly that.
Jax Dineen, a former fullback, is now lining up full time at running back. But he’s not the only player who has switched positions on offense to help out in the backfield. Seth Porter, a 5-foot-8 senior who has spent the past four years as a wide receiver, is also now taking handoffs.
It is unclear if that is a permanent position switch for Porter. He may only be helping out at running back this spring. But he looked sharp at his new position on Tuesday, especially catching the ball in the flats after lining up in the backfield.
Following the departures of Joe Ervin and Jacardia Wright, who served as Vaughn’s primary backups last season, K-State needs someone to handle more carries alongside Vaughn next season.
The Wildcats had seven running backs going through practice on Tuesday. D.J. Giddens, a redshirt freshman running back, seems like the current No. 2 runner of the group. He had a nice run between the tackles when the team ran plays during a short scrimmage.
Two other position changes of note: Trevor Stange (offensive lineman) and Nelson Pipes (long snapper) are both practicing as defensive tackles this spring. They were switched to defense because the vast majority of the team’s interior defensive linemen are currently recovering from injuries.
At one point on Tuesday, Damian Ilalio, Pipes and Stange were the only defensive tackles working with assistant coach Mike Tuiasosopo.
Big recruit on campus
The most notable thing that happened during Tuesday’s practice had absolutely nothing to do with the practice itself.
K-State hosted an important visitor, and making sure that he liked what he saw was of the utmost importance.
Avery Johnson, a touted quarterback recruit from Maize, made the trek north to Manhattan this week to get a closer look at the Wildcats. The 6-foot-2 and 170-pound passer currently boasts 21 scholarship offers, but he is only seriously considering a handful of schools at the moment.
K-State is among them, along with Arkansas, Kansas, Notre Dame and others.
Convincing a four-star prospect like Johnson to remain in the Sunflower State for college would be a major recruiting victory for Chris Klieman and his coaching staff. Hosting him for a spring visit was a positive development toward that possibility.
This story was originally published March 29, 2022 at 10:39 AM with the headline "Three observations from Kansas State’s first open football practice of the spring."