Why Kansas State fans shouldn’t forget about QB Will Howard during spring practice
Will Howard is still here.
Show up for one of Kansas State’s spring football practices and you will see the junior quarterback throwing passes to Deuce Vaughn, Phillip Brooks and Malik Knowles as if he is the best passer on the team. That makes sense because, as of right now, he is technically QB1 on the depth chart.
It just doesn’t seem that way because most are expecting Adrian Martinez to lead the offense next season after he recovers from shoulder surgery. The Wildcats aggressively recruited Martinez when he announced plans to transfer away from Nebraska in December. Chris Klieman wanted Martinez after watching him throw for 8,491 yards and run for 2,301 yards as a four-year starter with the Cornhuskers. You don’t bring in a player like that to serve as a backup.
But Martinez isn’t currently healthy enough to throw in practice or lift in the weight room. Someone else has to step up this spring. Thus far, that person is Howard.
“I think Will has continued to improve,” K-State offensive coordinator Collin Klein said. “I don’t know what the number is, but I think he’s darn near put on another 10 pounds of muscle. He’s really continuing to grow up physically. I think you see that in the way the ball is spinning for him. I think it’s coming off his hand a little bit stronger than even last season. With his experience, he has been very valuable in this transition and his leadership has shone through with him being able to run the show.”
Klein said Howard has clearly separated himself from Jake Rubley and Jaren Lewis, K-State’s other two healthy quarterbacks.
If the Wildcats had to play a game tomorrow, Howard would start at quarterback and it would be a tough call between Rubley and Lewis for the backup spot.
That shouldn’t come as a surprise given how much Howard has played over the past two seasons. The 6-foot-5 and 242-pound quarterback from Pennsylvania has already started 10 games and played in five more for the Wildcats.
He has delivered some nice moments in a K-State uniform, such as when he helped win games against Texas Tech, TCU and Kansas as a freshman. He also had 179 total yards and three touchdowns against Nevada as a sophomore.
But there was always a noticeable dropoff from Skylar Thompson whenever Howard entered the game. Fans seemed to lose confidence in him when he threw for just 65 yards in a prove-it game against Texas last season and the Wildcats lost to the Longhorns 22-17.
Klieman has some well-defined goals for Howard this spring.
“Just feel more confident throwing the football,” Klieman said. “He understands our offense so, so well, and Coach Klein does a phenomenal job with him. I was in the quarterback meeting this morning, and he’s just so crisp and confident in what he’s doing. Same with Jaren. They just know what we’re doing so well offensively.
“Now it is making the right read, being decisive, being confident and pulling the trigger and rolling. I saw some really good throws he made today on some seem routes to Phillip (Brooks) that excited all of us because it’s like, ‘Ok, we’ve seen this out of Will. Now, it’s about consistency and Will knows that. Will is a really good football player, he’s just got to gain confidence in gain consistency so it just snaps out of his hand.”
Where does he go from here?
The possibilities seem limitless. Howard has not used a redshirt and still has three years of eligibility remaining. If Martinez hits the ground running and stays healthy next season, Howard could spend most of the 2022 season on the sideline and still be well-positioned to take over as K-State’s quarterback of the future in 2023.
Or he could struggle to improve and get passed by Rubley, Lewis or an incoming recruit.
For now, all options are on the table.
That is worth remembering until Martinez is healthy enough to lead the K-State offense.
This story was originally published April 1, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Why Kansas State fans shouldn’t forget about QB Will Howard during spring practice."