Storylines to monitor as spring football practice begins for Kansas State Wildcats
The Kansas State football team will hold its first spring practice of the year on Tuesday.
Here are five storylines to monitor as the Wildcats return to the field over the next several weeks before spring practice comes to an end on April 15.
How will the Wildcats replace Deuce Vaughn?
It doesn’t matter who head coach Chris Klieman has lined up to replace Deuce Vaughn at running back next season. Just about anyone will struggle to fill his shoes.
Vaughn rushed for 3,604 yards and 34 touchdowns during his three years in Manhattan. He also caught 116 passes for 1,280 yards and nine touchdowns as a receiver on his way to All-America status.
Simply put: He was the face of K-State’s offense.
The Wildcats will look much different in the backfield without him. But they do have solid replacement options ready to make plays in 2023. D.J. Giddens returns after showing promise as Vaughn’s backup last season. And Florida State transfer Treshaun Ward was a big offseason addition.
Odds are good that Klieman will look to split carries between them, and possibly a few other running backs next season. Before Vaughn emerged as a bonafide star, Klieman had a history of using a rotation of three or four ball-carriers in every game. Perhaps he will settle on two this season.
Giddens is a bruising runner who rushed for 518 yards and six touchdowns as a redshirt freshman last season. Ward is a more elusive runner who did a little bit of everything while totaling 1,241 rushing yards at Florida State.
Who ends up being the starter? The competition begins this week.
K-State will look different in the secondary
The Wildcats didn’t lose all of their starting cornerbacks and safeties after the Sugar Bowl, but they came close.
Julius Brents and Ekow Boye-Doe have both moved on after several productive seasons of playing corner together on the K-State defense. Drake Cheatum and Josh Hayes are also out of college eligibility at safety.
That leaves Kobe Savage as the only returning starter in the secondary, and he is currently recovering from a torn ACL.
Playing time will be up for grabs throughout and the spring, and probably longer.
Keep an eye on Omar Daniels, Jacob Parrish, Keenan Garber and Will Lee at corner. VJ Payne, Wesley Fair, Jordan Perry and North Dakota State transfer Marques Sigle seem poised to compete for meaningful roles at safety.
Will Howard is in charge of the offense
That has actually been the case for Howard during spring football several times before. He served as QB1 when Skylar Thompson and then Adrian Martinez were both recovering from injuries in 2021 and 2022. So leading the offense during spring drills is nothing new for him.
Still, things will feel different this time around.
Howard is now the unquestioned starting quarterback. His perception totally changed after he led K-State to a Big 12 championship last season. Instead of filling in for someone else, it will be interesting to see if he can use these practices as a springboard to something better in the fall.
New receivers and a new position coach
Howard won’t have two of his most trusted weapons to throw to next season, as Malik Knowles and Kade Warner are both currently trying to impress professional scouts ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Wildcats lost two of their best receivers and welcome in a new receivers coach this spring. Matthew Middleton is now in charge of the position. K-State hired him away from South Florida. Before that, he spent several years at Kent State.
Will the position look any different with him in charge?
Things will feel familiar with Phillip Brooks back as a “super senior.” But everything else should feel new. R.J. Garcia seems poised to take on a larger role after he caught a touchdown pass in the Big 12 Championship Game.
Who else will step up? All eyes will be on redshirt freshman Sterling Lockett, given what the rest of his family has accomplished in a K-State uniform. But Iowa transfer Keagan Johnson, Ole Miss transfer Jadon Jackson and a few other returning players will have a chance to make an impact.
New arrivals
One of the most exciting things about spring football is the opportunity to get a sneak peek at transfers and freshmen who decided to enroll in college a semester early.
This spring, the most anticipated newcomers are Maize quarterback Avery Johnson and a handful of transfers — Iowa receiver Keagan Johnson, North Dakota State safety Marques Sigle, Florida State running back Treshaun Ward and Mississippi State defensive tackle Jevon Banks.
This story was originally published March 6, 2023 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Storylines to monitor as spring football practice begins for Kansas State Wildcats."