Chris Klieman defends ‘careful’ approach on run plays for K-State QB Avery Johnson
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chris Klieman limits QB Avery Johnson’s runs to preserve health and durability.
- Avery Johnson ranks second nationally with 591 passing yards after two games.
- K-State favors handoffs over QB runs to minimize injury risk and ensure season depth.
Shortly after Kansas State quarterback Avery Johnson used his speed to scramble for 25 yards and set up a game-winning touchdown against North Dakota last week, fans across EMAW nation all seemed to express the same thought.
Why doesn’t he do that more often?
It’s a fair question. Johnson is better known for his legs than his arm. The junior from Wichita is one of the fastest players on the entire K-State football roster, and he burst onto the scene as a freshman by rushing for 90 yards and five touchdowns in a single game against Texas Tech.
Some envisioned he would do that all the time as a starting quarterback. But it hasn’t worked out that way. This season, most of his big plays have come through the air. After two games, he ranks second nationally with 591 passing yards and five touchdowns.
He has also rushed for 64 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries. He is still a dual-threat quarterback.
But some want to see him show off his speed on a more consistent basis, especially while starting running back Dylan Edwards remains out with an ankle injury.
K-State football coach Chris Klieman is in no rush to increase Johnson’s carries this week against Army, though.
“I don’t want to do that with that kid 15 times, or even nine times, if we don’t have to,” Klieman said. “Maybe we should have, and maybe we should have a plan for it, because we were in such a dog fight (with North Dakota). But we have got to be careful about making sure that we have this kid for the whole season.”
Klieman went on to explain in great detail why the Wildcats felt more comfortable handing the ball off to Joe Jackson (55 yards on 11 carries) and DeVon Rice (40 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries) in a 38-35 win over the Fighting Hawks.
“North Dakota did a really good job of what we would call mesh charging their defensive ends right to his face,” Klieman said. “His read was always to give it. There was one play where their defensive end crashed inside and played Avery and we were able to outrun him and we had (Garrett) Oakley out in front. We ran for 20 yards or something, and that was the look we were hoping for. Then they said, ‘We’re never doing that again.’”
In order to use Johnson as more of a runner against North Dakota, K-State would have needed to call fewer zone-read plays and more QB draws or power runs. That way, Johnson could have simply received the snap and bolted upfield without a moment of hesitation.
But there could be some downside to offensive coordinator Matt Wells deploying that strategy in Game 2 against an FCS opponent.
“Wells is really wise on that and smart on that,” Klieman said. “He can say, ‘I’ve probably got to get him more carries, but I’d like those carries to be on the perimeter and not strictly downhill, where you’re getting tangled up.’ He’s bigger, he’s more durable and stuff, but — son of a gun — if somebody cuts his legs out and he gets an ankle (injury), all of a sudden we don’t have the mobility.”
Klieman said not running Johnson early in the game helped him stay fresh and pick up those big 25 yards on the ground in the final moments.
“That’s why we won the game,” Klieman said, “because he’s fresh enough and he didn’t take a bunch of hits. He was able to outrun that guy and run all the way down to the 5-yard line. That’s what he’s providing us right now when needed.”
This story was originally published September 2, 2025 at 12:34 PM with the headline "Chris Klieman defends ‘careful’ approach on run plays for K-State QB Avery Johnson."