For Pete's Sake

‘This isn’t Pac-12 country anymore.’ Arizona reporters wowed by K-State crowd

Kansas State’s Brendan Mott sacks Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita during the third quarter of their game on Friday night at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
Kansas State’s Brendan Mott sacks Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita during the third quarter of their game on Friday night at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The Wichita Eagle

Following Kansas State’s 31-7 win over Arizona on Friday, Wildcats coach Chris Klieman praised the raucous crowd of 51,290 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

“That was the loudest I’ve ever heard The Bill,” Klieman told reporters. “I knew they were going to be cranked up when I came in the parking lot. They were electric tonight, and they helped us win that football game. I can’t thank our fans and our fan base enough.”

The Wildcat faithful didn’t only make an impression on Klieman. A pair of reporters who cover Arizona athletics shared messages about the Kansas State fans.

Justin Spears, a reporter at the Tucson Star, noted Friday’s game was the first conference game since Arizona left the Pac-12 for the Big 12.

“Initial thoughts on Kansas State’s environment? This isn’t Pac-12 country anymore. The crowd at KSU is very engaging,” Spears wrote.

“Those days of playing in half-empty and quiet California stadiums (excluding USC) are long gone.”

Arizona, along with Colorado, Arizona State and Utah, joined the Big 12 ahead of this season.

Jason Scheer of WildcatAuthority.com echoed Spears’ comment.

“I wasn’t at the game tonight, but multiple people have texted me that the experience beyond the final score was awesome and people were great,” Scheer wrote. “Shoutout Kansas State fans for that.”

Pete Grathoff
The Kansas City Star
From covering the World Series to the World Cup, Pete Grathoff has done a little bit of everything since joining The Kansas City Star in 1997.
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