College & Kimball

And so we've come to the end of the road...

It was the end no Kansas State fan wanted to see. The 2018 season brought a sad conclusion to Bill Snyder's second stint as Kansas State's head coach. The year was mired by a perplexing quarterback controversy, the team failing to close out tight games, Snyder calling out players after losses and uncertainty about the program's trajectory. Despite failing to make a bowl game for the first time since 2009, the 'Cats did manage to defeat in-state rival Kansas for the 10th consecutive year and pick up 21-6 win over Texas Tech in what would be Snyder's final home game. Snyder retired as coach shortly after the season wrapped up. He collected 215 wins during his 27 years in Manhattan, 176 more than the second winningest coach in program history, Mike Ahearn. Snyder led the Wildcats to 19 bowl games, six of which fall into the modern day 'New Year's Six' category. He directed the Wildcats to Big 12 titles in 2003 and 2012. The program produced 57 NFL draft picks under his watch, along with countless All-Big 8 and All-Big 12 selections. Snyder was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2015. Thank you to 'the architect.' The run was nothing short of miraculous. 

So we lost to Vanderbilt... but that didn't stop us from kicking Iowa State in the nuts

K-State began the 2017 season in the Top 25 and were labeled by many prognosticators as a dark horse Big 12 title candidate. Injuries to multiple quarterbacks led to a sputtering offense in the early portion of the Big 12 slate. While the Wildcats were taken out of Big 12 title contention early, Snyder and Company, yet again, managed to rally the troops. The 'Cats won five out of their final six games:

- K-State's ninth straight win in the Sunflower Showdown; Mike Lee now 0-2 in this game, for those of you scoring at home

- Skylar Thompson helps lead KSU to an OT victory over Texas Tech in Lubbock

- Snyder picks up his first EVER win over a Top 10 foe on the road as K-State holds on for dear life in Stillwater against Oklahoma State

- A walk-off win over Iowa State on Senior Day in BSFS

- 'Cats mow down UCLA in the Cactus Bowl; Snyder picks up back-to-back bowl wins for the first time since the '99 Holiday Bowl and '00 Cotton Bowl

We Own Texas. That's right. The whole damn state.

Following a year that saw K-State finish below .500 for the first time since 2008, the Cats bounced back in a BIG way in 2016. The Podcats return to review an exciting season that saw a number of pleasant surprises:

- Jesse Ertz is FINALLY healthy and just misses the 2,000 passing/1,000 rushing mark

- The emergence of Alex Barnes, Justin Silmon and Dalvin Warmack in the runningback room

- The defense showcased dominant forces at all three levels, highlighted by Big 12 DPOY defensive end Jordan Willis

- Elijah Lee, Mike Moore, DJ Reed and Dante Barnett were all badasses, too

- Patrick Mahomes comes into Manhattan, throws for more than 500 yards, and leaves with an L in the most underrated game of the Snyder 2.0 Era 

- K-State delivers a long-overdue asswhooping to the Art Briles-less Baylor Bears on their home field

- Mike Lee takes the first of many L's in the Sunflower Showdown

- ZOMG MYLES GARRETT... does absolutely nothing in the Wildcats' 33-28 win over Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl 

 

At quarterback for K-State, number...oh shit

Nice effort, but not today. The Podcats return to examine a season that can only be described as a swift kick to the nuts. The 2015 Kansas State Wildcats got off to a 3-0 start but then let double-digit leads slip away in their first two conference tilts; THAT game happened; the injury bug infected this team early and did not let up as the year progressed; the most absurd coaching decision gives the Wildcats a break they more than deserved in Farmageddon; despite an 0-6 start to Big 12 play, THIS team somehow managed to win their final three to reach a bowl for the sixth consecutive season

Waters to Lockett, Waters to Sexton, rinse and repeat

Welcome to the sixth installment of the Snyder 2.0 Retrospective. The Podcats return to review a litany of topics related to the 2014 Kansas State football season, Highlights include the Jake Waters-Daniel Sams debate gets settled in a less than ideal manner; Bill Snyder Family Stadium hosts its biggest non-conference game since Pete Carroll-led USC came to Manhattan in 2002; Some fortuitous breaks early in the conference season put K-State in position to make another run at a Big 12 title; and the legacies of Tyler Lockett, Jake Waters, BJ Finney and Curry Sexton.

Snyder 2.0 Retrospective - 2013 Season

How was K-State's encore to the school's second Big 12 championship? Not great, but the ride was fun as hell. Join the Podcats (sans Justin) as they examine the 2013 'Cats. This season featured a quarterback controversy that incites fans to this day, the school's first home-opener loss since 1989, a second half surge, and an end to the school's five-game bowl losing streak. Take that, Michigan!

Snyder 2.0 Retrospective - 2012 Season

Big 12 Champs! Second time! The Podcats are back to analyze the best season of the Snyder 2.0 Era. Join Jeff, Justin, Clint and Alex as they take a look back at a year that saw K-State start 10-0, ascend to No. 1 in the BCS Standings, win a Big 12 Championship on its home turf and earn a bid to the Fiesta Bowl.

Snyder 2.0 Retrospective - 2011 Season

Don't mind us. Just breaking S&P+ and winning all the tight games. The podcats return to review the most fruitful recruiting class of the Snyder 2.0 era, Big 12 conference arrivals and departures, and a memorable season that saw Kansas State go 8-1 in one-possession games, which included a goal-line stand at Miami, a come-from-behind win over Heisman trophy winner Robert Griffin and a 4OT thriller over Texas A&M. 

Snyder 2.0 Retrospective - 2010 Season

Daniel Thomas left, Daniel Thomas right, Daniel Thomas up the middle, and a whole bunch of defensive lapses. Jeff, Justin, Clint and Alex return to break down K-State's 2010 campaign, the seismic events that changed the course of history for the Big 12 and the recruiting class that set up K-State's Big 12 title run

College & Kimball: Snyder Retrospective - 2009 Season

Jeff, Clint, Justin and Alex take a look back at the 2009 Kansas State football team.