It’s KU week for football as the Wildcats get ready to play the Jayhawks in Lawrence on Saturday. K-State basketball starts this week with an exhibition game at 7:00 Thursday night against Pitt State in Bramlage. Here’s what the coaches and players are saying in preparation for the games….

“Big rivalry game against KU, excited about the challenge go on the road and face a good KU team..”…Chris Klieman, November 2, 2021

JM: KU got beat 55-3 against Oklahoma State last Saturday. Not sure I’d call them a “good team.”

“He (Tyrone Howell) misses the first half of this next game. I didn’t realize that until Sunday that they let us know that it’s probably similar to a targeting penalty. So, he’ll miss the first half of this game.”… Chris Klieman, November 2, 2021

JM: Howell will miss the first half of Saturday’s game against KU because of his ejection for fighting in the TCU game. I wasn’t aware of this rule, either.

“It’s a fun atmosphere, especially when the majority of the crowd was purple when we were there.”…K-State quarterback Skylar Thompson, November 2, 2021

JM: How many college quarterbacks enjoy playing their rival on the road in part because most of the crowd is rooting and cheering for you? My guess is not many.

“Maybe this game he (Felix Aniduke-Uzomah) will get eight and set the bar a little higher.”…K-State defensive lineman Jaylen Pickle

JM: I’d settle for one or two, but eight would be great!

“Yes, kind of. They didn’t recruit me because I was undersized. So, that’s basically the fuel I’m going to use. I used that last year and got a sack against them. So, hopefully I can get a sack against them in this game too.”…K-State defensive end Felix Aniduke-Uzomah

JM: A lot of schools didn’t recruit Felix, but if he needs some extra motivation this sounds pretty good.

“I don’t get how it’s not a sack if you sack him behind the line of scrimmage and he’s trying to throw the ball.” …K-State defensive end Felix Aniduke-Uzomah

JM: Agreed. I’ll always unofficially call it a six-sack game.

“We’ll see how the week goes and I told staff the other day, I’m not sure they agreed with me. This might be a year where every game might be a little different unit depending how they play.”…Bruce Weber, November 1, 2021

JM: The starting lineup for the basketball team will probably be a mystery until just before tipoff tomorrow night.

“The first thing and I joked with him (Mark Smith) a couple times this summer. I said, ‘are you always this happy?’ Because he comes in here and he’s happy. He’s got a smile on his face, and I get text messages from his dad that he’s so happy to be there.”…Bruce Weber, November 1, 2021

JM: This was Weber’s response to a reporter’s question asking what Missouri transfer guard Mark Smith has brought to the team. I don’t think this was what the reporter was getting at. Hey, it’s great he is happy and has a great attitude, but can he score? Defend? Rebound? I guess we’ll see.

“I hope we come out and we come very focused and really play at a high level. Even though it doesn’t count, it does count, and I think that’s the biggest thing.”…Bruce Weber, November 1, 2021

JM: It doesn’t count, but it does count. I also “hope” they play at a high level.

“I can’t wait, I am so excited. Everybody improved, our whole team improved, and I think we are going to surprise some people.”…Luke Kasubke, K-State guard, November , 2021

JM: I hope he’s right, but I believe Bruce Weber said the same thing prior to the beginning of last season. That didn’t quite work out the way he predicted.

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Check out my article “The top ten K-State football wins over Kansas since 1989.”

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