MANHATTAN, Kan. ā Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman and select players met with members of the media via Zoom on Tuesday as the Wildcats prepare for their Big 12 opener at Oklahoma. A complete transcript of Kliemanās press conference ā which was also streamed live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ ā and players are posted below.
š„ Watch: Chris Klieman | Will Jones II | Phillip Brooks | Justin Hughes | Cooper Beebe
The Wildcats travel to Norman this Saturday to face the third-ranked Sooners in an 11 a.m. contest that will be shown on FOX.
CHRIS KLIEMAN, HEAD COACH
Opening Statement...
āGood afternoon everybody. What we did last week, we were able to get a number of guys back and so we went back to fall camp mode. We worked Kansas State vs. Kansas State, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. We had four good days of good-on-good and worked in young guys and just working on our schemes and our systems to try and continue to improve. We lost so much time with a number of players due to a variety of issues that we had, that everybodyās dealing with. So we went back to the basics for the last week and now weāll turn our attention to an, obviously, extremely talented Oklahoma team. They have one game on their ledger, so we didnāt feel like we needed to spend all week because we need to get better as Kansas State, as our team with all our fundamentals and technique. We know itās going to be a tremendous challenge down in Norman, and weāre hopeful that we continue to get some guys back that potentially could help us. Every day is a different animal on that because you donāt know from one day to the next whoās going to be out at practice. But the guys that are out there, yesterday for example, just really worked hard and are excited about the opportunity.ā
On how close the team is to the COVID-19 threshold...
āWell, it causes us anxiety every day, Scott, to be honest with you. Even on the Arkansas State game it was Friday at five oāclock where we finally got the go ahead to play because we were one player at one position from having to cancel that game. And weāre not the only ones, thereās a lot of people. Obviously, Baylor is going through it. This week itās another position that weāre really close on the threshold, and we have to just go to keep preaching to the guys to keep their social distance, to keep their mask on, to keep themselves safe, so that we can get through the test on Wednesday and we can get through the test on Friday. But in the meantime, the guys that are out, there we have to keep rolling. You may be the backup, but the backup knows that heās one day away from being the starter, the third team guy is one day away from being the starter. So itās stressful, itās anxiety, but everybodyās dealing with it.ā
On Oklahoma being heavily favored...
āI wasnāt aware. I donāt pay attention to a lot of the point-spread things. Theyāre a really good football team, and we, after one game, showed that we have a long way to go, so that makes sense to me. You still have to line up and play. We have to not worry about who the opponent is, and we know who it is, and more focus on us getting better at all areas offensively and defensively.ā
On the rhythm getting disrupted during the bye week...
āThatās a great question. We just kind of go day-by-day. You would like to get a routine, and, knock on wood, we can get into a routine with three games in a row now so that our guys can get into the routine of what happens on a Monday and rolling through and getting the soreness out on Sunday and getting ready to play again. Thatās the hope for everybody in college football that you can get some games strung together, but itās also the reality that, even if you are able to play those games, youāre going to be playing them with different people or moving guys positionally. Thatās just kind of the world weāre in right now, and I think all of us coaches now have kind of accepted it. In August, āOh shoot, we lost that kid for 14 days or that kidās going into isolation.ā Now itās more of, āOkay, thatās the hand weāre dealt, who can we move over? Who can we move positions to?āā
On the health status of quarterback Skylar Thompson...
āHe didnāt do anything last week other than rehab and things. He did practice yesterday, and I thought he felt really good. So, Iām confident that, with a week of practice, that heāll be at full strength for Saturday.ā
On finding depth at the defensive back position...
āOh yeah weāre moving guys all the time, and thatās what we did last week. From trying true freshmen to moving safeties to corners and corners to safeties, wide receivers to defensive back, everything. We also need to prepare for kids being able to learn and play multiple positions because you just donāt know what could happen to you on a Wednesday or a Friday if a test doesnāt go your way. At least you have some familiarity with a number of players playing different spots.ā
On where last seasonās Oklahoma victory ranks amongst his wins...
āIt was obviously a big win because it was a home win, it was on Homecoming and those things. I guess I donāt ever really look at that as far as where it ranks. I donāt have a tally on my wall or anything of where things are at. I kind of just play it year-by-year and game-by-game.ā
On what he expects to see from linebacker Justin Hughes in conference play...
āJust to continue to improve. Continue to get more healthy. Continue to get his knee stronger. Continue to just play the game at football speed that Justin wants to play at. Everybody knows what a terrific player he was pre-injury, and I think there's a lot of pressure on a young man himself to say, āI have to get back to that.ā It takes some time. Thatās the thing thatās difficult is that it doesnāt happen overnight. It didnāt happen with Eli (Sullivan) last year when he came off his knee injury. I thought Eli got stronger as the season went on, and thatās what weāre hopeful with Justin as well.ā
On the impact of running back Harry Trotter...
āYeah, Harry is doing a great job like I knew he would be. He just does everything for us. He catches the ball out of the backfield, he protects, he runs the ball, heās on special teams. Weāre really fortunate to have Harry on the team, and heās an unselfish guy as well. He just wants to help the team whether heās carrying the ball 15-18 times, or whether heās carrying the ball 10 times, catching a couple passes, helping us out on kickoffs. You love those kinds of players because itās more about the team than it is themselves.ā
On true freshmen making strides...
āKeyon Mozee has done some really nice things. Heās getting some more reps, and heās the one who jumps out at me. Tee Denson is a guy weāre looking at to give us some special teams or backup reps, or whatever youād like to call it. The one thing we did last week was we had a couple of periods each day where the young players would play against the young players just with our base offense and base defense. As you get into the season, sometimes you scale back on some stuff. Weāre going to do the same thing for the foreseeable future on Tuesdays when we have full pads to have those young players go against each other for 10 or 12, 15-20 plays a day just so they continue to get comfortable and confident in the scheme, as well as us seeing if guys are ready to help us, especially with COVID, where you might lose a few guys at a position.ā
On the productivity of the team meetings from last week...
āI think they were productive, but the meetings we had werenāt all dealing with whatās going to happen on the field and scoreboard and stuff. Some were on the inner working of our team that we want to improve upon and be better at. Challenge guys and make sure guys are holding each other accountable to the standard we expect. Discipline, maturity and all sorts of things that donāt just happen overnight. You have to realize that we lost four or five months of a lot of time with coaches and players together. You lose that much time, you donāt just make up for it in a quick summer camp or fall, especially when so many guys miss. Itās going to take a lot of teams a while to recover from the amount of time that they lost. Iām not saying on the field. Thatās a no-brainer. Iām saying off the field, as well.ā
On the team's confidence after beating Oklahoma last season...
āI think the guys that played should have some confidence that they competed very well against a great football team. The younger guys, they just need to continue to get better at their craft and understand what weāre doing in Kansas State offense, defense and teams. Both teams are brand new. They have a new quarterback. We have a lot of new offensive linemen and some new guys on defense, so the teams are different. The guys that played in the game, I hope, have some confidence to say that we had some success.ā
On Oklahoma Quarterback Spencer Rattler...
āWe have limited film, but just the fact that heās working under Lincoln Riley shows that heās going to be a great player. Lincoln is as good as there is in coaching quarterbacks, so I think he has tremendous arm strength. He does a great job of reading defenses, looking people off and knowing where heās going with the football. Heās an extremely good athlete. They didnāt run him or need to run him much against Missouri State, but I know from doing some research that he can beat you with his feet as well as his arm. I know heās a young player, but Iāve been so impressed with his skillset.ā
On sustaining Chabastin Taylor performance in week one...
āHe needs to for us to be successful. Weāve seen that all through the summer and fall camp. The practices weāve had, limited or not, heās been the dominant guy, in my mind, on a daily basis. We were confident that Chabastin would have that kind of a game. Hopefully it gives him a lot of confidence, too, that he is so much better year two in the system. Heās stronger. He has really good speed. He has excellent hands and runs good routes. Heās a big, physical guy, so I was not surprised with his performance. I canāt wait to see how he does the rest of the year.ā
On if thereās an urge to play quarterback Will Howard more...
āSure it is, but heās no different than Deuce Vaughn. You say we snuck him in for a few snaps. Deuce played more snaps than Will and had a lot of production, but Deuce needs that practice time. Will needs that practice time. Will needs to go against the first defense on consecutive days, go against them in third down and put him in some stress. He was able to do that last week, because Skylar didnāt take many reps. Nick and Will took most of the reps with the ones and the twos, and I know it will make those two guys better in the future because they were taking the lionās share of the reps, not Skylar taking eight and you guys take two. They were taking every bit of those reps. I know itās going to make them better now and in the future.ā
On limited capacity affecting the road environment...
āThatās a good question. I have not been to Norman before. Iāve obviously seen a lot of games on television. Itās still a home field advantage for them. The noise factor is not going to be what it typically is, but as tight as those sidelines are, noise will be a factor. Itās something we have to practice for. I think thatās going to be the interesting thing as you go across all these places. What is the environment, and how do your kids adjust to it? Whether itās very little crowd to no crowd or to 22,000 in the crowd and the crowd noise that could come with that. Every week will be a different kind of adventure there.ā
PHILLIP BROOKS, SOPHOMORE WIDE RECEIVER
On the impact Will Jones has had on defenseā¦
āI go against Will every day in practice. He is one of the few guys that are just as fast if not faster than myself. He brings speed as well as playmaking ability, as you can see, he made an interception last game and he blocked a punt last game. He brings big playmaking and speed to the defense.ā
On the mentality the team needs to bring to the field this Saturdayā¦
āWe were talking this week, detailing our assignments and how we were underdogs last year. With a team like that, a lot of people are going to give us the underdog card, but we donāt see ourselves as an underdog and go into every game trying to win. We have a good game plan, and thatās what we plan to do.ā
On his favorite memory from last yearās upset against Oklahomaā¦
āI was actually hurt the first half of that game, so I was glad I got to play the second half of the game. I didnāt think I was going to play. I just liked seeing us do what we practiced all year and just compete. Even though we were down early, we came back, took the lead and extended the lead. I love seeing my teammates succeed. My boy, Josh Youngblood, scored his first touchdown, I saw that. And us winning the game, those are the highlights for me.ā
On if the Oklahomaās defense has changed since last yearā¦
āNo not really. They have the same defensive coordinator, so they have the same kind of structure. They are going to play man against us, we expect man. We expect Cover 4. We expect their nickel to be all over the place like normal. So, we are just taking our game plan, our coaches have a good game plan. We should be straight.ā
On how it helps to get some players back into the wide receiver groupā¦
āThat helps a lot. We felt like we were incomplete at that position. Itās been big to have everyone back this week. We can already tell at our first practice, yesterday with everybody back, making plays all over the place. We are excited to see what everyone can do.ā
On catching passes from Will Howard and Nick Ast last week in practiceā¦
āComing in as a freshman, I threw with Nick a lot. This offseason I got to throw with Will more, and of course Skylar. Itās nothing new. The only new person Iām catching from is Will because he is a freshman coming in. Iām excited to see if they get an opportunity to play. I think they all will do well.ā
WILL JONES II REDSHIRT FRESHMAN DEFENSIVE BACK
On the issues defensively against Arkansas State...
āWe were trying to lock in on our keys and missing a few of those, but I feel like the biggest thing from game one is having something to learn from and something to focus on for the weeks to come.ā
On the impact he brings to the defenseā¦
āA lot of speed and explosive plays. Iām trying to be out there, make the best of it and the most of all the opportunities and put the team in a good position to be successful.ā
On being an underdog against Oklahomaā¦
āWe see stuff like that and donāt really worry about it, but it fuels our fire because we know what we are doing over here. We know what problems we need to fix and get it done. We are going to go out there and do our best to handle business on Saturday.ā
On the emotions of his first start against Arkansas Stateā¦
āIt was exciting. As a result, we just have to get those. For myself and the team, the emotions were flying in the first game and being excited to play, but at the end of the day we have to execute business.ā
On the biggest challenge of defending Oklahomaā¦
āWe just have to remain focused and stay calm. We know they are a good team, but as long as we do what our coaches tell us to do, they put us in a position to be successful and weāll be fine.ā
On his impact against Arkansas Stateā¦
āWe practice things and watch film. So when you make those plays, you can only thank your coaches and teammates for preparing you for moments like that because you knew it was going to happen. You practice all week for it to happen. Itās just so exciting because you were able to execute.ā
On evaluating themselves before playing Oklahomaā¦
āIt was something we needed to do. We needed to step back and evaluate everything and focus in on some of the problems that we had and some of the things we needed to fix because it makes us a way better team. We attack practice differently and move forward as a team and together.ā
On what the leaders of the team are saying about handling COVID-19ā¦
āWe know itās going to be difficult, and we just have to be able to hold ourselves accountable to not go out and not go to parties and keep it within the facility, and go home, and then come back, wear your mask, and be disciplined. We know itās going to be a challenge and some people may have to play multiple positions or take care of a teammate, but itās hard and everyone is taking that step and being responsible and wearing a mask and doing the things we need to do to be able to protect the team and help the team move forward.ā
JUSTIN HUGHES, SENIOR LINEBACKER
On the team meetings last week ā¦
āI would say the message to everybody was to be disciplined. We have to be disciplined on and off the field. The little things matter, the details matter. We have to execute those details to a tee to be successful, especially with everything going on with COVID. We have to take everything seriously and we have to do everything the right way. Coach has two rules, do things right and be on time. We have to execute that on and off the field whether that be meetings, class, Zooms, everything. So, weāre taking everything a little bit more serious now we have seen that any given Saturday we can get beat. So weāre going to take everything serious and come out and take each and every day to be as successful as possible, individually and as a team.ā
On if the offseason distractions led to the team getting off track...
āI wouldnāt say that. I think itās just we have to execute the little details. I wouldnāt blame it on any certain thing. I just think we get distracted sometimes or whatever. That may be guys missing out on assignments, and Iām guilty of that too. So we just, like I said, we have to go out and be detailed with our work, be detailed with our assignment and go execute it.ā
On the explosiveness of the Oklahoma offenseā¦
āI would say OU definitely, always has a great o-line. The o-line is one of the best in the nation. The quarterback is always great. Lincoln Riley has done a great job of recruiting those guys. Theyāre a solid team. Unfortunately, they played a lower (level) team in Missouri State, so we have to go on that film. We just have to go out there and execute our assignments and look at the details of what they want to execute schematically. We have to go out there and execute our scheme to the best way possible we can. It should be a good game.ā
On any changes since the team meetingsā¦
āAbsolutely, we as leaders and captains have done a great job of saying, āEnough is enough.ā Letting little things slide, letting little mistakes slide, we are going to hold each other accountable. Whether that be leaders to leaders, leaders to young guys. Weāre going to a great job of holding everybody accountable in this program, and weāre going to set a new tone for this program, and it started last week Sunday.ā
On being the heavy underdogā¦
āJust like you said, an underdog mentality. Weāve been underdogs for most of the part Iāve been here, and Iām sick of it being an underdog. I know we didnāt prove it last Saturday on what we can be, but itās just fuel to the fire being another underdog, being projected to be beaten so badly. Weāre going to go out there and give OU our best shot each and every play, each and every down. Weāre going to go out there and be physically the best that we possibly can.ā
On defensive back Will Jones IIā¦
āWill Jones is smart, athletic, fast, quick, and he knows football. Heās a great football player. He has great instincts and knows where the ball is going to be before it even gets there. As you can see, he caught an interception last week and didnāt even move. So heās a smart player. Me and him talk a lot because he plays nickel. Me and him communicate a lot, we just talk ball. I know he loves ball just by the way I talk to him, and I love talking ball so me and him talk a lot.ā
On his advice to the younger players when facing a high-powered offenseā¦
āI would say the stage is never too big for you. The play is never too big to be made by you. I would say go out there do your assignment, and youāre here for a reason and anybody can make a play any given Saturday. Go out there and be calm about your work, be disciplined about your work, and mentality tell yourself you can do it.ā
COOPER BEEBE, REDSHIRT FRESHMAN OFFENSIVE LINEMAN
On what he learned about the offensive line last week...
āI learned that the game moves a lot quicker, and we as a unit have to be fundamentally sound and focus on the details. COVID is what it is, and we have to deal with what we have and go out there and compete.ā
On handling the moment in his first start...
āI was nervous at first. Looking back at the film, I have stuff to improve on going into week two.ā
On going on the road to Oklahomaā¦
āWe as a unit donāt have a lot of experience, and itās on us to improve. If we can come out and do our assignment and be fundamentally sound, we have a chance this week.ā
On what the offensive line could improve on...
āOur assignments and doing the little things right. I know for me, personally, my second step and hand placement was a big thing that I took away from watching the film. I think itās just the little details and knowing your assignments is what we can take away the most.ā
On how far off the offense is of reaching its potential...
āWe arenāt that far off at all. Iāve seen a huge improvement this week at practice, and I feel like we are in a good place. It hurts taking that loss week one, but we are taking the necessary steps.ā
On the impact Noah Johnsonās return will have later on...
āOh itās huge. Noah is a huge part of our offensive line and as a leader itās huge. He really gets us all going and is just a real leader, not just on the offensive line, but as a team. He gets everybody juiced up, especially for practice, he gets everybody going. He is going to be huge when he gets back.ā