Kansas State Football: Fans will pay close attention to FCS Championship

Kansas State football hired Chris Klieman to take over as the next head coach of their program. Klieman and his North Dakota State Bison are still in the running to win their fourth championship and Wildcat fans are excited about that.

K-State fans are likely going to be heavily invested in the FCS Championship taking place on January 5th between the North Dakota State Bison and the Eastern Washington Eagles. That’s because new Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman has led the Bison to three titles and could win a fourth one next month.

While the FCS isn’t quite Division I, fans should like what they’re seeing from Klieman and his team as they vie for a fourth championship. North Dakota State blew out both Colgate and South Dakota State in their two playoff games and now will face Eastern Washington for the title in a few weeks.

Klieman is still coaching the Bison, but he’s officially been introduced as the K-State football head coach. There have been mixed reviews on this hire, but Klieman has done well in the North Dakota State program.

Looking at the stat sheet from North Dakota State’s victory over South Dakota State, they’re a similar team to Kansas State. They have a running quarterback in Easton Stick, who is limited in the passing game (he threw just 15 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown), but can really do damage with his legs.

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Stick rushed for 147 yards on 14 carries with three rushing touchdowns. So, if you’re keeping track, the kid had four touchdowns against the Jackrabbits.

That’s K-State football right there. Both quarterbacks seized the day with their legs last season and that’s good to see that Klieman runs a similar offense at North Dakota State that he can bring to Manhattan and execute well.

Kansas State also relies heavily on playing solid defense, which NDSU has displayed in their last two games. They did allow a SDSU player to rush for 135 yards, but limited the Jackrabbits to just 21 points.

Klieman will need a few years to get his recruits up and running in Manhattan, but he’s done a nice job of finding the right talent at North Dakota State. Yes, NDSU provides a winning program for the recruits, but Kansas State plays in a fairly weak Big 12 and could get back into the swing of things in a few years.

The FCS Championship isn’t until January 5th, but it’s safe to say that Kansas State football fans will be watching with heavy interest and hoping that success carries over to Manhattan in the coming years.