First of all after watching KSU play several times and then against KU, the S&C can be such a factor.
For several years Chris Dawson ran the S&C at Kansas State and he is very good at what he does. He turned down jobs with Leach at Washington State, Doeren at NCSU, and several others in recent years. He was the runner-up at Alabama two years ago. The players can develop in a strength program.
This will be a critical offseason for Matt Gildersleeve. He really hasn't got a chance to get his program in place. He only had the players for two months before fall camp started.
When you watch Kansas State I don't know that they are all that talented. I have said this before they have talent in the right spots. But they play fast. They play fast because they know their system. They play fast because they haven been built up in the strength program. They are just more physically developed than the KU players have been.
One of the biggest challenges Leipold and his staff have in front of them is changing the mindset of playing more physical. I don't blame the staff for where the players are at. But there are far too many missed tackles. There were several plays today where KU had players in position to make plays and they didn't.
Again this comes with building a program. This will take time. This is just one of the hurdles Leipold inherited.
Now, the biggest question and it isn't easy for the staff is doing evaluations and deciding which players you think can make these leaps and bounds for next year. They are going to have to figure out who can develop and who will need time. And then they are going to have to plug holes through portal and juco recruiting along with what high school prospects might be left on the board.
Leipold has the youngest Power Five roster in the nation. But that doesn't always mean the young players will be contributors in the future.
I believe in Leipold. I think he's a smart coach and knows what needs to be done. It is just going to take a lot of work. A lot. We all see it and know it.
One of the next decisions will be what happens at quarterback. I thought Jalon Daniels looked good. The ball came out of his hands with the some zip. He chose to run an showed his athleticism. I thought he threw some balls that I don't know if Bean and Kendrick make.
"The game of football is always the next man up mentality," Daniels said after the game. "I've been taking this year to be able to sit behind Miles Kendrick and Jason Bean, just learning from them, just learn to be able to get better when the opportunity comes."
When the talk came after the game about playing more this season he said it comes down to the coaching staff.
"I'm really taking a day by day," he said. "At the end of the day, I have faith in the coaching staff. I'm trusting the process. I believe in everything that they're doing. So whatever route they decide to take is a route that I'm going to go with."
I want to single out Rich Miller. That kid plays his tail off. He was the fourth LB at Buffalo and they returned their top three starters from last year. That kid plays with great effort. I will take more like that.
For several years Chris Dawson ran the S&C at Kansas State and he is very good at what he does. He turned down jobs with Leach at Washington State, Doeren at NCSU, and several others in recent years. He was the runner-up at Alabama two years ago. The players can develop in a strength program.
This will be a critical offseason for Matt Gildersleeve. He really hasn't got a chance to get his program in place. He only had the players for two months before fall camp started.
When you watch Kansas State I don't know that they are all that talented. I have said this before they have talent in the right spots. But they play fast. They play fast because they know their system. They play fast because they haven been built up in the strength program. They are just more physically developed than the KU players have been.
One of the biggest challenges Leipold and his staff have in front of them is changing the mindset of playing more physical. I don't blame the staff for where the players are at. But there are far too many missed tackles. There were several plays today where KU had players in position to make plays and they didn't.
Again this comes with building a program. This will take time. This is just one of the hurdles Leipold inherited.
Now, the biggest question and it isn't easy for the staff is doing evaluations and deciding which players you think can make these leaps and bounds for next year. They are going to have to figure out who can develop and who will need time. And then they are going to have to plug holes through portal and juco recruiting along with what high school prospects might be left on the board.
Leipold has the youngest Power Five roster in the nation. But that doesn't always mean the young players will be contributors in the future.
I believe in Leipold. I think he's a smart coach and knows what needs to be done. It is just going to take a lot of work. A lot. We all see it and know it.
One of the next decisions will be what happens at quarterback. I thought Jalon Daniels looked good. The ball came out of his hands with the some zip. He chose to run an showed his athleticism. I thought he threw some balls that I don't know if Bean and Kendrick make.
"The game of football is always the next man up mentality," Daniels said after the game. "I've been taking this year to be able to sit behind Miles Kendrick and Jason Bean, just learning from them, just learn to be able to get better when the opportunity comes."
When the talk came after the game about playing more this season he said it comes down to the coaching staff.
"I'm really taking a day by day," he said. "At the end of the day, I have faith in the coaching staff. I'm trusting the process. I believe in everything that they're doing. So whatever route they decide to take is a route that I'm going to go with."
I want to single out Rich Miller. That kid plays his tail off. He was the fourth LB at Buffalo and they returned their top three starters from last year. That kid plays with great effort. I will take more like that.
