K-State's Chris Klieman Points To 'Adversity' As Key Reason For Recent On-Field Success
Kansas State coach Chris Klieman said he is proud of how his team has responded after the bye week.
Speaking to the media Monday before a trip to Houston this Saturday, Klieman addressed the critical four-game stretch the Wildcats face. This continued with a Sunflower Showdown win against in-state rival Kansas this past Saturday.
Klieman said the Wildcats finished October 3-0, largely thanks to their willingness to withstand deficits while making game-changing plays in return. He reemphasized how important the execution of good practices needed to occur to be ready for any situation.
"We never looked ahead once we got into our four-game stretch [after the bye]," Klieman said. "We had an open week. I thought we were able to get our bodies healthy and get some things accomplished, and then really attacked it one day at a time. You gotta win Monday to get to Tuesday, and you gotta attack Tuesday to get to Wednesday. And you gotta continue to build each day. Have some of our Tuesday practices not been the best? Accurate, but we've gotten better on Wednesday and fixed some problems. Gotten better on Thursday, and I would say our player ownership [is important]."
Klieman added the team's "player ownership" mantra was on full display, regardless of environment.
"I know that the ownership that the guys took, especially through the adversity we faced at Colorado – having a lead, losing a lead, and being down in that kind of environment in the fourth quarter and just watching those guys help each other [on] both sides of the ball," Klieman said. "That helped us a bunch in that game in particular. The adversity that we faced, and the guys have faced during this four-game stretch, or the three of the four so far, I think has made us really grow as a football team."
The Wildcats fell one spot to No. 17 in the AP Poll. Nonetheless, it remains in the driver seat for potential Big 12 conference championship appearance by season's end.
Zain Bando is a contributor to Kansas State Wildcats On SI. He can be reached at zainbando99@gmail.com and on Instagram/'X' @zainbando99.
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