Watch Coach Klieman’s Press Conference | Listen to Coach Klieman’s Press Conference | Listen to Player Breakout Interviews
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman and select players met with members of the media on Tuesday inside the Vanier Family Football Complex as the Wildcats face Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas, on Saturday night. Links to video and audio of Klieman’s press conference – which was streamed live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ – are above in addition to an audio link of player breakout interviews. A transcript of Klieman’s opening statement is below.
CHRIS KLIEMAN, HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
“Good afternoon, everyone. Another tough road trip this week heading to Lubbock. Another night game on the road. They’ve got a really good football team. Coach (Joey) McGuire has done a phenomenal job. I’ve got a ton of respect for him and his program. I think they've got one of the best running backs, for sure in the Big 12, and probably in the country. He’s probably not getting recognized enough. He is in the Big 12, but nationally I think he's one of the best that we've got to do a phenomenal job of trying to – you're not going to shut it down – but trying to control the rush game. Then on defense, they do a great job of getting pressure with their front four. Their front four is really good. They’ve got dynamic guys, and then they've got really physical, long DB’s and linebackers. So, bottom line for us is we need to be better across the board. It doesn’t matter if it’s by a position, it's by unit – offense, defense, and special teams. We had a good practice yesterday coming off a couple quote ‘off days’ on Saturday and Sunday even though we met on Saturday. The guys had a good workout yesterday, and we got to come up with great plans because it's going to be a big challenge.”