There were rumors floating around the internet last night as most of us went to sleep. Those same rumors were confirmed this morning as multiple news outlets are reporting Jerry Kill, former Minnesota coach, will be taking the place of Clint Dowdle. Kansas State confirms the news here:
Kansas Native and Former Head Coach Jerry Kill Named Associate AD at #KState https://t.co/XMeZEhP6DC pic.twitter.com/7TRiE8NOI9
— K-State Athletics (@kstatesports) May 17, 2016
With Bill Snyder being the oldest active coach in Division I, most Kansas State fans were concerned this was a role of coach in waiting instead of just an administrative role. No need to worry, Jerry Kill will be in an administrative role and this will not be a situation of waiting for Coach Snyder to retire. Kill retired from coaching college football last October due to his health problems with seizures on game days.
This is a great hire for Kansas State for a few reasons:
Jerry Kill is from Kansas
Deep in the heart of Wichita, the small town of Cheney lies west of the bustling city. Not only was Jerry Kill raised in small town Kansas, he was the first of his family to graduate college. Southwestern College was home to Kill for a few years while he played linebacker.
Jerry Kill enjoys life
The original GIF in this article was not Jerry Kill and in my state of excitement over this hire I overlooked that small detail. I'm sure that Kill still enjoys life.
Jerry Kill is a great guy
Since John Currie likes to base Bruce Weber's success off of his charitable ways, this is a no brainer for Kansas State to hire Kill. Not only did Jerry Kill beat kidney cancer, he started his own charity to help low income families to afford treatments for the disease. Also, Kill has shown great coaching and leadership abilities throughout his career that makes him well qualified to handle the administrative side of things since he knows about being on the line as a football coach.
This is a phenomenal hire by Kansas State and the fans can rest assured that we have a new member to the Kansas State #Family!