Weekend Edition

BracketCat’s Countdown to Kickoff is back, and we’re up to #92 Eli Huggins and #91 Jake Roark.

There’s only a smattering of Kansas State news this weekend:

— On the heels of being named Canadian U20 Athlete of the year, Nina Schultz is now also the USTFCCCA women’s field athlete of the year for the Midwest region. This is the second-consecutive such honor for Schultz, and the fourth straight for Kansas State, with Akela Jones getting the award in 2015 and 2016.

— Nigel Shadd missed eight games of the 2017-18 season, and now he’ll be a redshirt freshman for the 2018-19 season thanks to a medical waiver granted by the Big 12 conference.

— Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star makes the case for embracing Bruce Weber, and also notes that next year—with a loaded roster, expectations are higher than ever. How Weber and the Wildcats deal with the anticipation might be the real proof of the pudding, to borrow a metaphor from assistant coach Chris Lowery.

— Speaking of assistant coaches, here’s a great profile of co-defensive coordinator Brian Norwood. He came to the Wildcats highly recommended and learned a lot through spring practice. He’s certain it will all translate to better chemistry in the fall (Ryan Black, Manhattan Mercury).

— Andre Coleman’s first words to his receivers were as follows:

None of you are very good. I have coached much better players than everyone in this room. I don’t need any of you.

That set the tone for his tenure, where he’s been an exacting coach, but also one the players genuinely like (Kellis Robinett, Wichita Eagle).

— Finally, in this week’s K-State Q&A, Kellis Robinett answers the eternal questions: why do the Wildcats have no big-time night games, does Kansas State have any shot at Kevin McCullar, and most importantly, Taco John’s or Taco Bell?