'Our culture is strong' Chris Klieman not worried about K-State's outgoing transfers

MANHATTAN (KSNT) - K-State football has said goodbye to 19 players in the transfer portal since the end of the 2023 regular season, including 14 'Cats who were on scholarship.

Chris Klieman spoke with reporters Friday, discussing that topic and more.

"It's a changing time in athletics," Klieman said. "Not just football. It's happening in a lot of sports and it's happening to a lot of institutions."

He believes a majority of the transfers, at least from K-State, stem from one of three reasons:

• Wanting to be closer to home
• Wanting more playing time
• Wanting greater representation (NIL)

"What I know Kansas State is doing, and what we're doing from an athletic department, is continuing to improve and enhance our name, image and likeness," Klieman said. "I've had some really good conversations, even over the last few weeks... and I'm excited about the trajectory we're on to improve that landscape."

K-State is careful with NIL offers in order to avoid false promises, according to Klieman.

"I want to make sure that the players know it's real, and it's not an empty promise," Klieman said. "We've been really diligent to make sure that if we're going to sit in front of a family and say 'We have something for you,' that we're going to be able to come through.''

Klieman doesn't seem too worried, despite the transfer departures.

"I know that our culture has been mentioned 'Is it still sound? Is it still stable?' It's really strong," Klieman said. "Has it been battered and hit? You bet. So has everybody's in the country. But it's driven on people."

Klieman credits player leadership, along with passionate coaching and a top-notch support staff for the 'Cats stellar culture.

"Our culture is strong," he said. "It has taken a couple of body blows, but it's going to stand the test of time because of the great kids we have in that locker room and the great coaches that are great role models and mentors for these kids."

The high-rate of transfers coming from Manhattan since the loss to Iowa State will mean K-State will need to put some new faces on the field. This is a challenge Coach Klieman isn't scared of.

"We're excited about it," he said. "...All the guys that we would say are redshirting or not in the two-deep [depth chart] have had reps every week... A lot of these guys are going to get their first opportunity, but they've been prepping for this since August 1."

Klieman was quick to point out K-State does still have several veteran players expected to take the field, including a senior-heavy offensive line and linebacker Austin Moore, who just announced he'll be back for a sixth-year next fall.

College football has, in some ways, begun to revolve around recruiting. DI coaches now have to focus on recruiting high school prospects, recruiting transfer portal targets and recruiting (keeping) their own roster. The last part of that has become an increased point of emphasis for Klieman and his staff.

"I really think that needs to happen all year long, and that's something we've talked about as a staff," Klieman said. "What other ways can we continue to do that? Building relationships... you've got to continue to do that day in and day out for the whole year... maybe we can have some more in depth conversations more often."

He says he regularly talks to other coaches in the industry to trade ideas and learn what's working for others in similar positions.

The fifth-year K-State head coach says there must be a balance between urgency and fit. The 'Cats have to jump on the transfer recruits quickly before they get picked up, but are also careful to vet the prospects and not make the mistake of adding negative influences.

With 19 departures in less than a month, Klieman uses the word 'challenging' to describe this time. However, it doesn't impact how long he wants to stay in this industry.

"I love doing what I'm doing... I have the greatest boss. Everybody knows [athletic director] Gene Taylor is a dear friend of mine, but he's a great boss," Klieman said. "I love the kids that we have the opportunity to go and coach. My favorite time is going out on that practice field and coaching those guys. There's a lot of things that are frustrating that everybody is dealing with... We need to see what happens over the next couple years and I think we're going to get some improvements for sure."

Klieman's sentiment surrounding his former players who transferred would indicate there isn't always a relational issue when guys leave. He said this when asked about Will Howard's decision to transfer, too.

"Many of those kids I recruited here. It's not like I, all of the sudden, can't stand the kid because he's leaving. That's not fair," he said. "They're 18 to 21 2023 If there's a better opportunity for a young man to get on the field and have a great experience, this game only last so long. We've had a lot of coaches help guys find some spots. I think that's important for everybody to know as well. We care about these kids. I would say a lot of the kids that you could reach out to, I think deep down, appreciate what the support staff [and] the coaching staff have meant to them as they've been here."

K-State plays NC State in the Pop Tarts Bowl in Orlando on Dec. 28.