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2022 PRESEASON WALTER CAMP PLAYER OF YEAR PLAYER TO WATCH: Deuce Vaughn, RB, junior, Kansas State,...One of the top all-around running backs in the nation, Vaughn was one of three players in the country last season with 1,000 rushing yards and 400 receiving yards, while he ranked fourth nationally with 22 total touchdowns. The 11th player in school history to be named a Consensus All-American when he earned the accolade in 2021, Vaughn enters the 2022 season ranking first nationally among all active non-kickers in career points per game (8.1), second among active players in career all-purpose yards per game (134.48), fifth in rushing yards per carry (5.7) and total touchdowns scored (31), eighth in rushing yards per game (89.0) and tied for eighth rushing touchdowns (25). - Kansas State Football

(DS#17 RB) Jr/2023

RB *Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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08/03/22 - Malik Knowles, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-2, 196 (DS#60 WR) + More +

2022 PRESEASON PAUL HORNUNG AWARD WATCH LIST: Malik Knowles, Kansas State,...A Second Team All-American kick returner in 2021 and a Preseason All-American this year, Knowles finished second nationally with two kickoff-return touchdowns, while his 33.1-yard average ranked fourth in the country. He was a First Team All-Big 12 kick returner by the league's coaches, marking the 15th time in the 26-year existence of the Big 12 - and the eighth time in the last nine years - that a Wildcat was a First Team All-Big 12 returner.

A product of Mansfield, Texas, Knowles enters his senior season tied for fourth in school history in kickoff-return touchdowns (3), and he is ranked sixth in both kickoff-return average (28.2) and yards (1,099). Knowles will open the 2022 campaign tied for second nationally among active players in career kickoff-return touchdowns and fifth in kickoff-return average. As a receiver, Knowles hauled in 29 receptions for 441 yards and four touchdowns in 2021 as he earned Honorable Mention All-Big 12 accolades. - Kansas State Football

(DS#60 WR) rSr/2023

WR Malik Knowles, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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08/03/22 - Randen Plattner, rSr/2024, Kansas State, 6-2, 244 (DS#8 LS) + More +

2022 PRESEASON PATRICK MANNELLY AWARD WATCHLIST: Randen Plattner, Kansas State,...A native of Parkville, Missouri, Plattner has seen action in 35 career games as the team's primary long snapper on both field goals/PATs and punts. He has been true on all 217 snaps throughout his career, including 103 a year ago. Plattner has also excelled in the classroom as he is a three-time First Team Academic All-Big 12 honoree. - Kansas State Football

(DS#8 LS) rSr/2024

LS Randen Plattner, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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08/02/22 - *Deuce Vaughn, Jr/2023, Kansas State, 5-05, 179 (DS#17 RB) + More +

How does Kansas State's dynamic 5-foot-6, 176-pound running back Deice Vaughan propose to live up to the hype that already includes preseason all-conference recognition as well as a place on watch lists for most major national awards? The same way that he always has. "Just giving the same amount of work that I've given these past two years," Vaughn said recently during Big 12 media days in Arlington, Texas. "Going into my freshman year and going into my sophomore year, I've had to elevate the way that I take care of my body (and) the way that I work out and the way that I also take care of my film (study). "Going into my junior year, a lot of eyes are on you, so you have to do more, and I'm really focused on that part of my game and taking care of everything, so that whenever it's time to go play, that's what I'm doing - just playing."

Vaughn started seven of 10 games as a freshman in 2020 while leading the Wildcats in rushing with 642 yards and seven touchdowns and catching 25 passes for 434 yards and two more scores. Last year he amassed 1,404 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground, plus caught a team-high 49 passes for 468 yards and four TDs. That included nine 100-yard rushing games, including each of the last six, capped by a 146-yard, three-touchdown performance in the Wildcats' 42-20 Texas Bowl victory over LSU. - Topeka Capital Journal

(DS#17 RB) Jr/2023

RB *Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
News Source: Topeka Capital Journal
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08/01/22 - Ty Zentner, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-1, 199 (DS#20 P) + More +

2022 PRESEASON RAY GUY WATCHLIST: Ty Zentner - Kansas State,...Zentner (6-2, 200) enters the 2022 season with a 42.5-yard punting average, which would rank fourth in school history if he had seven more attempts to reach the required minimum. An Honorable Mention All-Big 12 pick last year, Zentner finished the 2021 season with a 43.7-yard average to tie for fifth in school history, and his average would have ranked second in the Big 12 had he punted eight more times to reach the required minimum. His strong average was buoyed by 16 punts that traveled 50 or more yards, while he only had four touchbacks. Zentner, a product of Topeka, Kansas, posted a career-high five 50-plus yard punts at Oklahoma State in addition to setting a career single-game best average of 55.7 yards per punt at Texas Tech, which was the 12th-best average in the nation and fourth in the Big 12 during a single game in 2021. One of his punts against the Red Raiders was a 63-yarder - the second-longest of his career - which immediately preceded a K-State safety that swung the game in the Wildcats' favor. - Kansas State Football

(DS#20 P) rSr/2023

P Ty Zentner, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/30/22 - *Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Jr/2023, Kansas State, 6-3, 255 (DS#6 DE) + More +

2022 PRESEASON BRONKO NAGURSKI TROPHY WATCHLIST: DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Kansas State,...Anudike-Uzomah was one of the top defensive players in the nation in 2021 as he earned All-America honors from Phil Steele, and he was a First Team All-Big 12 performer by both the league's coaches and Associated Press in addition being named the Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year by the coaches. He tied for the national lead in forced fumbles per game (0.46), while he ranked 11th nationally in sacks. His 11.0 total sacks tied for fifth in school history, which included a single-game record tying 4.0 sacks against TCU en route to Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week, Bednarik Award Player of the Week, Bronko Nagurski Trophy Player of the Week and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors. - Kansas State Football

(DS#6 DE) Jr/2023

DE *Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/30/22 - Eli Huggins, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-4, 295 (DS#52 DT) + More +

Chris Klieman knew how valuable Eli Huggins had been to Kansas State's defense for the past couple of years. He also knew that as a senior in 2021, Huggins had a decision to make. An NCAA ruling granted players active during the coronavirus pandemic an extra year of eligibility, and Klieman and his staff didn't want to push too hard, regardless of how badly they wanted him to stick around. "We didn't know if he was going to come back and we let him have a bit of time," Klieman said of Huggins, a 6-foot-4, 297-pound defensive tackle from Cumming, Ga. "And then a bunch of us kind of went at him hard and said: 'We want you back. We need you back,' and he said, 'I want to do this one more time.' "So to be here six years, to go through all he went through, he really deserved the opportunity to." Eli Huggins says he has something to prove.

As it turned out, it didn't take a lot of prodding to convince Huggins to come back. After the season, which ended with a 42-20 Texas Bowl victory over LSU, he consulted with teammates who had taken advantage of the COVID year in 2021 and decided it was the best path for him as well. "I wasn't ready (to leave), man," Huggins said. "I felt like I had more to prove. I knew we'd have a great opportunity this year with a ton of good guys coming back (and) it didn't feel right to leave yet. "I love Manhattan too much. It's such a good place and just the best option for me was to come back." - Topeka Capital Journal

(DS#52 DT) rSr/2023

DT Eli Huggins, Kansas State
News Source: Topeka Capital Journal
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07/29/22 - Cooper Beebe, rSr/2024, Kansas State, 6-3, 322 (DS#3 OG) + More +

2022 PRESEASON OUTLAND TROPHY WATCHLIST: OT Cooper Beebe, Kansas State,...Beebe is also one of 10 players from the Big 12 on the watch list for the Outland Trophy, which goes to the nation's most outstanding interior lineman on either side of the ball. He is the first Wildcat in the running for the award since Dalton Risner was a candidate in 2018. - Kansas State Football

(DS#3 OG) rSr/2024

OG Cooper Beebe, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/28/22 - Julius Brents, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-3, 198 (DS#10 CB) + More +

2022 PRESEASON JIM THORPE AWARD WATCHLIST: Julius Brents, Kansas State, Sr.,...In 2021 Brents was a 13-game starter at cornerback after transferring in from Iowa as he earned Honorable Mention All-Big 12 honors... Carded his first interception since his true freshman campaign of 2018 when he picked off Oklahoma... Also broke up a pass in K-State's Texas Bowl win over LSU... Set a career high with eight tackles at Texas, including a career-best seven solo stops and a tackle for loss... Had six tackles and a TFL against West Virginia, while his first-career TFL came against Iowa State... Also had six tackles against Southern Illinois and Oklahoma State. - Kansas State Football

(DS#10 CB) rSr/2023

CB Julius Brents, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/25/22 - *Deuce Vaughn, Jr/2023, Kansas State, 5-05, 179 (DS#17 RB) + More +

2022 PRESEASON DOAK WALKER AWARD CANDIDATE: Deuce Vaughn (Jr.), Kansas State,...Born Christopher Vaughn II, he has been called Deuce because his mom, Marquette, picked it out disliked family members calling him junior. She was a fan of the New Orleans Saints and their star running back Deuce McAllister. Deuce's dad is a scout for the Dallas Cowboys and the family moved frequently following Vaughn Sr.'s changing football jobs. They settled in Round Rock, Texas and Deuce attended Cedar Ridge High School, where he played football and ran track.

As a senior, Vaughn broke Cedar Ridge's single-season rushing record with 1,940 yards. Vaughn entered his 2020 freshman season at Kansas State as one of the Wildcats' top running backs. He finished the season with 642 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 123 carries, 25 receptions for 434 yards and two touchdowns, and seven kickoff returns for 145 yards. He was named the Big 12 Conference Offensive Freshman of the Year and second team All-Conference. - Kansas State Football

(DS#17 RB) Jr/2023

RB *Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/22/22 - Dante Cephas, rSr/2025, Kansas State, 6-0, 193 (DS#141 WR) + More +

2022 PRESEASON BILETNIKOFF AWARD WATCH LIST: Dante Cephas, Kent State,...Cephas finished the season with 82 catches for 1,240 yards, becoming the first Kent State wide receiver to top 1,000 yards since 1997. Cephas also finished with seven 100-yard games and nine receiving touchdowns. His receptions, yards and touchdowns were all top-three in the Mid-American Conference. He was named first-team all-conference for his stellar 2021 season. - Kent State Football

(DS#141 WR) rSr/2025

WR Dante Cephas, Kansas State
News Source: Kent State Football
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07/21/22 - Eli Huggins, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-4, 295 (DS#52 DT) + More +

Good as K-State was on defense in most games last season, breaking in a new system was difficult. Defensive linemen like Eli Huggins had the most to learn. It took him most of the year to feel like he mastered his responsibilities playing in the middle of the Wildcats' defensive front. "It was hard," Huggins said. "We were running a completely different defense last year, so we kind of had to dial it back a little bit just just to be safe. But I think with all these guys we've got here coming back, having a year in the system, we're going to know the defense so much better. I think we'll be able to open it up compared to last year." That could mean anything from more blitzes to more complicated coverage schemes and other tactics that can keep an offense off balance.

Klieman won't say exactly what he has in store for future opponents. But, much like last offseason, he has put lots of thought into the subject behind the scenes. K-State does seem to have the right personnel to play more aggressive this season. On top of Huggins, the Wildcats return Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Nate Matlack, Daniel Green, Jaylen Pickle, Khalid Duke, Ekow Boye-Doe and Julius Brents. With that many returners, "vanilla" should no longer be in Klieman's vocabulary. "We have the personnel to be really good," Green said. "Our preparation is going to be key, but I think we got a lot of that down last season. Most of us are back and we're all bought in. It's time for us to do something special." - The Kansas City Star

(DS#52 DT) rSr/2023

DT Eli Huggins, Kansas State
News Source: The Kansas City Star
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07/19/22 - *Deuce Vaughn, Jr/2023, Kansas State, 5-05, 179 (DS#17 RB) + More +

2022 PRESEASON MAXWELL AWARD WATCH LIST: Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State,...Running back Deuce Vaughn enters this season at Kansas State ranking first among all active non-kickers in career points per game (8.1), second among active players in career all-purpose yards per game (134.48), fifth in rushing yards per carry (5.7) and total touchdowns scored (31), eighth in rushing yards per game (89.0) and tied for eighth rushing touchdowns (25)... Ranks seventh nationally over the 2020 and 2021 seasons with 128.2 scrimmage yards per game... Ranks second nationally among running backs over the 2020 and 2021 season with 902 receiving yards.

Looking at Big 12 career marks, he is ranked third in Big 12 history in scrimmage (rushing plus receiving) yards per touch (6.8), just behind Oklahoma's Kennedy Brooks (7.0) and Texas' Vince Young (6.9)... Ranks seventh with 128.2 scrimmage yards per game... Tied for eighth all-time among running backs with six receiving touchdowns... Leads all Big 12 running backs in catches and receiving yards both this year and over the last two seasons combined. He goes into his junior season ranked second in school career rushing yards per attempt (5.72). - Kansas State Football

(DS#17 RB) Jr/2023

RB *Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
News Source: Kansas State Football
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07/18/22 - *Deuce Vaughn, Jr/2023, Kansas State, 5-05, 179 (DS#17 RB) + More +

It no longer bothers Deuce Vaughn that most of the colleges in his home state of Texas ignored him as a high school recruit, but he still considers himself an underdog because of his size. Turns out, it's hard to forget about someone telling you rather bluntly that "you're too small to play college football." "That happened numerous times," Vaughn said this week at Big 12 Media Days. "I don't want to name any schools, but I had several Power 5 coaches tell me I wasn't a fit for their program, because they were looking for a different demographic as far as a running back. They wanted someone bigger. I still use that as a chip on my shoulder, because I know some people will always have doubts about me." That may, indeed, be the case. But it's getting harder and harder to find a college football expert who doesn't believe in Vaughn.

So what if he is only 5-foot-6 and 172 pounds? He led the Wildcats to eight wins last season as a sophomore by rushing for 1,404 yards and catching 49 passes for 468 yards. So versatile is Vaughn that he has already earned consensus All-American honors as an all-purpose player. When he first arrived at K-State, coaches talked about trying to limit his touches or using him as a scat back because they weren't sure if his body was ready to handle a traditional workhorse role. But those fears are long gone. He has proven himself too talented to take off the field and too durable for a pitch count. "No, there is not a limit," K-State coach Chris Klieman said. "We are going to keep doing what we did with him last year. We're going to use him as the featured back and he can be an every down back." - The Kansas City Star

(DS#17 RB) Jr/2023

RB *Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
News Source: The Kansas City Star
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07/17/22 - Adrian Martinez, rSr/2023, Kansas State, 6-2, 221 (DS#24 QB) + More +

Adrian Martinez left Nebraska after 39 games at quarterback over four seasons and is set to replace Skylar Thompson as the starter at Kansas State. The once-proud Huskers were 14-29 in games Martinez played and haven't had a winning season since 2016. He's joining a team that has gone 8-5 in both full seasons under coach Chris Klieman (4-6 in pandemic-shortened 2020). "I made a lot of experiences, a lot of moments at Nebraska, and stuff I'll cherish for the rest of my life," Martinez said Wednesday at Big 12 football media days. "I think it was time for me to move on from that, kind of put that in the rearview mirror and make the most out of this year. For me, it's all about this year and what we can do with this squad."

Martinez will be paired with dual-threat running back Deuce Vaughn, the 5-foot-6 speedster who averaged 108 yards rushing per game and added 468 yards receiving. Vaughn is going into his third season. "That's part of the reason why I came to K-State," Martinez said. "He's just been a tremendous help more learning the offense. I'm excited for something new, having him as an asset and just a different feel to the offense and maybe a little bit more balance I think will be mutually beneficial." - Lincoln Journal Star

(DS#24 QB) rSr/2023

QB Adrian Martinez, Kansas State
News Source: Lincoln Journal Star
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