NY Times on Kansas State's 2009 football prospects

Kansas State fans should be overjoyed about the return of their legendary coach Bill Snyder, who proved one fact true during his previous tenure: only one man can win in Manhattan, and it’s Bill Snyder. Unfortunately, due to his predecessor’s ineptness, Snyder will again be forced to spend much of his first season cleaning up a messy roster and, in the process, reversing the foul culture that came to define this program over the prior two seasons. There is no question Snyder can do that in his first season; he’s done it before. But can he get the Wildcats back into the mix in the Big 12 North? It’s not a great group, especially given the fact that Missouri is due to come back to earth in 2009, but I don’t think this team has the weapons to challenge for the division crown. I am concerned about the quarterback position, and thusly the offense as a whole, which will need to be at least above average to play with the high-octane offenses in the conference. I have fewer questions about the defense, partly because of the defensive coordinator tandem of Vic Koenning and Chris Cosh and partly because of the unit’s athleticism. Looking at K-State’s schedule, I predict the team to finish 6-6, 3-5 in the Big 12. Not bowl eligible because two of those wins will come against F.C.S. teams (Massachusetts and Tennessee Tech), and an F.B.S. school cannot be bowl eligible with six wins if more than one of those victories came against an F.C.S. opponent. But if Snyder gets this team playing his style of football, there is no reason it can’t be a nuisance to the rest of the Big 12 North.