K-State Q&A: Jerome Tang’s overtime magic, former Wildcats in the Super Bowl and more

It’s time for another K-State Q&A.

No need for an elaborate introduction this week. Let’s dive right into your questions. Thanks, as always, for providing them.

Kansas State is 11-0 in OT. Are we closing in on a NCAA record? - @BowTieMetal via X

Here are a few college basketball overtime stats that might interest you:

• K-State is 11-0 in overtime games during the Jerome Tang era.

• K-State is 6-0 in overtime games this season.

• The longest active OT winning streak in the country belongs to Florida State at 14.

• No Division I team has ever won seven or more overtime games in a single season.

That means the Wildcats can break the single-season record with one more OT victory this season. But they need at least four more OT victories to pass the Seminoles.

It is an impressive streak. The odds of winning an overtime game should be close to 50/50, and yet the Wildcats have successfully done it 11 straight times. Try hitting black or red that many times in a row on a roulette wheel. It’s not easy.

The “five to grind” drill that Tang runs during every practice must really be effective.

They have earned the nickname “Cardiac Cats.”

I don’t recall Dorian Finister playing against KU. Is he injured? - @BusMedicMike via X

Redshirt freshman guard Dorian Finister didn’t log a single minute against the Jayhawks.

That came as a surprise to me, because he was playing well in the games leading up to the Sunflower Showdown. He had five points, four rebounds and one assists against Oklahoma State. Before that, he came off the bench and had four points, six rebounds and two assists against Oklahoma.

Finister had seen double-digit minutes in four straight games. I assumed that would continue. But Tang had other plans for him against KU, perhaps because it’s not easy for young guards to go against defenders like DaJuan Harris and Kevin McCullar.

He was not injurued. Tang simply thought the Wildcats were better off keeping Cam Carter (19 points) and Tylor Perry (26 points) on the floor for 45 minutes in an important home game. Finister should return to the lineup against BYU on Saturday.

Here is what Tang said about Finister this week:

“We never eliminate anybody from the game plan,” Tang said. “It’s just as the flow of the game goes, are they needed? Is there foul trouble? Is somebody tired? Last game, every time I looked at Cam and TP they looked really fresh and really locked in. So it was hard to take either one of them off the floor. I think Arthur (Kaluma) got in foul trouble and that might have been the only reason he was coming off the floor. Right now, it’s just about figuring out what we have got to do to win each game. It will be different from game to game, but it has nothing to do with Dorian. He is making continued progress towards being a really good player for us.”

If a time traveler told you, KState MBB makes it to the second weekend & KSU WBB third weekend of their tourneys with no other info; what would have happened in your opinion? - @garretts_myth via X

Well, I would start by saying both teams will end up having good seasons if that is the way things play out.

I would not have imagined the women’s basketball team doing something like that with Ayoka Lee missing extended time with an ankle injury. So it’s impressive that Jeff Mittie’s squad remains in the top 10 even though she has been sidelined for the past month.

I also would not have pictured Nae’Qwan Tomlin playing for Memphis or Ques Glover being hurt all season for the men’s basketball team to win a game in the NCAA Tournament.

Right now, that feels like more of a stretch to me than the women’s team reaching the Sweet 16. Jerome Tang’s team still has plenty of work to do just to reach the NCAA Tournament.

Beating a KU team that is 1-4 on the road in Big 12 play might not be the cure all that some expect it to be.

So if the Wildcats go on to not only make the NCAA Tournament but a win game in the Big Dance then I assume it will happen because Tylor Perry figured out how to play a complete game instead of just the second half. I also assume that Jerrell Colbert continues his late-season improvement and maybe even learns how to score a few buckets to go along with his strong defense.

How many former K-State players have ever won a Super Bowl? - @RobHud3

After doing a little research, the number is close to a dozen.

But Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Ekow Boye-Doe could add to the list if the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday in Las Vegas.

Here is an unofficial list of Super Bowl champs with K-State ties:

• Damian Johnson, New York Giants

• Martin Gramatica, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• Quincy Morgan, Pittsburgh Steelers

• Barrett Brooks, Pittsburgh Steelers

• Mark Simoneau, New Orleans Saints

• Ryan Lilja, Indianapolis Colts

• Jordy Nelson, Green Bay Packers

• Nick Leckey, New Orleans Saints

• Glenn Gronkowski, New England Patriots

• Darren Sproles, Philadelphia Eagles

• Byron Pringle, Kansas City Chiefs

If I missed anyone, please let me know and I will add that player’s name to the list.

Why was the K-State football February signing period so quiet? It felt like crickets aside from PWO. Or did I completely miss something? Is the focus from this point filling is holes with transfers? - @ChadFullington via X

The only “signing day” that matters anymore is the early “signing day” that happens in December.

Sure, some schools are still able to find a few diamonds in the rough in February, but most of the big signings at this time of year only happen with teams that are experiencing a coaching change.

K-State focused much more on bringing in its top high school targets during the early period. Right now, the Wildcats are prioritizing a few late transfers and the 2025 recruiting class.

It really wasn’t a surprise that the Wildcats didn’t add anyone of note to their roster this week. That’s how things work nowadays.

How impressed were you with the pressers of the co-offensive coordinators? - @BowTieMetal via X

Both Conor Riley and Matt Wells are good public speakers.

Riley seems to have some intriguing plans for the future of the offense. I loved that he was self-aware enough to promise us that he wasn’t going to install the triple option next season. You don’t see many offensive line coaches get the promotion to coordinator, but I’m willing to give him a chance. The offense did look pretty good at the Pop-Tarts Bowl with him calling plays, after all.

You can also tell that Wells used to be a head coach.

I love interviewing former head coaches after they get back in the game as assistants. They are dealing with much less pressure in those situations, and their quotes are usually very enlightening because they talk without any weight on their shoulders.

But there is a difference between talking an impressive game and coaching an impressive game. The jury will be out on both Riley and Wells until we see how much different the offense looks next season. Of course, with Avery Johnson at the controls, I’m sure it will look pretty good.

What is your prediction for the Super Bowl? - Jeff M. via e-mail

I think the Chiefs win by the score of 27-20.

San Francisco was the best team in football for most of the season, but Kansas City was able to flip a switch after it lost to the Raiders on Christmas Day. The offense looks completely different now that Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore and a few other under-performing players have been banished.

Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce know how to win in the playoffs. And the Chiefs have an elite defense. I expect them to take an early lead over a nervous group of 49ers and then slowly march to victory in the second half.

They will officially become a dynasty team on Sunday.