As new offensive coordinator Conor Riley heads into the booth full-time, Kansas State‘s offense will likely have a different flavor.
However, don’t expect many wide-sweeping changes for next season.
“The system we currently have in place has been a system that we have used since 2013, since I arrived at North Dakota State,” Riley explained. “It’s just continually evolved through the number of different coordinators that we’ve had. … Each coordinator has put their own spin on the offense.”
Riley will be the next to put his spin on the Kansas State playbook.
While he joked that some expected it to be the triple option or “four yards and a cloud of dust,” the Wildcats’ bowl game offers insight into how Riley might operate as the offensive coordinator.
During the Pop-Tarts Bowl, Kansas State played tight ends Garrett Oakley and Will Swanson together for over half of the team’s snaps. Oakley, in particular, played all but one snap, according to Pro Football Reference, while Swanson played close to 40 snaps.
It’s interesting because Oakley played more snaps than any third wide receiver. Seth Porter and Jadon Jackson combined to play more snaps than Oakley, but neither reached the threshold of Oakley.
It’s possible that this shift was nothing more than a personnel problem, but with Kansas State’s struggles in acquiring a wide receiver through the transfer portal, this may be an intentional change.
Last season, Kansas State lived primarily in 11 personnel, using two tight ends about 37 percent of the time.
This made sense with how Kansas State’s offense was set up. They had three reliable wide receivers, including true freshman Jayce Brown, and Sinnott was one of the more versatile tight ends in the country.
Of course, Sinnott is heading to the NFL. And Brooks’ departure opens up a hole at wide receiver.
By shifting to two tight ends, Kansas State would force defenses to play with “bigger” personnel.
Instead of seeing a slot cornerback, the Wildcats could force defenses to play with a slower linebacker that doesn’t have the same versatility.
This opens up more in the passing game because, usually, these linebackers aren’t as good in space.
It could also allow Kansas State to attack the quarterback run game.
Avery Johnson is a better athlete than Will Howard, and Johnson can be used as an extra weapon in the run game.
Putting Oakley and Swanson on the field together would open up a diversified quarterback run game, as the Wildcats could use the tight ends to block in different ways.
This isn’t to say Kansas State will “major” in two tight end sets, but there’s a good chance that the Wildcats could see a split closer to 50-50 when it comes to 11 and 12 personnel usage next season.
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