Injuries Have Given Young Kansas State Wildcats Offensive Line An Opportunity
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The Kansas State Wildcats were dealt a huge blow when tackles John Pastore and George Fitzpatrick were lost for the season during training camp.
The positive is it has allowed some of the younger offensive linemen to receive an opportunity to compete for playing time. With less than a week left before Saturday's season opener against Nicholls, several of the positions are still up for grabs on both sides of the ball.
Two of the offensive linemen who could be in the mix are junior Charlie Adams and sophomore Chase Duarte. Both were mentioned by offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson as players who could have an impact this season.
"I think the physical development of a guy like Charlie Adams or even Chase Duarte," Gleeson said. When they came back after that little break prior to summer conditioning in June, you could see in those first couple weeks they started to kind of transform a little bit. There's guys up and down the line that look different in light of Coach (Jeremy) Jacobs' work and how they've approached the off-season. So, I think the physical development is for sure there. Now I would say as we get into some of this game-week prep, it is just seeing that group gel however we decide to supply the depth and position guys as we get closer to game time."
The Wildcats lost Pastore, a preseason All-Big 12 selection, to a lower leg injury. Fitzpatrick is still recovering from a medical emergency that caused him to miss last season as well. So finding some quality replacements are a priority for the coaching staff if they want to succeed in coach Collin Klein's first season in charge in Manhattan.
With limited experience at backup quarterback, it's imperative to keep quarterback Avery Johnson healthy if the Wildcats are going to compete for a Big 12 title and earn a spot in the College Football Playoff.
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