Avery Johnson says he will return to Kansas State football in 2026
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MANHATTAN — Quarterback Avery Johnson will finish his career with Kansas State football and lead the Wildcats into their first season under Collin Klein in 2026.
Johnson made the announcement on his Instagram page on Jan. 2, the same day the transfer portal opened.
“After a lot of prayer, conversations with my family and talks with my coaches, I’ve made the decision to return to Kansas State for my final year,” Johnson said. “There is unfinished business here and I’m not done yet. This place, this program and this fanbase mean everything to me. The relationships I’ve built, the culture we’ve created and the goals we still have ahead of us are too important to walk away from.
“I believe in this team. I believe in our coaches. And I believe the best is still ahead.”
Johnson’s decision to stay in Manhattan is the most significant offseason roster domino to fall, giving the Wildcats stability at the game’s most important position.
Klein, who served as Kansas State’s offensive coordinator from 2022-23 and as his alma mater’s quarterbacks coach from 2017-23, recruited Johnson to Manhattan and coached him during his freshman year in 2023.
Klein, when introduced as Chris Klieman’s replacement on Dec. 5, spoke of his love for the quarterback and his desire to coach him again.
“It’s funny that when you put us in a room, we’re both football guys, and all of a sudden, after 10 minutes of pleasantries, we’re talking about new schemes, what we’ve been working on, and new things we’ve been putting tweaks on,” Klein laughed. “I love him to death. It’s why I recruited so hard to get him here. He’s dear to me.”
And now, Klein will get his chance to coach the former four-star recruit again. Johnson would have been coveted if he had entered the transfer portal, but his return to Kansas State will be more than welcome.
Kansas State didn’t have an obvious replacement for Johnson if he did enter the portal, but that doesn’t matter now. The Wildcats have their man, and will now turn their attention to building a roster around him that can take advantage of his skillset, hoping to retool into a Big 12 championship contender.
Avery Johnson stats
- 2023 (freshman) — 8 games, 37-66, 56.1%, 479 yards, 5 TD, 0 INT, 52 rushes, 296 yards, 7 TD
- 2024 (sophomore) — 13 games, 217-372, 58.3%, 2712 yards, 25 TD, 10 INT, 113 rushes, 605 yards, 7 TD
- 2025 (junior) — 12 games, 204-341, 59.8%, 2385 yards, 18 TD, 6 INT, 109 rushes, 477 yards, 8 TD
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State QB Avery Johnson will finish career with Wildcats
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