What to know about Collin Klein, who will reportedly become Kansas State football coach

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MANHATTAN — Kansas State football legend Collin Klein is reportedly coming home and is set to replace Chris Klieman as the Wildcats’ coach.

Klieman and athletic director Gene Taylor will address the media on Wednesday, Dec. 3, in the hours after it was first reported that Klieman would step down. The former Wildcats quarterback, who has spent the last two seasons at Texas A&M, will reportedly replace him.

This sets in motion the succession plan Kansas State fans had long dreamed of. Klein spent several seasons on the Wildcats’ coaching staff before making a name for himself as one of the top assistants in the country at Texas A&M, where he is expected to remain the team’s offensive coordinator through the College Football Playoff.

Here are a few reminders from Klein’s playing days and his post-quarterbacking career.

Collin Klein was a Heisman finalist as Kansas State QB

Klein is one of the best players ever to wear Kansas State purple. He played for the Wildcats from 2009-12, becoming the program’s starting quarterback in 2011.

He was the 2012 Johnny Unitas Award winner, finishing his Wildcat career ranking in the school’s top 10 in 34 different game, season and career record categories. He was the first QB from a Power 5 school since 1998 to rush for 20 touchdowns and pass for 10 in consecutive seasons.

Klein led K-State to a 21-5 record as its starting quarterback. He led the Wildcats to a Big 12 title and Fiesta Bowl berth in 2012. That season, he finished third in the Heisman voting, finishing behind Johnny Manziel and Manti Te’o.

Collin Klein was on Kansas State’s staff under Bill Snyder, Chris Klieman

Klein got his start in coaching from 2014-15 as a K-State defense quality control coach and graduate assistant. After a year at Northern Iowa as its quarterback coach in 2016, he returned to Manhattan, where he coached until 2023.

He was the program’s quarterback coach from 2017-23, and then became the full-time offensive coordinator in 2022. In 2018, he was the team’s co-offensive coordinator before returning to be the lone quarterback coach from 2019-21.

Klein was responsible for developing quarterbacks such as Adrian Martinez, Will Howard and Skylar Thompson. His offenses also featured top-tier ground games, which included Deuce Vaughn earning two All-America honors. He also worked with Avery Johnson during his freshman season.

Texas A&M will be a College Football Playoff team with Klein as its offensive coordinator

Klein has been Texas A&M’s offensive coordinator since Mike Elko was hired to replace Jimbo Fisher. This season, the Aggies will make the College Football Playoff.

The Aggies’ offense averages 261.8 yards through the air, ranking 32nd in the country and sixth in the SEC. They have the conference’s second-best ground attack, averaging 192.7 yards and fourth-best scoring offense, averaging 36.3 points.

Texas A&M has the 20th-best offense in the nation, averaging 454.4 yards per game. Quarterback Marcel Reed is one of the most efficient passers in the country and ranks second in the SEC with 25 passing touchdowns.

Kansas State offense has gone downhill since Collin Klein’s departure

Since Klein left K-State for Texas A&M, the Wildcats’ offense has suffered. Kansas State’s offense has declined each season, falling from an average of 445.2 yards and 37.1 points per game in 2023 to 370.1 yards and 29.4 points per game in 2025.

The 2025 season marked the first time since 2021 in which the Wildcats averaged fewer than 200 rushing yards per game.

Injuries at wide receiver and on the offensive line, along with the uncertainty around the running back position after Dylan Edwards’ injury before taking his first offensive snap, didn’t help matters.

Offensive coordinator Matt Wells took a lot of heat for the Wildcats’ offensive struggles throughout the 2025 season, his first as the sole coordinator after Conor Riley left the program to become the Dallas Cowboys’ offensive line coach after the 2024 season.

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: Collin Klein: What to know about Kansas State football’s next coach

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