5 things Kansas State coach Chris Klieman said about Mizzou football ahead of Saturday game

Mizzou football and Kansas State will roll back the clock Saturday, meeting in Columbia for the first time since 2010 in a series that dates back more than a century.

Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz met with the media Tuesday, discussing where the Tigers need to improve heading into the matchup with the reigning Big 12 champions.

Across Missouri’s western border, Kansas State coach Chris Klieman also held a press conference Tuesday. The Wildcats, like the Tigers, are 2-0 to start the year, having beat Southeast Missouri State and Troy.

Here’s what Klieman had to say about Missouri ahead of their Week 3 matchup:

Focus on Luther Burden

Luther Burden III, as will be the case plenty this season, is commanding plenty of attention.

“Huge focus, tremendously talented player can beat you in a lot of ways,” Klieman said. … “Whether it's just stretching the field vertically because he's got such great speed and such great ball skills on vertical balls, as well as just quick screens, jet sweeps, the return game, everything, I think he's a really, really good player.”

Burden had eight catches for 117 yards against Middle Tennessee State last Saturday, marking his first 100-yard night for the Tigers. That followed a 96-receiving-yards game against South Dakota in Missouri’s opener.

“We need to know where he's at at all times,” Klieman said, “because he's one of the premier players in the country.”

Brady Cook’s tape beyond 2022

The ramifications stemming from last season’s matchup with Kansas State place it among the most memorable of quarterback Brady Cook’s Missouri career.

Cook took on a rainy day in Manhattan, Kansas, and was battered and bruised for his trouble. Those injuries lingered for the rest of the season. By year’s end, it was announced he had suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder and required offseason surgery.

Cook was 15-of-27 passing for 128 yards and two interceptions that day, but Klieman isn’t paying that day much heed.

“Last year, you can throw that game out, because that's not him,” Klieman said. … “I remember that game and (then-Kansas State quarterback Adrian Martinez) saying, ‘Coach, we're calling these pass plays and it's hard to grip that ball.’ It was waterlogged. So I know that Brady couldn't grip the ball any better than Adrian could, so I take that game out of it. And, granted, we made some good plays, but some of that — a lot of that — had to do with the weather.”

Instead, he’s focusing on different tape from the QB.

“I think he's a terrific quarterback,” Klieman said. “I don't know him at all, but just watching him play, he's a tremendous competitor. I think he's a tough kid, and I think he throws the ball exceptionally well. He's a very underrated runner, and I say that because I don't know what they had him as a recruit and all that stuff, but that kid’s a very talented runner that worries us running the football.”

Praise for Baker’s defense

Klieman said the Wildcats are looking to find ways to establish the run against the Tigers, but that’ll be easier said than done against MU defensive coordinator Blake Baker’s experienced unit, which the K-State coach said was “really physical and dominant up front and at linebacker.”

“They don't stay blocked, they do a great job of block destruction,” the coach said. “And then they're really fast, and they play really good man coverage, they break on the ball well in zone.”

The Tigers currently rank No. 16 for total offense in the FBS, giving up 239.5 yards per game through two contests.

“There's a lot of veteran guys that have played a lot of football for them,” Klieman said. “So they've got great team speed, (and) then throw on the fact that they're really physical up front.”

The rivalry

Drinkwitz and Klieman both mentioned the anticipation ahead of competing in a regional rivalry game in their midweek press conferences.

Missouri athletics announced last week that the game against Kansas State had sold out, setting up a 62,000-strong home crowd waiting to greet Klieman’s team.

Although ‘greet’ might not be the right word.

“I think it's gonna be a great environment for college football. I think this is a great game, a regional nonconference game and rivalry,” Klieman said. … “It's going to be a great opportunity for our guys to measure themselves against a tremendous football team on the road, hostile environment, using all of our different snap counts, things that we're gonna have to practice this week.”

Controversial play call

After a Kansas State stop on the goal line appeared to give the Wildcats a 40-6 win over Missouri last season, a roughing the passer call put the teams back on the field. Then the Tigers made the questionable call to run a play on the untimed down.

Cody Schrader punched in the touchdown.

The call sparked some online debate among fans on social media in the immediate aftermath — although what doesn’t?

But when asked if that left a bitter taste in his mouth, Klieman said it hasn’t crossed his mind.

“I've never even thought about that, no,” Klieman said.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: 5 things K-State coach Chris Klieman said about Mizzou ahead of game