Kansas State athletics officials announced Tuesday that all reserved tickets to Saturday’s game against Kent State have been sold out and that only 500 general admission seats in section 28 remain on sale for the contest.

Following a sellout crowd of 50,292 fans for the season opener against Eastern Kentucky, K-State eyes its second-straight sellout and the sixth in the last eight home games. Kansas State was one of only 14 schools in the country in week one to sell out its football stadium, while K-State ranked seventh nationally in percent capacity after week one.

The general admission tickets in section 28 are on sale for $20 apiece or four for $75. Those tickets can be purchased through the K-State Athletics Ticket Office online at www.k-statesports.com/tickets, by phone at 1-800-221-CATS or by visiting the ticket office inside Bramlage Coliseum.

Fans should continue to allow for extra time on their trip to Manhattan as several major road construction projects in and around the city could impact gameday traffic. The most significant of the projects is the continuing work on K-18 between Ogden and Manhattan on the west side of the city.

Additionally, fans traveling from both east and west to Manhattan on I-70 will encounter road work. East of Manhattan, repair of the bridges spanning Deep Creek Road (mile marker 316) has resulted in traffic being reduced to one lane in each direction over the bridges. West of Manhattan on I-70, pavement is being patched in both the eastbound and westbound lanes at various points from approximately 8 miles east of Abilene to the Geary/Riley County line.

The contest against the Golden Flashes, which will also feature the annual Band Day and University Family Day celebration, can be seen nationally on Fox College Sports beginning at 6 p.m.

— KSU Sports Information —

Collin Klein connected with Chris Harper on a 37-yard touchdown pass with 1:39 left, and Kansas State escaped with a sloppy 10-7 victory over Eastern Kentucky on Saturday night to give longtime coach Bill Snyder his 150th win.

Kansas State fumbled five times — losing four of them — and struggled to get anything going against its opponent from the Football Championship Subdivision.

The plucky Colonels, picked to finish third in the Ohio Valley Conference, took a 7-0 lead with 4:26 remaining in the third quarter when freshman quarterback Jared McClain plunged in from a yard out. The TD was set up when Kansas State running back Bryce Brown fumbled the ball away.

Anthony Cantele, who earlier missed a 37-yard field goal try, drew Kansas State within 7-3 when he hit from 36 yards out with 11:36 left in the game.

The Kansas State defense managed to stop Eastern Kentucky on its ensuing possession, giving Klein and the offense the ball at its 14. The junior quarterback hit Harper for 10 yards, mixed in a couple of runs, connected with Harper again on an 8-yard completion, and converted a third-and-3 situation when he scrambled for four yards in front of the Wildcats’ bench.

Two plays later, Klein saw Harper coming open on a skinny post route and hit him in stride as the crowd of 50,292 erupted for the first time all night. The touchdown gave the Wildcats their first lead of the game, and allowed them to win their 22nd consecutive home opener.

Things started out poorly for Kansas State and didn’t get a whole lot better.

Klein was forced to call timeout on third-and-9 on the Wildcats’ opening possession, and then proceeded to fumble the snap and give the Colonels the ball. The defense stiffened, though, and Eastern Kentucky’s Luke Pray eventually missed a 42-yard field goal attempt.

The Wildcats went three-and-out on their next possession, a promising seven-play drive stalled at the Colonels 22, Ty Zimmerman fumbled a punt a few moments later, and the defense allowed Eastern Kentucky to march inside the Kansas State 10 before Nigel Malone intercepted McClain’s pass late in the first quarter to preserve the scoreless game.

The comedy of errors continued once the teams switched directions.

Klein was picked off by Brooklyn Fox on a jump ball to end one drive, and another drive halted after Klein failed to notice the blitz and was sacked for a 13-yard loss.

The two teams went into the locker room with zeros on the scoreboard.

It remained that way most of the second half and at one point the Wildcats appeared like they might not score in a game for the first time since 1996. But the Wildcats managed to find just enough offense to hand Eastern Kentucky its 19th consecutive non-conference road loss.

The Colonels haven’t beaten an FBS school since knocking off Louisville in 1985.

— Associated Press —

K-State fans will be treated to the opinions and perspectives of some of their favorite all-time Wildcats as Kansas State announced that several former Wildcat greats in the sports of football, volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball and baseball have joined the K-StateHD.TV team as analysts for the 2011-12 season.

The programming talent includes former All-Americans Mark Simoneau (football), Liz Wegner-Bush (volleyball) and Craig Wilson (baseball), while fan favorites Danielle Zanotti (women’s basketball), Clent Stewart (men’s basketball) and Chris Merriewether (men’s basketball) will also join the broadcast team.

“We are committed to making our K-StateHD.TV programming the best that it can be and appreciate these former Wildcat greats’ roles in providing our fans the best viewing experience possible,” said Athletics Director John  Currie. “We are very excited about our August 30 launch and know that the global exposure it will provide our 465 student-athletes will be beneficial not only to our athletic programs but K-Staters world-wide as well.”

Beginning with the inaugural live event on August 30, the Cats’ volleyball home opener against Creighton, Wildcat greats from their respective sports will join host Brian Smoller for K-State Gameday, which will air prior to each home football and selected volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball and baseball games as well as other selected events. The pregame show featuring Smoller and Wegner-Bush for the August 30 volleyball match, which also features $1 GA tickets for all fans, will begin at 6:15 p.m., while the football pregame show featuring Simoneau will begin at 5:15 p.m. on September 3. Following all pregame shows, the audio for the HD broadcast will transition to the appropriate radio call for play-by-play action, which will be displayed over the HD video stream. For games that are not shown on K-StateHD.TV, the pregame show will direct viewers to the free online audio call of the respective game following K-State Gameday.

A member of K-State’s Ring of Honor, Simoneau was one of the best linebackers ever to play at Kansas State. A letterman for the Cats rom 1996-99, he currently ranks No. 3 all-time in tackles (400) and in tackles for losses. He played in four bowl games for K-State and led the team in tackles both as a junior and senior. In 1999, Simoneau was named first-team All-American, the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and was the runner-up for the Butkus Award, while he was also named the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year in 1996. Simoneau went on to play 10 seasons in the NFL with Atlanta, Philadelphia and New Orleans and had 370 tackles.

Wegner-Bush is the career kills leader in Kansas State volleyball history. The outside hitter tallied 1,907 kills during her career while being named to the Volleyball Magazine All-America Team twice. In 2000, she posted 571 kills which still ranks second for a single season, while she also holds the No. 3 mark on the list with 526 kills in 1999. During her career, K-State went 82-38 and reached at least the second round of the NCAA Tournament each year. She was a three-time All-Big 12 Conference selection making the first team her junior and senior years.

A two-time All-American, Wilson is one of the most decorated baseball players in K-State history. A four-year letterwinner from 1989-92, Wilson earned first team All-America honors in 1992, which followed a third team designation in 1991. He was also named the Big Eight Player of the Year in 1992, and he was the school’s only conference player of the year for nearly two decades. Wilson still holds the Kansas State career records for games played (250), game started (236) and singles (188), while he is tied for first in extra-base hits (94) and second in hits (282), doubles (58), triples (15) and runs scored (181). A member of K-State’s All-Century Team, Wilson played on the 1992 U.S. Olympic Team and spent three seasons in the MLB with the Chicago White Sox from 1998-2000.

Zanotti was a four-year letterwinner for the Wildcats from 2005-09, helping the Wildcats to 90 victories. During her playing career under Coach Patterson, Zanotti played in 130 career games to rank third in school history for games played. She averaged 2.5 points and 2.3 rebounds per contest while helping K-State to two NCAA Tournament appearances and two Postseason WNIT appearances, including the 2006 Postseason WNIT title and the 2008 Big 12 regular season crown.
A four-year starter for the Wildcats, Stewart was known for his steady play at the point guard spot from 2004-08.  He was part of a senior class that helped K-State back into the national spotlight, earning the school its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in more than 20 years in 2008.  He still ranks among the top-10 in four career categories, including third in assists (395), fourth in minutes played (3,295), fifth in games played (121) and sixth in games started (95).

A walk-on turned scholarship student-athlete, Merriewether left Kansas State as one of the program’s all-time winningest players.  He helped the Wildcats to 95 wins between 2006-07 and 2009-10, helping the program to four consecutive postseason appearances, including a memorable run to the Elite Eight in 2010.  A fan favorite with his gritty play, Merriewether saw action in 101 games in his career with six starts.  He was also outstanding off-the-court, becoming the first Wildcat basketball player to be named President of K-State’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council.

K-StateHD.TV will represent the first exclusive HD broadcast of Wildcat sporting events such as all K-State volleyball and K-State baseball home matches/games and also provide HD coverage of selected Olympic sports or available football and men’s/women’s basketball games.

Viewers will also see exclusive content such as K-State Gameday, the official show for K-State HD athletic events, in addition to video productions aimed at increasing the visibility of all K-State athletic teams as well as on-campus activities/events.

A majority of the on-demand programming, including campus lectures and performances, will be available for free, while live athletic events, classic games and other various programming will be premium-based content.

To visit the home of K-StateHD.TV, or to subscribe to the service, visit www.k-statehd.tv. The subscription service remains a product of K-State’s All-Access platform through the CBS College Network so current subscribers will have immediate access to K-State HD.TV content. Also, All-Access users will benefit from the upgraded viewing experience without an increase in subscription costs as they will remain at $9.95 per month and $79.95 per year.

— KSU Sports Information —

FOX Sports and K-State Athletics announced today that the Wildcats’ September 17 football matchup with Kent State will be televised nationally by Fox College Sports.

The contest will kick at 6:10 p.m. from Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

K-State alum Steve Physioc will handle play-by-play duties for the network, while Yogi Roth (analyst) and Desmond Purnell (sideline) complete the broadcast team. Fox College Sports (FCS) is one of three nationally distributed college sports networks (FCS Pacific, FCS Central, and FCS Atlantic) delivering premium collegiate programming from across the country.

The Kent State game is University Family and Band Day at Bill Snyder Family Stadium and across the K-State campus as families, prospective students and band members from all across the region will be in attendance.

Kansas State, the Big 12 Conference and its television partners are still working to determine what digital or telecast distribution opportunities are available for the season opener against Eastern Kentucky. Further details will be released as early as next week.

— KSU Sports Information —

Three former Kansas State letterwinners – long snapper Corey Adams, defensive back Stephen Harrison and running back/kick returner William Powell – have agreed to free agent deals with NFL clubs as of Wednesday afternoon.

Adams agreed to terms with the Dallas Cowboys, Harrison signed a deal with the San Diego Chargers, and Powell inked a free agent contract with the Arizona Cardinals.

Adams played in 49 games in his Wildcat career from 2007-10 and was perfect on all 483 snaps, including 65 field goal/PAT snaps and 61 punt snaps in 2010. The Monument, Colo., product was a 2010 All-American by Phil Steele and was named to the Academic All-Big 12 first team for a third-consecutive season. Adams will join former Wildcat great Terence Newman, who has played for Dallas since being drafted by the franchise in 2003.

A two-year letterwinner at cornerback, Harrison played in 23 games over the 2009 and 2010 seasons, carding 65 career tackles, including 40 in 2010. A former walk-on, Harrison broke up 14 passes as a senior last season to tie for second in the Big 12 and 18th nationally after ranking seventh and 33rd, respectively, in 2009. Harrison joins former K-State offensive lineman Jeromey Clary, who agreed to terms on a four-year deal to re-sign with the club on Tuesday.

Powell played in 15 games as a Wildcat, including nine as the team’s kickoff returner and a backup running back in 2010. The Duncanville, Texas, product was elected a First Team All-Big 12 kick returner by the league’s coaches, the Kansas City Star and Phil Steele, while he was an honorable mention returner by the Associated Press. He totaled the second-most kickoff return yards in school history with 726, and four of his 21 returns were longer than 50 yards, including a school-record 100-yarder at Baylor. Powell will be joined in Arizona by former Kansas State linebacker Reggie Walker, who is entering his third season with the Cardinals.

The Wildcats, who are coming off an appearance in the 2010 Pinstripe Bowl, open the 2011 season against Eastern Kentucky on Saturday, September 3, with the third-annual K-State Family Reunion. A four-pack of tickets is available for $75 (less than $20 per ticket), and reserved view level and north end zone tickets are available for only $20. Kickoff for the game is scheduled for 6:10 p.m.

— KSU Sports Information —

Kansas State senior defensive back Tysyn Hartman is one of 56 student-athletes from FBS institutions to be named a candidate for the 2011 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, the organization has announced. The award recognizes the selfless contributions to volunteerism and community service made by college football student-athletes across the nation.

A two-time captain for the Wildcats, Hartman has found success on the field, in the classroom and in the community. Hartman has accumulated 189 career tackles, including 86 last season to rank second on the team. He has also intercepted seven career passes while breaking up seven others.

The Wichita, Kan., product is a three-time Academic All-Big 12 selection and a two-time Academic All-District VII pick. Hartman carries a cumulative GPA of 3.588, and is currently enrolled in graduate school after obtaining his bachelor’s degree last December.

Hartman has also been a contributor in the Manhattan community as he has taken part in numerous service activities. A member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Hartman has participated in Read to Achieve, a partnership between K-State Athletics and Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School; adopt-a-family, a program through the Flint Hills Breadbasket and Salvation Army to assist families during the holiday season; Special Olympics and retirement center visitations among others.

This year marks the program’s 20th year honoring college football players at all levels of competition who stand out for their good works in the community. Since 1992, selection to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team has become the gold standard for off-the-field character and leadership for college football players. The honor is widely considers the sport’s pre-eminent community service award.

From the nominees submitted by sports information directors across the nation on behalf of their schools, a special voting panel consisting of former Good Works Team members and prominent college football media members will selected two 11-player Good Works Teams – one comprising of players from the FBS and another representing players from the FCS, Divisions II, III and the NAIA. The 22 student-athletes named to the 2011 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team will be announced in late September.

Coming off an appearance in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl, Kansas State opens the 2011 campaign on September 3 against Eastern Kentucky with the third-annual K-State Family Reunion.

— KSU Sports Information —

Frank Myers Field at Tointon Family Stadium will undergo a facelift beginning this week with the installation of the AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D60 infill system.

The new infill turf will be installed over the entire field, replacing not only the artificial infield and warning track areas that were constructed in 2006, but the natural grass outfield and bullpen areas, as well. Even the home plate area – formerly a surface built of clay – will be covered with the infill product, leaving only the pitcher’s mound unchanged. The project will keep K-State’s baseball program at the forefront of infill field technology while maximizing the opportunities to practice and play games in all weather conditions.

Mid-America Golf and Landscape, which also oversaw the turf installation at Bill Snyder Family Stadium this past spring, will serve as project manager. Installation is expected to be completed in approximately nine weeks, allowing the Wildcats to begin their fall practices in mid-September and conduct the Fall World Series in October.

“We are truly excited to be installing the AstroTurf product at Tointon Family Stadium,” head coach Brad Hill said. “I appreciate the fact that John Currie and the athletics administration felt strongly about upgrading our playing surface. This will give our program the ability to take advantage of outdoor practice time in virtually any weather condition, and it will be one of the best playing surfaces in the Big 12 for years to come.”

The AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D60 infill system for baseball is similar to the product installed at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. In order to simulate a natural grass infield and create as fast a surface as possible, the infield blade will be 1-5/8 inches in length when the sand-rubber infill is complete while the outfield will be 1-7/8 inches tall.

A natural grass-colored surface will be installed in the infield, outfield and foul territory areas, while the traditional clay-infield color will cover the warning track, base paths, infield dirt area and the home-plate circle. Additionally, permanent white lines will be installed for the foul lines and the batter’s boxes.

“After we moved to an artificial surface in the infield five years ago, we quickly realized the benefits of an infill system,” Associate Athletics Director for Operations Casey Scott said. “Maintenance is reduced significantly, games and practices are saved from weather, and the bounce of the ball is true. By taking the next step and installing AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D60 over the entire field, we eliminate the problems we’ve had in maintaining a great playing surface given our climate conditions and the wear-and-tear of practices and games.”

The K-State Powercat logo will be retained behind the home-plate area as in the current field design, while the baseball-specific interlocking “KS” logo will be installed in shallow center field.

The installation of AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D60 at Tointon Family Stadium will make the home of Wildcat Baseball one of just two Big 12 baseball stadiums to feature the surface. Two Major League Stadiums – Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., and the Rogers Centre in Toronto – have AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D60, with other Division I programs including Wichita State, Kansas, Wake Forest, Duke and James Madison, among others.

— KSU Sports Information —

Kansas State junior linebacker Arthur Brown received his second preseason honor on Thursday as he was named to the watch list for the 2011 Butkus Award, the Butkus Foundation has announced.

Brown, a product of Wichita, Kan., was also named to the Nagurski Trophy watch list last week, and he becomes the first Wildcat to be a preseason candidate for two national awards since Ian Campbell was up for the Nagurski and Hendricks Award prior to the 2008 season.

The Butkus Award is given annually to the nation’s top linebacker. Brown is the first Wildcat to be named to the watch list since Brandon Archer in 2006. Kansas State had a preseason candidate, semifinalist or runner-up for the award every year from 1994 to 2006.

Brown is one of 51 players nationally, including eight from the Big 12, named to the preseason watch list. A captain and player representative for the 2011 season, Brown transferred to K-State prior to the 2010 season from Miami and will be eligible this fall. He carded 14 tackles, including one for a loss, in the Purple-White Spring Game and was named to the Rivals.com All-Spring Team.

Kansas State opens the 2011 campaign September 3, with the third-annual K-State Family Reunion against Eastern Kentucky at 6 p.m.

— KSU Sports Information —

KSU sports Information

Kansas State junior linebacker Arthur Brown was named to the watch list for the 2011 Bronko Nagurski Trophy, the Football Writers Association of America and the Charlotte Touchdown Club have announced.

The Nagurski Trophy is awarded annually to the nation’s best defensive player. Brown is the first Wildcat to be named to the watch list since defensive end Ian Campbell was a preseason candidate in both 2007 and 2008.

A captain and player representative for the 2011 season, Brown is one of 87 players nationally, including 31 linebackers and nine Big 12 defensive players, up for the award. The Wichita, Kan., product transferred to K-State prior to the 2010 season from Miami and will be eligible this fall. Brown carded 14 tackles, including one for a loss, in the Purple-White Spring Game and was named to the Rivals.com All-Spring Team.

Brown was regarded as one of the top prep players coming out of high school in 2008 as he was selected as a Parade All-American and named to USA Today’s All-USA team. He played in 24 career games for the Hurricanes, carding 17 tackles and recovering one fumble.

The Wildcats open the 2011 campaign September 3 with the third-annual K-State Family Reunion against Eastern Kentucky. Kick time for the opener will be announced at a later date.