5 candidates to replace Bill Snyder at Kansas State

AMES, IA - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Bill Snyder of the Kansas State Wildcats coaches during pre game warm ups at Jack Trice Stadium on November 24, 2018 in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa State Cyclones won 42-38 over the Kansas State Wildcats. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /

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4. Chris Klieman, North Dakota State Head Coach

Klieman took over at North Dakota State when Craig Bohl left for Wyoming, and he has maintained that level of success with a 65-6 record, five conference titles and three FCS national titles (2014, 2015, 2017) in five seasons as head coach (with this year’s playoffs coming this weekend).

Kansas State athletic director Gene Taylor served in the same post at North Dakota State for over a decade, so the tie to Klieman is almost too easy to make. Klieman is under contract in Fargo through the 2023 season, as the school bolstered his compensation via a two-year contract extension last spring.

But ultimately, there is no way North Dakota State can compete financially with an FBS school that wants Klieman. If it’s not Kansas State right now, it will be someone else down the road as long as he keeps having success.

Klieman’s background is on the defensive side of the ball, but the Bison have followed Carson Wentz with another NFL prospect at quarterback in Easton Stick. If Klieman is able to bring some staff with him to Manhattan, perhaps most notably quarterbacks coach Randy Hedberg, Kansas State could cultivate a good quarterback and compete with the explosive offenses in the Big 12 quite quickly.

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