The question facing Kansas State is whether Will Howard will reach "the moment."
This week, the Wildcats have grappled with the loss of Skylar Thompson, whose knee injury, thankfully, shouldn't cause the sixth-year senior to miss the remainder of the 2021 season. This week, K-State head coach Chris Klieman has been asked about the quarterback position a total of 11 times at his 25-minute weekly news conference. And this week Howard and K-State have methodically prepared to face a very quality Nevada team heading toward Saturday's 1 p.m. kickoff at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
When Howard takes the field, the 6-foot-4, 232-pound sophomore quarterback, who started seven games a year ago when Thompson went down with injury, will look to reach "the moment."
"It's inspiring, it's fun," Howard says, grinning. "That's what you love about football, the moment — when you're feeling good and just rolling with your guys. There's no feeling like that."
The moment, of course, is when everything clicks, when thinking blurs into raw instinct, when the football feels just right, when the release is gold, when passing lanes part like the Red Sea, when even the tightest of windows don't feel so tight anymore, when the ball always finds its intended target regardless of the defense, and when a quarterback just knows while calling a play, any play, that it's going to have success.
Howard knows the moment all-too well. And it wasn't too long ago.
Howard threw for 2,543 yards and 27 touchdowns during a senior season in which he led Downingtown (Pa.) High School to its best record in history at 13-2 and its first district title since 1996. He threw for 5,308 yards and 48 touchdowns and ran for 512 rushing yards and 21 scores during a career in which he earned the Maxwell Football Club Pennsylvania Player of the Year.
He came to K-State as the 13th-best pro-style passer in the Class of 2020 — the highest-rated pro-style passer to come to K-State since Josh Freeman. Howard was timed at a 4.83 40, ran the shuttle in 4.50 seconds and recorded a 30.20-inch vertical jump.
Understand that Howard reached the moment a time or two last season with the Wildcats. No doubt about it. And there was plenty of pressure, the kind of pressure nobody can appreciate unless they're in those shoes, wearing those pads, attempting to execute plays that, well, let's face it, can go one inch to the left or one inch to the right and not go as planned.
It's easy to forget that Howard was one of just four true freshmen in the entire nation to start at least seven games in 2020, which he did when he was thrust into duty following Thompson's season-ending injury. It's easy to forget how Howard became the first true freshman in K-State history to win a game in his first-career road start, which he did during a 21-14 win at TCU.
It's also easy to forget how he rallied K-State to a 31-21 win over Texas Tech while becoming the first quarterback since Jake Waters to complete two passes of 65-plus yards in a single Big 12 Conference game. His 125 rushing yards against Oklahoma State marked the most rushing yards by a K-State freshman quarterback in history. His 243 passing yards against Kansas were fifth most ever by a K-State freshman.
Still, K-State finished 4-6 last season, and some criticism, fairly or unfairly, was directed toward a guy who was 18 years old when he took his first snap in a college football game.
Now, Howard is in the captain's seat again. He has the keys to the Mercedes. He's what K-State head coach Chris Klieman has called "the best backup quarterback in the nation." And now he's a starter, again.
"It's always tough getting thrown in there like that but it feels like the pace of the game has slowed down a lot for me," Howard says. "It feels like last year, as tough as it was, gave me a lot of experience. Coming into this year, I've been here before and we've been here before, and I feel like a different player. I hope we can keep this revenge tour going. I feel good."
Howard completed 90 of 168 passes for 1,178 yards with eight touchdowns and 10 interceptions and added 78 carries for 364 yards and three touchdowns last season. He threw more touchdowns than any freshman in K-State history and amassed the third-most total offense by a freshman in K-State history. His 13.09 yards per completion was the second-highest by a true freshman in the nation.
Thrust into action during the first quarter last weekend, Howard completed 8 of 17 passes for 76 yards with one interception and one lost fumble — numbers that Klieman attributes to a multitude of reasons.
"Some of that was we weren't great in protection one time when he lost the ball," Kleiman says. "We missed a couple assignments on some routes where the ball was put into the right place but we ran the wrong route. Sometimes you look at it from above and think, 'Boy, what the heck is wrong with the quarterback?' Well, he's expecting a route to be open in a certain spot and a kid runs the wrong route and then you hold onto the ball a little bit too long.
"I look forward to seeing Will have a full week of practice, and play the way he knows he's capable of, and the way we know he's capable of."
Howard isn't in this alone. Quarterbacks coach Collin Klein, offensive coordinator Courtney Messingham and Klieman all watch film with Howard. They spent Sunday and Monday critiquing and making corrections. They've spent the rest of the week focused on improvement for Nevada. Klein hammers home several keys: 1) be the leader, 2) great body language, 3) ball security, 4) keep things rolling, 5) have fun. Klieman gives Howard the unique perspective as a defensive-minded coach and talks in defensive terms, which Howard appreciates. Then there's Thompson, of course, who like last season, continues to build Howard's confidence repetition after repetition, as Howard guides the first-team offense in practice.
Messingham believes that Howard handled the situation against Southern Illinois well, given the circumstances. He says that Howard faced adversity and says that it was big that Howard led the Wildcats to a touchdown immediately after Thompson went down. Messingham points to the brilliant 21-yard pass that Howard threaded to Landry Weber on third-and-15 to extend a 10-play, 55-yard touchdown drive on the very next possession. Messingham lauds another brilliant pass to Phillip Brooks.
"I just want to see him play with confidence and believe that the guys around him will make a play," Messingham says, "and he doesn't need to force the plays."
Howard continues to strive to reach that moment.
"This week, Skylar has been helping me and talking with me a lot, and we have that we've-been-here-before mentality," Howard says. "We've been saying all week, 'We've been here before.' This isn't our first rodeo. We don't want to take any steps back.
"I've got a good feeling about this weekend."
Star sophomore running back Deuce Vaughn calls Howard one of his best friends. He says Howard is caring, genuine and funny. He's the kind of guy you want to sit with at lunch. Here's something else Vaughn says about his friend: "He's confident."
"That's our guy," Vaughn says. "We're right behind him. We're all going to rise up with him and play some football. I have 100% confidence in Will Howard and in what he can do. As an offense, we have to be better, and every single week we have to progress. With Will, we have a capable quarterback who's going to get that W for us. He showed that last year against TCU."
As for that moment? Yeah, Vaughn has seen Howard in the moment. He sees it every day in practice.
"When he's in that moment, man, he's a really, really good quarterback," Vaughn says. "He'll make a throw and turn around and we're like, 'That's the throw right there.' And then the moment snowballs."
K-State defensive tackle coach Mike Tuiasosopo, a 21-year veteran defensive line coach with stops at Utah State, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, UCLA and USC, has faced numerous All-Americans and future NFL quarterbacks over his tenure. There's a story Tuiasosopo likes to share. It took place shortly after Howard arrived at K-State. Tuiasosopo was watching film. He rewound the play several times in order to fully appreciate the sight.
"We were down in the red zone and Will made an 'out' throw from the opposite hash," Tuiasosopo says. "I stopped the video and told our guys, 'Man, this right here is what NFL people look at — on a line, throwing an out-route into the opposite corner near the goal line.' That was impressive. Those are things that stand out. I'm no quarterbacks coach, but watching film that way, it seemed like he did a really good job of handling and managing the offense."
There have been so many questions directed at Howard this week: Does he have the proper mentality? How much better prepared is he this year than last year? How does he feel taking reps with the No. 1 offense? How does he go through his progressions? What does he like best about his game? Does he think of the TV cameras? Does he feel pressure?
But really, it all comes down to this: Kleiman says that he has the best backup quarterback in the nation — who now is thrust into the starting role, again.
This, Howard says, doesn't create any added pressure. Quite the contrary.
"It's a confidence booster for me," Howard says. "Coach is showing that confidence in me and it means a whole lot. We have a great relationship. He's very good about expressing his confidence in me and telling me that he believes in me. I work because I don't want to let him down. I don't take it as pressure. I just want to prove him right."
He pauses.
"And I want to do everything I can to prove everybody else wrong."
Yes, there is so much Howard and the Wildcats can accomplish on Saturday.
In the end, though, it really comes down to one thing for Howard, the same thing that all quarterbacks strive to achieve each and every play in each and every game, the thing that can separate the good from the not-so-good, and so often separate a win and a loss. It's the familiar feeling that Howard felt all through a decorated high school career, and what he'll chase again on Saturday.
It's simply called, "The moment."
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