2003 Kansas State Wildcats football team

2003 Kansas State Wildcats football
Big 12 champion Big 12 North champion
Big 12 Championship Game, W 35–7 vs. Oklahoma
Fiesta Bowl, L 28–35 vs. Ohio State
Conference	Big 12 Conference
Division	North
Ranking
Coaches	No. 13
AP	No. 14
Record	11–4 (6–2 Big 12)
Head coach	Bill Snyder (15th season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Del Miller (7th season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Greg Peterson (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Co-defensive coordinator	Bret Bielema (2nd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Bob Elliott (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	KSU Stadium

2003 Big 12 Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
North Division
No. 14 Kansas State x$		6	–	2					11	–	4
No. 19 Nebraska		5	–	3					10	–	3
Missouri		4	–	4					8	–	5
Kansas		3	–	5					6	–	7
Colorado		3	–	5					5	–	7
Iowa State		0	–	8					2	–	10
South Division
No. 3 Oklahoma x%		8	–	0					12	–	2
No. 12 Texas		7	–	1					10	–	3
Oklahoma State		5	–	3					9	–	4
Texas Tech		4	–	4					8	–	5
Texas A&M		2	–	6					4	–	8
Baylor		1	–	7					3	–	9
Championship: Kansas State 35, Oklahoma 7
$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2003 Kansas State Wildcats football team represented Kansas State University in the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team's head coach was Bill Snyder. The Wildcats played their home games in KSU Stadium. The team finished the season with a win–loss record of 11 wins and 4 losses, and a Big 12 Conference record of 6 wins and 2 losses. They notched a stunning 35–7 victory over the #1 ranked Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12 Championship Game. With their 1st conference championship since 1934, they earned a berth in one of the Bowl Championship Series bowl games, the 2004 Fiesta Bowl, where they were defeated by the Ohio State Buckeyes, 35–28. The Wildcats played 15 games, most in school history.

During the 2002 and 2003 seasons teams were allowed to schedule 12 games as well as a kickoff game. As a result, Kansas State became only the second team in the modern era to play a 15-game schedule. The first was the 1996 BYU Cougars.

Running back Darren Sproles led the nation in rushing, and the Wildcats scored 549 points, good for third all-time at Kansas State.^[1]

Until 2022, this was the only season in college football history in which Kansas State, Kansas, and Missouri all played in a bowl game in the same season.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 23	6:45 p.m.	vs. California*	No. 7	Arrowhead Stadium Kansas City, MO (BCA Classic)	ESPN	W 42–28	50,823
August 30	6:10 p.m.	Troy State*	No. 7	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS		W 41–5	41,812
September 6	6:10 p.m.	McNeese State*	No. 7	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS		W 55–14	44,544
September 13	1:10 p.m.	UMass*	No. 7	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS		W 38–7	46,102
September 20	11:40 a.m.	Marshall*	No. 6	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS	FSN	L 20–27	46,700
October 4	2:30 p.m.	at No. 13 Texas	No. 16	Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium Austin, TX (College GameDay)	ABC	L 20–24	83,643
October 11	11:30 a.m.	at Oklahoma State	No. 22	Boone Pickens Stadium Stillwater, OK	FSN	L 34–38	46,087
October 18	1:10 p.m.	Colorado		KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS (rivalry)		W 49–20	51,536
October 25	1:10 p.m.	Kansas		KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS (rivalry)		W 42–6	51,614
November 1	1:10 p.m.	Baylor		KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS		W 38–10	44,885
November 8	1:00 p.m.	at Iowa State		Jack Trice Stadium Ames, IA (rivalry)		W 45–0	40,124
November 15	2:30 p.m.	at No. 18 Nebraska		Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (rivalry)	ABC	W 38–9	78,014
November 22	6:10 p.m.	Missouri	No. 19	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS	TBS	W 24–14	49,685
December 6	7:00 p.m.	vs. No. 1 Oklahoma	No. 13	Arrowhead Stadium Kansas City, MO (Big 12 Championship)	ABC	W 35–7	79,451
January 2	7:15 p.m.	vs. No. 7 Ohio State*	No. 8	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ (Fiesta Bowl)	ABC	L 28–35	73,425
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[2]

Roster

2003 Kansas State Wildcats football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OT 79 Jon Doty Jr TE 88 Thomas Hill Sr TE 86 Brian Casey Jr OL 53 Nick Leckey Sr OL 64 Ryan Lilja Sr QB  3 Ell Roberson Sr FB 44 Travis Wilson Sr RB 36 Ayo Saba So QB 14 Jeff Schwinn Sr RB 43 Darren Sproles Jr WR  5 James Terry Sr WR  2 Antoine Polite Jr WR 15 Davin Dennis So	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB  7 Josh Buhl Sr LB 18 Bryan Hickman Sr DB  9 Randy Jordan Sr DE 83 Blake Seiler So DE 98 Andrew Shull Sr LB 45 Ted Sims So FS  2 Rashad Washington Sr DB 26 Tyler Woolfolk Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K/P  6 Jared Brite Sr K 15 Joe Rheem Jr LS 72 Mike Wilson Sr LS 52 Russ Vanover Jr	Head coach Bill Snyder Coordinators/assistant coaches Del Miller – Co-Offensive Coordinator & quarterbacks Greg Peterson – Co-Offensive coordinator & wide receivers Michael Smith – Running backs Matt Miller – Tight ends Bob Stanley – Offensive line Bret Bielema – Co-Defensive coordinator Bob Elliot – Co-Defensive coordinator & secondary Mo Latimore – interior Defensive line Joe Bob Clements – Defensive ends Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Rankings

Further information: 2003 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked ( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Final
AP	7 (1)	7	7	7	6	16	16	22	—	—	—	—	—	19	14	13	8	14
Coaches	5	5	6	6	6	16	14	21	—	—	—	—	25	18	15	13	10	13
BCS	Not released									—	15	15	12	11	10	8	8	Not released

Game summaries

Vs. California

California vs. #7 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Golden Bears 7 7 0 14 28 • Wildcats 10 17 8 7 42 Date: August 23 Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Game start: 6:45 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 50,823 Television network: ESPN

Scoring summary 1 12:45 KSU Darren Sproles 5-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 7–0 1 10:39 Cal Vincent Strang 34-yard pass from Reggie Robertson (Tyler Fredrickson kick) Tied 7–7 1 6:29 KSU Joe Rheem 22-yard field goal KSU 10–7 2 7:37 KSU Travis Wilson 5-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 17–7 2 4:25 KSU Joe Rheem 37-yard field goal KSU 20–7 2 3:54 KSU James Terry 52-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 27–7 2 1:58 Cal Geoff McArthur 65-yard pass from Reggie Robertson (Fredrickson kick) KSU 27–14 3 8:46 KSU Ell Roberson 11-yard run (Roberson run) KSU 35–14 4 12:34 Cal J. J. Arrington 22-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers (Fredrickson kick) KSU 35–21 4 10:14 KSU Davin Dennis 28-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 42–21 4 4:27 Cal J. J. Arrington 7-yard pass from Reggie Robertson (Fredrickson kick) KSU 42–28

See also: 2003 California Golden Bears football team and BCA Classic

Troy State

Troy State at #7 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Trojans 5 0 0 0 5 • Wildcats 7 27 0 7 41 Date: August 30 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 6:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 41,812

See also: Troy State Trojans football

McNeese State

McNeese State at #7 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 7 7 0 14 • Wildcats 24 7 7 17 55 Date: September 6 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 6:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 44,544

See also: McNeese State Cowboys football

UMass

UMass at #7 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Minutemen 7 0 0 0 7 • Wildcats 3 21 7 7 38 Date: September 13 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 1:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 46,102

See also: 2003 UMass Minutemen football team

Marshall

Marshall at #6 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total • Thundering Herd 7 9 0 11 27 Wildcats 7 3 3 7 20 Date: September 20 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 11:40 a.m. CDT Game attendance: 46,700 Television network: FSN

See also: 2003 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

At Texas

#16 Kansas State at #13 Texas

1 2 3 4 Total Wildcats 0 3 9 8 20 • Longhorns 7 10 0 7 24 Date: October 4 Location: Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas Game start: 2:30 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 83,643

Scoring summary 1 4:10 Texas Tony Jeffery blocked punt return (Dusty Mangum kick) Texas 7–0 2 13:30 Texas Dusty Mangum 22-yard field goal Texas 10–0 2 3:45 KSU Joe Rheem 41-yard field goal Texas 10–3 2 1:00 Texas Sloan Thomas 51-yard pass from Chance Mock (Mangum kick) Texas 17–3 3 12:24 KSU Ell Roberson 27-yard run (Rheem kick) Texas 17–10 3 10:04 KSU Safety Texas 17–12 4 14:00 KSU Ell Roberson 1-yard run (Roberson run) KSU 20–17 4 5:45 Texas Vince Young 1-yard run (Mangum kick) Texas 24–20

See also: 2003 Texas Longhorns football team and College GameDay (football)

At Oklahoma State

#22 Kansas State at Oklahoma State

1 2 3 4 Total Wildcats 7 7 7 13 34 • Cowboys 7 14 14 3 38 Date: October 11 Location: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, OK Game start: 11:30 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 46,087

See also: 2003 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team

Colorado

Colorado at Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Buffaloes 7 6 0 7 20 • Wildcats 9 6 14 20 49 Date: October 18 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 1:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 51,536

See also: 2003 Colorado Buffaloes football team

Kansas

Kansas at Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Jayhawks 3 0 3 0 6 • Wildcats 7 21 14 0 42 Date: October 25 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 1:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 51,614

See also: 2003 Kansas Jayhawks football team and Kansas–Kansas State football rivalry

Baylor

Baylor at Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Bears 3 7 0 0 10 • Wildcats 0 14 10 14 38 Date: November 1 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 1:10 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 44,885

See also: 2003 Baylor Bears football team

At Iowa State

Kansas State at Iowa State

1 2 3 4 Total • Wildcats 7 7 24 7 45 Cyclones 0 0 0 0 0 Date: November 8 Location: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, Iowa

Scoring summary 1 5:35 KSU Darren Sproles 23-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 7–0 2 14:55 KSU Thomas Hill 9-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 14–0 3 14:49 KSU Darren Sproles 70-yard run (Rheem kick) KSU 21–0 3 10:25 KSU James Terry 20-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 28–0 3 9:18 KSU Darren Sproles 32-yard run (Rheem kick) KSU 35–0 3 0:31 KSU Joe Rheem 38-yard field goal KSU 38–0 4 3:41 KSU Dylan Meier 30-yard run (Rheem kick) KSU 45–0

See also: 2003 Iowa State Cyclones football team and Iowa State–Kansas State football rivalry

^[3]

At Nebraska

Kansas State at #18 Nebraska

1 2 3 4 Total • Wildcats 7 0 10 21 38 Cornhuskers 0 7 0 2 9 Date: November 15 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 2:36 p.m. CST Game attendance: 78,014 TV announcers (ABC): Brent Musburger (Play-by-play), Gary Danielson (Color) & Jack Arute (Sideline)

Scoring summary 1 1:42 KSU Darren Sproles 22-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 7–0 2 7:45 NEB Mark LeFlore 5-yard pass from Jammal Lord (David Dyches kick) Tied 7–7 3 9:30 KSU Ell Roberson 11-yard run (Rheem kick) KSU 14–7 3 1:05 KSU Rheem 27-yard field goal KSU 17–7 4 14:55 KSU James Terry 63-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 24–7 4 10:00 KSU James Terry 37-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 31–7 4 3:45 NEB Safety KSU 31–9 4 1:38 KSU Ayo Saba 6-yard run (Rheem kick) KSU 38–9

See also: 2003 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team and Kansas State–Nebraska football rivalry

Missouri

Missouri at #19 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total Tigers 0 7 0 7 14 • Wildcats 7 14 3 0 24 Date: November 23 Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, KS Game start: 6:00 p.m. CDT Game attendance: 49,685 Television network: TBS

Scoring summary 1 10:09 KSU Darren Sproles 5-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 7-0 2 14:49 KSU Darren Sproles 7-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 14-0 2 6:00 MIZ DeQuincy Howard 2-yard pass from Brad Smith (Matheny kick) KSU 14-7 2 0:39 KSU Ell Robertson 1-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) KSU 21-7 3 0:40 KSU Joe Rheem 40-yard field goal KSU 24-7 4 3:35 MIZ Zack Abron 37-yard run (Matheny kick) KSU 24-14

See also: 2003 Missouri Tigers football team

Darren Sproles ran for a school-record 273 yards in the win over Missouri. Sproles also broke the single-season rushing record for the second consecutive year.^[4]

Vs. Oklahoma (Big 12 Championship game)

#13 Kansas State Wildcats vs. #1 Oklahoma Sooners

1 2 3 4 Total • Wildcats 0 21 7 7 35 Sooners 7 0 0 0 7 Date: December 6 Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Game start: 7:11 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3:17 Game attendance: 79,451 Game weather: Temperature 39 °F (4 °C); Wind: S 5 mph (8.0 km/h); Weather: Clear Referee: Jon Bible TV announcers (ABC): Brent Musburger (Play-by-play), Gary Danielson (Color) & Jack Arute (Sideline)

Scoring summary 1 12:19 OU Kejuan Jones 42-yard run (Trey DiCarlo kick) OU 7–0 2 13:57 KSU Brian Casey 19-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Joe Rheem kick) Tied 7–7 2 11:34 KSU James Terry 63-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 14–7 2 3:18 KSU Darren Sproles 60-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 21–7 3 3:02 KSU Antoine Polite 60-yard pass from Ell Roberson (Rheem kick) KSU 28–7 4 10:24 KSU Ted Sims 27-yard interception return (Rheem kick) KSU 35–7

Main article: 2003 Big 12 Championship Game

See also: 2003 Oklahoma Sooners football team

Kansas State manhandled the #1 Sooners at Arrowhead Stadium to win their first conference title since 1934.^[5]

Vs. Ohio State (Fiesta Bowl)

#7 Ohio State vs. #8 Kansas State

1 2 3 4 Total • Buckeyes 14 7 14 0 35 Wildcats 0 7 7 14 28 Date: January 2 Location: Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, AZ Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 73,425 Referee: Ron Cherry TV announcers (ABC): Tim Brant, Ed Cunningham, & Sam Ryan Source: [1]

Scoring summary 1 6:41 OSU John Hollins 7-yard blocked punt return (Mike Nugent kick) OSU 7–0 1 2:49 OSU Santonio Holmes 6-yard pass from Craig Krenzel (Mike Nugent kick) OSU 14–0 2 6:49 OSU Mike Jenkins 17-yard pass from Craig Krenzel (Mike Nugent kick) OSU 21–0 2 3:01 KSU Darren Sproles 6-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) OSU 21–7 3 8:59 KSU Ell Roberson 14-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) OSU 21–14 3 4:53 OSU Michael Jenkins 8-yard pass from Craig Krenzel (Mike Nugent kick) OSU 28–14 3 0:37 OSU Santonio Holmes 31-yard pass from Craig Krenzel (Mike Nugent kick) OSU 35–14 4 13:25 KSU Ayo Saba 3-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) OSU 35–21 4 2:47 KSU Ell Roberson 1-yard run (Joe Rheem kick) OSU 35–28

Main article: 2004 Fiesta Bowl

See also: 2003 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

Statistics

Scores by quarter

1 2 3 4 Total Kansas State 95 175 130 149 549 Opponents 74 81 38 51 244

Team

KSU Opp Scoring 549 244   Points per Game 36.6 16.3 First Downs 319 232   Rushing 176 98   Passing 127 121   Penalty 16 13 Total Offense 6,615 4,246   Avg per Play 6.2 4.3   Avg per Game 441.0 283.1 Fumbles-Lost 22-13 13-9 Penalties-Yards 98-726 104-846   Avg per Game 48.4 56.4

KSU Opp Punts-Yards 71-2,859 112-4,113   Avg per Punt 40.3 36.7 Time of Possession/Game 30:24 29:36 3rd Down Conversions 82/205 63/229 4th Down Conversions 10/20 8/20 Touchdowns Scored 73 31 Field Goals-Attempts 12-17 8-18 PAT-Attempts 67-68 28-29 Attendance 376,878 247,868   Games/Avg per Game 8/47,110 4/61,967

Offense

Rushing

Name	GP	Att	Gain	Loss	Net	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Darren Sproles	15	306	2,067	81	1,986	6.5	16	73	132.4
Ell Roberson	13	227	1135	160	975	4.3	15	33	75.0
Total	15	688	3,817	388	3,429	5.0	42	73	228.6
Opponents	15	549	2,113	486	1,627	3.0	6	45	108.5

Passing

Name	GP-GS	Effic	Att-Cmp-Int	Yds	TD	Lng	Avg/G	Pct.
Ell Roberson	13	143.19	294-152-12	2,545	24	63	195.8	51.7
Jeff Schwin	6	119.99	68-37-3	563	1	41	93.8	54.4
Total	15	137.50	371-194-17	3,186	25	63	212.4	52.3
Opponents	15	104.41	447-224-20	2,619	19	65	174.6	50.1

Receiving

Name	GP	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
James Terry	15	64	1,232	19.2	13	63	82.1
Antoine Polite	13	29	409	14.1	1	36	31.5
Total	15	194	3,186	16.4	25	63	212.4
Opponents	15	224	2,619	11.7	19	65	174.6

Awards and honors

See also: 2003 All-Big 12 Conference football team and 2003 College Football All-America Team

2004 NFL Draft

Main article: 2004 NFL draft

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Nick Leckey	Center	6	167	Arizona Cardinals
Rashad Washington	Strong safety	7	236	New York Jets

^[6]

References

1. Points scored fact Archived July 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
2. DeLassus, David. "Kansas State University coaching records by game (2003)". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
3. "Kansas State 45, Iowa State 0". ESPN. November 8, 2003. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
4. "Sproles rushes for 273 yards, 2 TDs". ESPN. November 23, 2003. Retrieved September 29, 2019.^{[dead link]}
5. "Roberson, Sproles deliever [sic] 1-2 punch". ESPN. December 6, 2003. Retrieved September 29, 2019.^{[dead link]}
6. "2004 NFL Draft". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on December 23, 2007. Retrieved September 30, 2019.