After losing star receiver Jayce Brown to the transfer portal, Kansas State has had to go back to the drawing board on overhauling the position.
According to coach Collin Klein, the program is closer than some may think. In his second spring ball press conference, Klein lauded former Missouri receiver Joshua Manning as the next potential star in the offense. He had 29 receptions for 318 yards and two touchdowns last season.
"It’s been really fun to watch his progression," Klein said. "Our defense doesn’t give you anything easy out there on the edge and on the perimeter. I think his ability to create separation and release off the line has improved. He’s got very good long speed, and being able to translate that in and out of routes has gotten better. I appreciate the heck out of them. I think he’s in the top five in total reps for the spring, so he's really worked hard and gotten better."
Missouri ranked dead last in the SEC in passing yards last season, but that was largely because of its conference-leading rushing attack. Though Kansas State's passing game struggled as well in 2025, it is expected to return to stardom with Klein returning as Avery Johnson's play-caller.
Manning has been linked to the Wildcats for years, ever since he was a four-star recruit coming out of Lee's Summit High School. He and Johnson visited the program around the same time and have remained close since. One of the most coveted Kansas State players in the past few seasons, hopefully, he can add to a unit looking for improvement after last year.
Johnson's junior season was underwhelming, failing to elevate his passing game. With Klein back in the building, the program is anticipated to get the Johnson who shone in his freshman year. Klein said he is impressed with the receiving unit so far in spring ball.
"The [group to show the most improvement] is our wideouts," Klein said. "A pretty new group, got a couple of new faces in there. I think their fundamental development, going against our defense, you saw the ability to create separation, the ability to release off the line of scrimmage, and some fundamental skills that really developed over the course of the spring. And then just continuity with the quarterbacks, being able to throw and catch more consistently over the last four weeks."
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