their shot at a national title was all but secured. And then the wheels fell off. The Wildcats fell in heartbreaking fashion in overtime and were relegated to the Alamo Bowl, where they would lose to Purdue.

1999 and 2000 were great years for K-State football. Two more 11-win seasons and two bowl victories led by Jonathan Beasley. Beasley was a solid QB, with a good arm and decent running ability, but he was no Bishop. He didn’t excite the fans and the coaches the way Bishop did. He won, but he wasn’t “pretty”. But there was another kid from Texas on the roster, a fast and savvy runner with a cannon for an arm. He redshirted in 1999, and rode the bench in 2000. But 2001 was hisyear, except that the staff had also brought in a juco QB to compete.

Marc Dunn had just won the NJCAA Offensive Player of the Year award and broke the NJCAA all-time passing record with 4,001 yards. He was a passing QB, geared for an offense like the Wildcats ran from 1989-1996. He played well, threw the ball efficiently.

Ell Roberson was the guy. He was brought in to be Michael Bishop 2.0. He had the same tools, the same skills. But he was young and unproven.

2001 was, relatively, a disaster for the Wildcats. 6-6, and a QB controversy all year. Snyder and the fans wanted Roberson, but he was young and mistake prone. And while the Cats made a bowl, it wasn’t a good year.

But 2002 turned things back