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Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time

By Randy Gurzi

COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 1: Vince Young #10 of the Texas Longhorns in action against the Missouri Tigers at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field on October 1, 2005 in Columbia, Missouri. Texas defeated Missouri 51-20. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
COLUMBIA, MO - OCTOBER 1: Vince Young #10 of the Texas Longhorns in action against the Missouri Tigers at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field on October 1, 2005 in Columbia, Missouri. Texas defeated Missouri 51-20. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Collin Klein, Kansas State University
Collin Klein #7, Kansas State University (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) /

. QB. Wildcats . Collin Klein. 33. player. 823

Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 33. Collin Klein, QB, Kansas State football

Collin Klein wasn’t expected to be the star he turned out to be. The Colorado native joined the Kansas State Wildcats in 2008 and redshirted that season. Then in 2009 as a redshirt freshman, he played wide receiver and was also on special teams. He played sparingly and had six receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown.

Then in 2010, he switched to quarterback but was used only situationally. That season he had just 138 yards and a touchdown with no picks but was used as a runner often. Klein had 432 yards on 76 carries and six touchdowns. He followed that up with his best season on the ground, running for 1,141 yards and an unbelievable 27 touchdowns.

As a passer, he was improving with 1,918 yards and 13 touchdowns. In his final season, he threw for 2,641 yards with 16 touchdowns and nine picks and added another 920 yards with 23 touchdowns on the ground.

He was a big name in college football that season after leading Kansas State to a 10-0 start to the season and as high as No. 2 in the AP rankings at one point. He was also a Heisman finalist and won the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm awards.

Klein never made it to the NFL and had a cup of tea with the Montreal Alouettes before moving into the coaching ranks. As of 2021, he’s still the quarterback coach for his alma mater.

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