100 Questions: Passing yards for Thompson?

***Yesterday's Question HERE***

In an attempt to pass the time this off-season we're fortunate to have secured the help of scottwildcat from Boscoe's Boys. Scott is going to provide 100 questions about the past, present, future (and who-knows-what) involving Kansas State sports, and I'll do my very best to answer them.

Let's dive in to the 100 Questions.

It's difficult to use Skylar Thompson's history in my research for deciding this answer, as virtually all of his 14 starts have come either as A.) a redshirt freshman thrown into action as the third-team quarterback, or B.) rotating in and out endlessly with fellow quarterback Alex Delton as a sophomore.

Thompson, now a junior, has never had a time in his career where he was getting practice reps consistent with a typical starting quarterback. In that sense, his 2,080 yards seem a bit like an accomplishment, and you'd guess he'd be able to match that number in just 12 games if those 12 games feature him taking snaps throughout while getting the practice work a starter would usually receive.

Those 2,080 yards have come on 291 career passing attempts. Los Angeles Chargers (any excuse I get to write that) draft pick Easton Stick threw 2,752 on 281 attempts last year in 15 games under Chris Klieman at North Dakota State.

Now, to be fair, Stick was an excellent college quarterback, FCS or not. He sounds likely to at least make the Chargers' practice squad and would have been a very good quarterback at the FBS level, too.

Simply comparing a junior Thompson in his first year in the system to a senior Stick is not fair.

Plus, I don't think Thompson is going to play in 15 games this year, either.

Still, let's see what the math says.

If you adjust down Stick's numbers for a 12-game season, he'd be at 2,201 yards, obviously surpassing the (well-picked) number of 2,080 yards projected here.

A junior Thompson has a much, much more difficult task going against FBS defenses than a senior Stick did at the FCS level, but that doesn't mean he can't meet, or surpass, his passing numbers.

For one thing, K-State's almost certainly not going to be as utterly dominant on the ground as NDSU was at its level. And second, I don't expect the Wildcats to be blowing everybody out on their way to a national championship.

Playing in more close games, and likely sometimes from behind, is going to give Thompson more opportunity on a game-by-game basis to throw the ball this year than Stick did.

Stick threw it around 19 times a game last season. I'd think Thompson's number jumps to about 25. Even if he just matches what he has done through a less-than-ideal situation his first two years (7.15 yards per pass attempt), that would equal out to a 2,145-yard total over a 12-game season.

I'd be surprised if Thompson isn't a little more efficient on his pass attempts this season, meaning I wouldn't be stunned if he ended up around the 2,300-yard range.

So, obviously, I'm taking the over here, but there's not tons of margin for error. Missing even one start would make it very close, two would probably have him under the number.

So, let's just hope for health and for an improved Thompson under a staff 100 percent committed to developing him as its starting quarterback.