KSO Roundtable: Who will Kansas State miss the most?

A fun series that KSO will undertake during our Kansas State season preview series that began this past Monday, June 15 (first day of voluntary football workouts), is the KSO Roundtable.

I'm very appreciative of the answers and willing participation from KMAN's John Kurtz and Mason Voth, as well as regular site contributors ksu_Fan and Chris Nelson.

The series will be two times a week, Wednesday and Sunday, and tackle the pertinent topics and storylines of the season and we'll each share our thoughts.

Enjoy!

CHRIS NELSON: When a team loses all five starters along the offensive line, one of the departing tackles or center could be a natural choice. However, Trey Dishon is the guy that K-State will most the most. Dishon started 50 games over the course of his career and went from being a solid contributor his first three seasons to someone capable of being disruptive his senior year. I don't know if any of Kansas State's returners fit the mold of a play-making defensive tackle, and it is unknown how quickly the junior college additions will be able to get acclimated with a short off-season. To add to the importance of this position group, all three of the Wildcats' linebackers, like most linebackers, perform better in space when blockers are not able to get up on them. Many have high expectations for that group, but they will only reach their full potential if the defensive tackles play well.

DEREK YOUNG: I agree with the others in that there is multiple good answers to this particular question. I considered Dishon. Of course, I considered Scott Frantz. I even considered defensive coordinator Scottie Hazelton, to be honest. However, I think the best answer is Dalton Schoen. If it wasn't for him, the passing game would have been null and void for most of 2019, especially in games where Malik Knowles didn't play or was limited. And with Knowles, that has been a frequent thing. Is someone else ready to shoulder the load that Schoen did if Knowles continues to deal with the injury bug? Also, I'm not sure someone had as many third down receptions as Schoen did a year ago and that is no small thing.

GRANT FLANDERS: Trey Dishon. Dishon has been a solid defensive tackle ever since he's started for the Wildcats. Not only did they lose him, but they lost their next best defensive tackle as well in Jordan Mittie. Losing both makes losing Dishon that much more complicated. I think there are some guys on the squad who have the potential to be solid contributors, with time, but I'm not sure if anyone will be as consistent or as productive as Dishon was, at least in the beginning. Therefore, I think Dishon will be missed the most.

JOHN KURTZ: There’s an argument to be made for a couple of different players. For instance, Dalton Schoen is an underrated loss after his steady production over the last three years. He leaves behind a receiving corps that is much longer on potential than it is proven production.

Trey Dishon started 48 straight games to finish his career and deserved much better than only one Honorable Mention All-Big 12 selection. There will be pressure on junior college transfers Robert Hentz II and Derick Newton to contribute early in their careers with Dishon gone.

In the end, the player that will be missed the most is Scott Frantz. He gets the nod over Nick Kaltmayer simply because he was K-State’s left tackle and started all 51 games over the past four seasons.

The biggest hole that this team has in 2020 is replacing nearly every major contributor on the offensive line. It will be far more difficult to replace the tackles, where experience in the program is sparse, than the interior positions. Help is on the way with players like Carver Willis and Witt Mitchum, but Conor Riley will have to get creative to figure out the tackle positions in the interim.

KSU_FAN: James Gilbert. While I think his production can be replaced, Gilbert was a great fit for Courtney Messingham's offense. Gilbert led the 'Cats in rushing last season with 737 yards (nearly doubling any other running back) with a solid 5.2 yards per carry. More importantly, he was effective at both the option/zone-run game, along with the power-run game, while also being a solid blocker in pass protection. There is plenty of young talent at the running back position in place, but especially in a year with no spring ball, having an experienced, tough runner who was very difficult to bring down on first contact would be nice to have coming back in this offense. I'm fine with Messingham's running back by committee philosophy and I believe several guys will step up, but I'm not sold that any single player has the combination of skills that Gilbert brought last season.

MASON VOTH: James Gilbert is the first guy that comes to mind when thinking about who will be missed the most. I know Harry Trotter will return, but he is a guy that shouldn’t be the dominant ball-carrier, and I don’t think he will be this year. With a next to new offensive line, I think it would be beneficial to have your dominant ball-carrier be a guy with a lot of experience. I also feel we kind of got robbed of the Gilbert and Jordon Brown experience last year with them both missing some time due to injuries. I think the stable of young running backs will be serviceable this year, but I think a guy like Gilbert would have elevated the ceiling of the offense a little more.

MITCH FORTNER: K-State graduated a lot of talent at defensive tackle that will be missed, but Trey Dishon will be missed the most. It takes toughness, grit and maturity to be an everyday guy in the trenches. Dishon had all of that when he was ready to play after his redshirt in 2015. Every coach wants a Trey Dishon on his roster. Someone that gets better every year, plays consistently and always shows up in big games is crucial, especially against KU. 50 career starts, 15.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks in Trey's career. Also, who's not going to miss those tattoos and that beard? I'm 100 percent confident with the men returning on Kansas State's defensive line. However, it will be tough for Coach Klieman to replace Trey's leadership.