Prater Gone!!!

[wildwillie]

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=38&u_sid=2224115

According to the OWH, Prater is leaving the program.

"There's some funny stuff going on down there," Prater said. "I just felt like getting out of there was going to be the best thing for my family and me."

Does this sound familiar:
"That's what I mean by funny stuff," Prater said. "I've tried to find out why I wasn't allowed to practice. I don't know if he wants to play his recruits. I don't know if he felt I didn't think fit into his offense. Under coach Snyder's system, you had to be around 250 (pounds) to play. Maybe he (Prince) thinks I'm too big for his system, that he wants tight ends around 230 or so.

"I don't know. All I know is that I didn't feel the opportunity was there for me to play for Kansas State."

I expect to get hammered by all the die hard posters, but to me it seems like the stories of scholarship athletes leaving one after another with the same sediments that they didn't feel they would have the opportunity to contribute is worrying me.

Can we continue to lose athlete after athlete and be a competitive team in the B12? It sounds like our incoming '07 recruiting class might not break the top 30 for classes, which makes me ask -

Are the players we are bringing in better than the  players we had on our roster?

Go ahead and tear this post up and throw me to the dogs - I am just a curious and worried Cat fan!

[michigancat]

More:

The 6-foot-4, 257-pound Prater wasn't listed on Kansas State's two-deep depth chart after spring practice, although he was expected to challenge for one of the top two spots in preseason camp. That changed when he wasn't among the 105 players invited to preseason practice. Prince didn't specify why Prater wasn't invited to camp, but the player said it was because he didn't pass all phases of the team's conditioning test.

"I went to all the summer workouts, and I thought everything was good," Prater said. "We had this conditioning test, and we were told if we couldn't pass it, we would not be allowed to come to camp. We ran three shuttle runs, and I made my time in two of the three so I couldn't come to camp."

Prater said several Kansas State players told him that other players, including two incoming tight ends, were allowed to come to camp even though they hadn't passed the test

[AzCat]

What Prince is doing is fairly obvious.  The program has been carrying a lot of dead weight and poor attitudes the past couple of years, Prince is just cleaning house so he'll be left with the kids he's comfortable having around.  I don't have a problem with it.

[fatty fat fat]

Grigsby
Schmidt
Webb
Evridge
Lopina
Prater
Taylor

[markp68]

What Prince is doing is fairly obvious.  The program has been carrying a lot of dead weight and poor attitudes the past couple of years, Prince is just cleaning house so he'll be left with the kids he's comfortable having around.  I don't have a problem with it.

Evridge didn't seem like "dead weight" to any outsider......he probably felt like it after getting beat up that much.

[fatty fat fat]

Evridge may not have been dead weight, but he wasn't very good.

[Joker]

Add Greer to your list fats..

[markp68]

Evridge may not have been dead weight, but he wasn't very good.

OK, fine, Evridge wasn't very good.  If Prince wasn't going to put him in the two-deep, why didn't he just tell him after the Spring Game? 

I mean, wouldn't it be better to clear out the "dead weight" by the summer, so you know who you don't have before fall practices start?  The timing seems a little iffy to me is all, and it could be detrimental to the team morale.

[fatty fat fat]

Players leaving the program doesn't bother me. It happens all the time with new coaches in every &@#%in sport. Whiffing in major recruiting battles does bother me.

[Poopley]

Prater was awesome. After a few smokes, he'd happily share his stash. We're going to miss that young fellow.

[ChicagoCat]

I dont like the missing athletes at all.  Evridge wasn't great but he couldve been starting this season (maybe) and I wouldve like to see freeman red shirted if we could retain QBs.  I think Prince is hurting our chances for any immediate success, including a bowl season, but hopefully he knows what he is doing enough to bring us some success down the road.  I haven't given up on him as a coach but I don't have high hopes for this season.  I pray he proves me wrong.

[FBWillie]

Maybe it's by design, but my expectations just keep getting lower and lower... early on I thought 7-8 wins was possible... Now I'll be ecstatic just to get a bowl bid.

[Racquetball_Ninja]

Fatty,

What's up with having that little puppet monkey as your avater?

[purplecobra]

"Can we continue to lose athlete after athlete and be a competitive team in the B12? It sounds like our incoming '07 recruiting class might not break the top 30 for classes,"

we won't see the top 50.

I wa also curious as to what players had attitude problems and cite specific examples.  and just saying they had attitude problems to draw fire from what prince is doing is not an example.  and saying they sucked, examples also.  last I heard lopina was doing fine at wsu and the badgers and horned frogs, to pretty good programs are fighting over the crappy allen avridge and his attitude problem

[catfan28]

Sure thing Cobra. 

[purplecobra]

c'mon mr mod, no answer to the question?

[Nitin]

I know you all don't want to hear from me as I'm a Husker fan but losing Prater is no loss to KSU IMO. He's not a D-1 player. 

Great site FWIW.

[mjrod]

I know you all don't want to hear from me as I'm a Husker fan but losing Prater is no loss to KSU IMO. He's not a D-1 player. 

Great site FWIW.

Welcome to the board.

[FBWillie]

I wa also curious as to what players had attitude problems and cite specific examples.  and just saying they had attitude problems to draw fire from what prince is doing is not an example.  and saying they sucked, examples also. ....

Sure... I'll get right on that...Anyone know of a person in the program that has free time on their hands to come to this forum and educate us on the psyche of all current and ex football players?  Not only that, but cite examples of when sed players displayed attitudes that would be detrimental to the program...   Hell even football players would work as long as they didn't display any personal bias to the player in question.  Anyone? Anyone....  Nope?  Okay speculation it is.  They were destroying the program.

[Nitin]

FWI, Prater is transferring to Nebraska-Omaha, which is a Division II school.

[Poopley]

hopefully, they don't test D-2 athletes for weed.

[pissclams]

Apparently they don't test D1 athletes for weed, so why test D2 guys?

[Poopley]

k-state tested him.